Godzilla facts for kids

Gojira 1954 Japanese poster

Godzilla is a giant dinosaur-like fictional monster who first appeared in movies from Japan, in the year 1954. Since then has been featured in twenty-nine movies. During his movie career, this large reptile fought against many other mythical monsters, including the giant moth-like Mothra, the three-headed King Ghidorah, his own robotic mirror image Mechagodzilla, and several more enemies. The original Japanese name, Gojira, is a combination of the words gorilla and kujira (means whale). In countries where the primary language is English, the name has been changed to Godzilla.

Movie appearances

Godzilla (1954)
Godzilla Raids Again (1955)
Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956)
King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
Mothra vs. Godzilla (1964)
Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964)
Invasion of Astro-Monster or Monster Zero (US release) (1965)
Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster (1966)
Son of Godzilla (1967)
Destroy All Monsters (1968)
All Monsters Attack (1969)
Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971)
Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972)
Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973)
Zone Fighter (1973)
Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974)
Terror of Mechagodzilla (1975)
The Return of Godzilla (1984)
Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)
Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992)
Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993)
Monster Planet Of Godzilla (1994)
Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla (1994)
Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995)
Godzilla Island (1997)
Godzilla (1998)
Godzilla 2000: Millennium (1999)
Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000)
Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001)
Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2002)
Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003)
Godzilla: Final Wars (2004)
Godzilla (2014)

Images for kids

Godzilla (and offspring) featured in Toho's Shōwa, Heisei and Millennium films
Godzilla's atomic breath, as shown in Godzilla (1954)
Godzilla battles King Kong in King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962). This film has the highest Japanese box office attendance figures in the entire Godzilla series to date.
Toho's Heisei Godzilla (left, 100 metres tall) confronting Legendary's Hollywood Godzilla (right, 108.2 metres tall) as shown in Bandai Namco's 2014 video game Godzilla
Suit fitting on the set of Godzilla Raids Again (1955), with Haruo Nakajima portraying Godzilla on the left
Godzilla's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame