Unmade Film
Intended Release: 2001

Godzilla X Kamacuras

ゴジラ×カマキラス
[Gojira X Kamakirasu]

Godzilla faces off against the Kamacuras.

LOST PROJECT HISTORY

Despite his established credibility in the genre with the 1990s Gamera films, director Shusuke Kaneko still faced a few challenges before Toho entrusted him with the Godzilla series. Although Kaneko had already worked on several films with the company in the previous decade, such as My Soul is Slashed (1991) and Haunted School 3 (1997), he was put to one more assignment before getting to create a project around Toho's most famous creation. This resulted in Kaneko creating the 2000 movie Pyrokinesis.

Pleased with the finished product, Kaneko was given the green light to create an entry in the long running Godzilla franchise. His first concept was a feature involving the insect monster Kamacuras from Son of Godzilla (1967). Kaneko was interested in using advanced special effects techniques, including lots of CGI, in creating the mantis kaiju.

Very little is known about the overall concept, for example if Godzilla would have been the protagonist or the antagonist in the feature. Ultimately, the idea was quickly scrapped after Kaneko discovered that Godzilla was already facing off against a revamped insect monster, in this case Meganulon, for Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000). Not wanting to create a film with similar opponents, the director went back to the drawing board. His next concept was Godzilla vs. M, which had the King of the Monsters facing off against an original space-based monster.

Monsters

Background and Trivia

• Note: the name of the project is unknown. Godzilla X Kamacuras is used as a placeholder. It could very well have been "Godzilla vs. Kamacuras" or even another title that doesn't use the versus or X naming conventions. The X in the name is used, though, as it aligns with the title for the also scrapped Godzilla X Varan, Baragon and Anguirus: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack.
• In 2001 interview found in Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack Super Complete Works (ISBN: 9784091014818), director Shusuke Kaneko brings up the unmade concept. He mentions that he was motivated by the idea of using modern CGI to bring Kamacuras to life, thinking it would be "neat." However, he expresses regret in the interview, noting that the appearance of Megaguirus in the previous film led him to explore other ideas to avoid too much similarity. At this point in the interview, he shifts the conversation to the Godzilla vs. M concept.
• On January 8th, 2017, a three major directors talk show event was held at the "Great Godzilla Tokusatsu Kingdom HIROSHIMA" exhibition in Japan. The event included directors Kazuki Omori, Shusuke Kaneko, and Masaaki Tezuka. One of the questions posed to them was which monster they would have Godzilla battle if they were ever to direct another Godzilla film. While Kaneko didn't provide a direct answer, he instead brought up his rejected Godzilla X Kamacuras pitch in his response to the question.

Concept Evolution