When Adam Wingard needs to come up with a new kaiju (the Japanese term for giant monsters like Godzilla), the first thing he does is imagine himself as a kid walking through Walmart’s toy section in 1980s America.

“I loved the way the designs of toys kind of jumped off the shelf,” Wingard tells Inverse. “And so, even though I should preface that I do not make any money off of Godzilla toys and have never created anything specifically to be a toy, I do actually take a lot of influence, strangely enough, from the idea of designing toys.”

Speaking to me over Zoom, the 41-year-old director has the look of a wizened dark wizard. The boyish face I remember from our last interview back in 2021 is now eclipsed by a tangled salt-and-pepper beard that hangs far below his chin and framed by long, dark black hair. But after just a few minutes of conversation, it’s clear that underneath the surface he’s still that kid staring up at Walmart’s gleaming toy shelves with a sense of childhood wonder.

Whether Apple TV+ is actually the new HBO is a tricky question. When Wired put forward the idea earlier in 2024, it had a certain truth to it.

Since its launch five years ago, Apple has produced critical darlings, won Emmys for Ted Lasso, a Best Picture Oscar for CODA, and generally allowed strange concepts to flourish on its streaming service. If there are any sure bets in the streaming industry, it’s that Apple still has billions to spend on new shows and movies, and doesn’t seem particularly interested in slowing down.