Exploring Godzilla’s Tokyo Through Ginza and Hibiya

Tokyo’s Ginza and nearby Hibiya districts are packed with movie history, theater culture, and showbiz memories, but for kaiju fans, the area offers something more specific: a compact walking route through several eras of the Godzilla franchise. Within a short distance, visitors can find two Godzilla statues, a building tied to three major Godzilla films, and a shop stocked with monster goods. What follows below is not an official tour, but it might as well be. Around these Tokyo streets, Godzilla is not just an icon of the silver screen, but the guardian kaiju of the neighborhood.

A Single Building Connects Three Eras of Godzilla History

Our Godzilla walking tour begins with the Yurakucho Mullion building, located close to the Ginza subway station exit and JR Yurakucho Station. The Yurakucho Mullion may look like a busy shopping and cinema complex, but it is also a major Godzilla landmark hiding in plain sight. The building stands on the former site of the Nihon Gekijo, better known as Nichigeki, a grand old theater that helped define the Ginza area as an entertainment district beginning in the 1930s. In the original 1954 Godzilla film, Nichigeki becomes part of Godzilla’s rampage, with the monster striking the distinctive U-shaped theater with its tail before moving on through downtown Tokyo.

Decades later, Nichigeki was torn down and rebuilt as the current Yurakucho Mullion. The new building opened in 1984, the same year The Return of Godzilla brought the franchise back to theaters in Japan. The newly built complex appears during the Tokyo attack, as Godzilla scrapes along the wall and shatters the Mullion’s windows. In 2023, Godzilla Minus One then turned back the clock, digitally bringing the old Nichigeki back to postwar Ginza so Godzilla could destroy the landmark once again. That makes this corner a rare Tokyo location where the 1954 original, the 1984 revival, and the 2023 award-winning film all overlap.

Walk Through a Real-Life Return of Godzilla Location 

From the Yurakucho Mullion building, it’s about a five-minute walk to our next destination: Hibiya. But don’t rush! Enjoy the sights along the way. Much of this area around the crossing of Harumi-dori and Sotobori-dori was replicated in miniature for The Return of Godzilla. Although many businesses and buildings have changed since then, this area still looks quite a lot like it did when Godzilla moved through it in 1984. In particular, look for the elevated train tracks coming out of JR Yurakucho Station. It was here that the King of the Monsters picked up (and dropped) a passing bullet train in The Return of Godzilla.

Hibiya Godzilla Square Brings Shin Godzilla to the Street

Hibiya is an area rich in showbiz history and is sometimes described as “Japan’s Broadway” thanks to its concentration of theaters, cinemas, and entertainment landmarks. It is also home to Hibiya Godzilla Square. In this outdoor plaza area, you will find the Shin Godzilla statue, a bronze figure based on the design from the 2016 film and produced by TOHO Visual Arts. Measuring about three meters tall, including the pedestal, the monument also carries a hidden tribute to the original 1954 Godzilla film, with a final script signed by original suit actor Haruo Nakajima and production storyboards preserved by Heisei-era special effects director Koichi Kawakita sealed inside. The pedestal features a line from Shin Godzilla: “The human race must coexist with Godzilla” The landmark has even been turned into a 30cm statue, giving fans a smaller version of Hibiya’s guardian kaiju to bring home. By day, the statue is an easy photo stop for fans exploring Ginza. At night, when the statue lights up, Godzilla becomes part of the glow of Tokyo’s bustling entertainment district.

A Heisei Godzilla Statue’s Resting Place

The story of Hibiya Godzilla Square actually begins with an earlier statue. In 1995, as Godzilla vs. Destoroyah prepared to bring the Heisei series to a dramatic close, a special one meter tall bronze Godzilla statue was installed at Nemu no Hiroba plaza near the Hibiya Chanter building. For more than two decades, that statue served as the area’s main Godzilla landmark.

In 2018, Hibiya Chanter marked its 30th anniversary with a major renewal. As part of that project, Nemu no Hiroba was renamed and reopened as Godzilla Square Hibiya, with the new Shin Godzilla statue installed as its centerpiece. The 1995 statue was moved indoors to the nearby TOHO Cinemas Hibiya, located inside the Tokyo Midtown Hibiya complex, where it now watches over the movie theater’s lobby.

This older Godzilla statue carries a deep Heisei-era lineage. It is based on a BioGoji model created by Nobuyuki Yasumaru during the 1989 production of Godzilla vs. Biollante, itself derived in part from the 1984 Godzilla maquette, with further modifications by Tomoki Kobayashi. The statue’s plaque keeps a classic warning alive with Dr. Yamane’s line from the 1954 Godzilla: “I can't believe that Godzilla was the last of his species.” The fact that Hibiya is home to two Godzilla statues shows how accurate that warning was.

End Your Godzilla Saga at the TOHO Entertainment STORE

After visiting the Godzilla statues, there is one more easy stop to make before leaving Hibiya. Head up to the third floor of the Hibiya Chanter building, located next to Hibiya Godzilla Square, and visit the new TOHO entertainment STORE. Here, you’ll find a wide mix of goods, including Godzilla items, animation merch, and goods tied to the area’s theater culture. The entrance also makes an impression, with a massive 1991-style Godzilla waiting to greet visitors. 

For fans already exploring Ginza and Hibiya’s monster history, it is the natural final stop: see the landmarks, make the memories, then bring a little piece of Godzilla home.