Rumors began circulating this week about the future of the Cloverfield Universe, with Tracking Board’s Jeff Sneider reporting out of Sundance that he was hearing rumblings of Netflix acquiring Julius Onah’s formerly titled God Particle, the third installment in the universe that is, at this point in time, releasing in theaters April 20 via Paramount.
In the wake of Sneider’s initial report, several high profile entertainment sites have confirmed the rumblings, shedding a bit more light on this potential bombshell.
For starters, THR is reporting that new Paramount chairman Jim Gianopulos is behind the decision to part ways with the possibly titled Cloverfield Station, as he’s been combing through Paramount’s slate of upcoming films and deciding what should be released into theaters and what shouldn’t. Allegedly, the new Cloverfield film didn’t make the cut.
Via THR, “Sources say the movie needed some work, and while Abrams expressed an intent to get down to business in postproduction, it was too little, too late. Several sources suggested that Abrams’ attention may be taken up by his unexpected new assignment, the final installment of the Star Wars Skywalker episodes, which he signed on to in September after the firing of director Colin Trevorrow.”
Additionally, Deadline notes that if the rumored deal between Paramount and Netflix is inked, we could see the new Cloverfield film arriving sooner than April 20.
“Paramount had the film dated for April 20, but I’ve heard that Netflix might debut it on the streaming service more quickly than that,” the site notes.
The thought of the latest installment in the Cloverfield Universe surprise-dropping on Netflix is no doubt an exciting one, as a Netflix release would allow for the film to remain truly mysterious up until we actually get to sit down and watch it. A theatrical release from Paramount would require extensive marketing, whereas a Netflix release would not.
Something to chew on, as we wait to hear more about all this.
In the new film, produced by J.J. Abrams…
A team of astronauts make a shocking discovery and end up fighting for survival.
It stars John Ortiz, David Oyelowo (Selma, Interstellar), Elizabeth Debicki (The Night Manager, The Man From U.N.C.L.E.), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Concussion, Beyond the Lights), Chris O’Dowd (The IT Crowd, Moone Boy, Thor: The Dark World), Ziyi Zhang (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), and Daniel Bruhl (Captain America: Civil War, Rush).