Time was, Toho Studios was to giant monster movies what Hammer Films was to Gothic horror or Marvel Studios is now to superhero movies. They made dozens upon dozens of them, they all did quite well, and they created a subgenre of movies that remain unparalleled today. Kaiju exists as a word referring to both a kind of monster and a variety of movie because of 1954’s Godzilla and the many films that came after. It’s this legacy that FUNimation is bringing forth with the trailer for Toho’s latest Japanese entry in the franchise, Shin Godzilla. And boy is it working.

Also called Godzilla Resurgence, Shin Godzilla looks like it’s going to have the exact mixture of new technology and filming techniques and the kind of disaster movie sci-fi elements that made the ’54 movie what it was. Godzilla did eventually became a hero in the original series of films and again following the 1984 reboot, but here, the big lizard is a villain through and through… or at least a morally neutral creature that nevertheless is wreaking untold havoc on the people of Tokyo. Ah, feels good to be running in terror from a lizard who’s way bigger than he ought to be.

The movie is written and co-directed by Hideaki Anno, the creator of Neon Genesis Evangelion. We’re incredibly eager to see what he does with the material, since Eva already dealt extensively with giant beasts destroying the city. The trailer hails Shin Godzilla as the return of both Anno and Godzilla to prominence, which is beyond exciting. We imagine Anno will bring some of that anime visual flair to the live action arena.

Also exciting to this Godzilla movie fan is the fact that the bulk of the trailer uses music from Ishiro Honda’s original 1954 film and then the end gives way to the theme from 1964’s Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster, which was used heavily in those movies for the next decade. They get it. They know what Godzilla fans want to see and hear. It’s that roar and a guy in a suit destroying model buildings. That’s Godzilla!

Shin Godzilla premiered in July in Japan and became the highest-grossing non-animated film of the year, and it’s coming to the U.S. for a limited engagement October 11-18. Check your local cinemas for where you can catch it.

Let us know your thoughts on the return of the behemoth in the comments below!

Speaking of old monster movies, have you seen Sssssss?

Image: Toho Studios

Kyle Anderson is the Associate Editor for Nerdist. He writes the weekly look at weird or obscure films in Schlock & Awe. Follow him on Twitter!