J.J. Abrams has teased a proper Cloverfield sequel for years, but is the movie ever actually going to happen? 2008's Cloverfield became a sleeper hit within the horror movie world, leaving fans clamoring for a continuation of the story. Spiritual sequels 10 Cloverfield Lane and The Cloverfield Paradox have been released in the meantime, but they never finished the story that was first told in the original movie.
Cloverfield follows a group of New Yorkers as they attempt to survive a monster attack on the city. The next movie in the franchise, 10 Cloverfield Lane, centers on a group of survivors riding out a simultaneous attack across the country. The Cloverfield Paradox, which is the third installment in the series, is a trippy look at the scientists who caused the very rift that unleashed the Cloverfield monster. 10 Cloverfield Lane and The Cloverfield Paradox may fill in small gaps for Cloverfield, but they function more like companion pieces than a true sequel to the original.
Given the lasting legacy of Cloverfield, it's only natural that fans have been pushing for a sequel for more than a decade. But given the unorthodox nature of the franchise on top of Abrams' recent Warner Bros. deal, it's time fans let go of that hope, as another Cloverfield movie seems very unlikely at this stage. In fact, the series is better off if a true Cloverfield series is never made — here's why.
Why The Cloverfield Franchise Is Different
Cloverfield isn't a franchise in the traditional sense of the word. In fact, it was never intended to be a franchise from the start. Each movie that followed Cloverfield was reworked once it was already written to fit into the existing universe. Abrams' production company, Bad Robot, acquired each respective script and tweaked them to subtly connect to Cloverfield. Abrams' reasoning for reverse engineering each of these films was none other than that he essentially just thought each film had potential to work in the Cloverfield universe.
With 10 Cloverfield Lane, Abrams got lucky that his strategy happened to work. 10 Cloverfield Lane established itself as a solid, standalone horror movie — the Cloverfield twist at the end was just a fun kicker. But The Cloverfield Paradox was too intent on reworking a movie so that it could specifically answer questions posed in Cloverfield, which didn't work out as well.
The negative response might have been the final straw in closing the door on the series for good. The varying degrees of reception among the other Cloverfield movies just goes to show that sequels in this franchise won't really work in the traditional sense. Cloverfield was a unique and complete story in itself. The horror movie left its audience with the idea that not everything is meant to be understood. The franchise's second installment understood that. The Cloverfield Paradox did not, causing it to be a failure among critics and fans alike. A true Cloverfield sequel would likely go down the same path as the movie's most recent addition — trying to answer questions better left unspoken, resulting in a clunky and confusing movie.
Rumored Cloverfield 4 & 5 Explained
As each existing Cloverfield sequel was pieced together from a standalone movie, fans seem to be constantly on the lookout for the next potential Cloverfield 4 and 5. The Abrams-produced WWII zombie movie, Overlord, was constantly plagued with rumors that it would end up being a Cloverfield movie, which turned out to be inaccurate. T.J. Miller, who appeared in the original Cloverfield movie, even took to Instagram to state that the 2020 movie, Underwater, would fit into the greater Cloverfield universe. Once again, the movie proved to be a standalone feature.
This doesn't bode well for future installments of the Cloverfield series. With such persistent rumors surrounding both Overlord and Underwater, it begs the question of if these movies were initially going to be roped into the franchise, but the idea was ultimately abandoned. Perhaps this means that Abrams has creatively moved on from the Cloverfield series, despite promises of a true sequel coming one day. Or maybe he just doesn't feel the same level of fan excitement as he once did a decade ago. Whatever the reason may be, it seems as if the Cloverfield franchise has lost steam over the last few years, making a new film unlikely.
J.J. Abrams' Warner Bros. Deal Makes More Cloverfield Less Likely
There's another significant factor at play that could prevent a true Cloverfield sequel from ever happening. J.J. Abrams' deal with Warner Bros could pose a threat to Cloverfield's future. Abrams and Bad Robot released every previous Cloverfield movie under Paramount Pictures. Under that deal, Abrams was able to release Cloverfield films however secretly and abruptly he so desired. Abrams had begun teasing a true Cloverfield sequel before the deal with Warner Bros. occurred, but now that this career shift has taken place, the rights to the Cloverfield franchise have become murky.
This new deal means that WarnerMedia has exclusive rights to all of Abrams' projects moving forward; the catch is that the Cloverfield brand may still be owned by Paramount. This means that Abrams might not have the legal rights to create new movies under the Cloverfield name, meaning that it'd be too difficult to produce a new Cloverfield sequel.
Could Cloverfield Continue Without Abrams And Bad Robot?
There is one way that the Cloverfield series could move forward, and that would be without J.J. Abrams and Bad Robot's involvement. If Paramount does truly own the rights to the series, this may be their only option — and that's not necessarily a bad thing. As evidenced with the Star Wars sequel trilogy, J.J. Abrams is notorious for being unable to end movies he has directed well. He's great at kicking off a story, but struggles to bring them to a satisfying conclusion. While he is only attached to the Cloverfield movies as a producer, this is still shown by the strong start with Cloverfield and 10 Cloverfield Lane and weak finale with The Cloverfield Paradox. So, the best option would be to give the series a fresh set of eyes. Even with this possibility, it's highly unlikely that a new movie will be green-lit.
The right call would be to abandon the idea of a true sequel all together. The original Cloverfield was a great standalone horror movie that took fans by surprise, and has kept them talking for over a decade. Efforts to continue the series have been a struggle, because it's not really a story that needs to be continued. Cloverfield reinvigorated the found footage genre for a new generation of horror fans. That's a strong legacy in itself, so for that reason, the franchise should be laid to rest. Leaving fans wanting more instead of turning the series into a joke is how Cloverfield deserves to be remembered.