Gamera vs. Viras

Lore & Background

Gamera vs. Viras was filmed at Daiei-Tokyo Studios in 25 days. Daiei was in financial trouble at the beginning of 1968, leading to a reduced budget of ¥20 million. Footage from previous Gamera films was reused. Director Yuasa cited the 1966 TV series Mission: Impossible as an influence. The agreement between Daiei and AI-TV required an American boy to be cast as one of the two main child characters. Since no American child actors who spoke Japanese could be found, Carl Craig, the 11-year-old son of a US military officer stationed in Japan, was cast. Craig had no prior acting experience, and this was his sole acting role.

Reader's Guide

Gamera vs. Viras was released in Japan on March 20, 1968, and was such a big success that the studio asked director Yuasa if he could produce two additional Gamera films per year. Although Yuasa said that was impossible, it opened the door to more Gamera films. The film was never released theatrically in the United States; it was released directly to television by American International Television in 1969 as Destroy All Planets. In a retrospective review, AllMovie stated the film offers 'everything one expects from a massive zero-budget monster battle film' while also having 'unintentionally brilliant quirky moments.' British film critic Phil Hardy called it 'a straightforward children's film' that continues the shift of the monster genre towards a space opera context. American writer John LeMay said that 'in terms of character utilization and script, Gamera vs. Viras could be the film where it all came together. But, in terms of budget and [special effects], it was the film where it all started to fall apart.' Filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki found the film memorable as a child but found it absurd for humanity to surrender to aliens for the safety of two boys.

Did You Know?

• The film's budget was cut to ¥20 million (about $56,000) due to Daiei's financial trouble.
• Footage from previous Gamera films was reused in some parts of the movie.
• Carl Craig, who played the American scout Jim, had no prior acting experience and this was his only acting role.
• The film was released directly to television in the United States in 1969 under the title Destroy All Planets.