Monday Movie Memo: 5 Facts You Need To Know About The Godzilla Prequel

Godzilla opens in theaters on Friday, and director Gareth Edwards does a fine job of balancing the history of the classic character with a modern monster movie that serves contemporary audiences. But there's a LOT of back story to our title creature ... some dating as far back as 250 million years.

To get you caught up, we blazed through the Godzilla prequel graphic novel, "Godzilla: Awakening," and picked out the 5 facts you need to know before grabbing a ticket to Godzilla this weekend! We kept the discussion relatively spoiler free, giving you a chance to hear about Godzilla and get prepared for Edwards' massive summer blockbuster.

Godzilla bus

While you wait, make sure you check out:

- Our 5 star review of the new Godzilla movie:

- A discussion about converting Godzilla to 3D:

- Four new clips of Godzilla action!

- And Godzilla stars Ken Watanabe and Aaron Taylor Johnson talking to us about that ridiculous "fat shaming" controversy the monster recently endured.

Godzilla opens in theaters on May 16. Get in line now.

Sean O'Connell
Managing Editor

Sean O’Connell is a journalist and CinemaBlend’s Managing Editor. Having been with the site since 2011, Sean interviewed myriad directors, actors and producers, and created ReelBlend, which he proudly cohosts with Jake Hamilton and Kevin McCarthy. And he's the author of RELEASE THE SNYDER CUT, the Spider-Man history book WITH GREAT POWER, and an upcoming book about Bruce Willis.