Godzilla returned in Godzilla Raids Again, though it was a different Godzilla named Gigantis in the American release. This is the first film in which Godzilla battled another monster, named Anguirus, who was defeated. He would continue to play the role of an antagonist until Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, in which Godzilla took on the heroic personality which he would wear for the remainder of the series. (Indeed, a translated conversation between Godzilla, Mothra and Rodan in said film reveals that Godzilla's ire towards humans is merely due to what he perceives as unprovoked attacks towards him). He would team up with Mothra, Rodan, and Anguirus along with other monsters to battle Ebirah, Kumonga, Kamacuras, Hedorah, Gigan, Megalon, Mechagodzilla, and, most frequently, King Ghidorah in different films. He even gained a son in the form of Minilla. The series ended with Terror of Mechagodzilla in 1975. The Toho sentai series Zone Fighter is notable in that it features Toho Kaiju from the films, such as Gigan, King Ghidorah, and Godzilla himself. Produced during the 70s, Toho has gone on record stating that the events depicted in the Zone Fighter television series are actually part of the Showa era, taking place between Godzilla vs. Megalon and Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.
In the Heisei era (the VS era), Godzilla not only returns after more than a decade's absence, but marks a transition between the Shōwa era (the reign of Hirohito) to the Heisei era (the reign of Akihito). This would be the first of many times the Godzilla film series would see a continuity reboot. In The Return of Godzilla, all Godzilla films through Godzilla Raids Again and Terror of Mechagodzilla would be retconned, with The Return of Godzilla being a direct sequel to the original film and featuring a brand new Godzilla. The Godzilla of the Heisei era would be portrayed in a less anthropomorphic manner than the Showa Godzilla, depicted as a violent, insatiable force of nature rather than a campy superhero. However, despite being a threat to humanity, Godzilla would continue to fight other monsters, battling Biollante, King Ghidorah, Mothra, Battra, Rodan, Mechagodzilla, Spacegodzilla, and Destoroyah over the course of the series, and aquired an heir in the form of Godzilla Junior. Heisei Godzilla would eventually meet his demise in the final film of the series, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, melting down after defeating the titular villain, with Godzilla Junior mutating to full-size to carry on his legacy.
The Millennium series is unique because rather than creating a single continuity that all the films would follow, the series would instead comprise a number of discrete narratives, each using only the original Godzilla film as a backdrop. The Millennium series would consist of Godzilla 2000, Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, Godzilla: Tokyo SOS and Godzilla: Final Wars. Each film would feature its own incarnation of Godzilla. Throughout the series, Godzilla would fight both new opponents such as Orga and Megaguirus, as well as classic opponents such as Mothra and Mechagodzilla. The majority of the films in the series (with the exception of Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack) featured a revamped Godzilla design. This new "Millennium Godzilla" had a wilder appearance, with spikier skin, more massive, jagged dorsal fins, and a fiercer, more reptilian face than the Godzilla featured in the Heisei series. Due to the disconnected nature of the Millennium series, the character's portrayal varied more than it did in the Showa and Heisei series, with some films depicting him as a sympathetic or heroic character (Godzilla 2000, Godzilla vs Megaguirus, Godzilla: Final Wars), and others depicting him as pure antagonist (Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, Godzilla: Tokyo SOS.)
Overall, Godzilla has starred in 28 films. His last film was Godzilla: Final Wars with the next Godzilla film coming around five to ten years from now, which will mark the 60th anniversary movie.
