One of the things that make the Cloverfield franchise so compelling is the top-secret air of mystery surrounding each project. With brilliant marketing that teases fans into theaters, each film in the J.J. Abrams's series has offered something new while loosely taking place in the same mystifying stratosphere.
In late January 2021, Paramount announced plans to produce a fourth Cloverfield film, with longtime TV scribe Joe Barton attached to write the script. While details are kept under lock and key, the idea is to make a direct sequel to the viral 2008 hit original that will not adhere to the found footage format.
Hope To See: New Setting
One of the things the Cloverfield franchise has done a good job of thus far is switching up its mysterious milieu. The original saw New York City become ravaged by an alien monster invasion, the second film was set in rustic New Orleans, and the last was set in outer space.
In keeping with the theme, the new film should also inhabit a new environment. Even if the film is a direct sequel to the original as reported, a new city should be chosen for invasion. If not a major metropolis, then the story ought to take place in the vast wilderness.
Hope To Avoid: Streaming Release
The idea of streaming a Cloverfield into one's household is antithetical to what makes the franchise so vital in the first place. The Cloverfield Experience came and went on Netflix with little fanfare and even less critical adoration.
The intimacy of 10 Cloverfield Lane worked well on the big screen as well as a streaming title. But if the fourth film increases the budget, production value, and returns as a mega-marvel, then the film should forgo any plans to debut on any streaming service. Of course, given the current circumstances, this might mean waiting until it is fully safe to do so.
Hope To See: Female-Directed
After Matt Reeves, Dan Trachtenberg, and Julius Onah, it's high time for a woman to get the chance to helm a Cloverfield film. Doing so would inject new energy into the flailing franchise in a way that could atone for the series' diminishing returns.
Several qualified female directors should be in play to direct the new film, be they American or international. Also, given Mary Elizabeth Winstead's top-notch performance in 10 Cloverfield Lane, another female lead ought to be considered.
Hope To Avoid: Black & White
A black-and-white Cloverfield movie isn't high on the list of things fans want. The year 2020 saw more than a fair share of black-and-white films, but it doesn't seem like the right move for this movie.
Since the film is poised to serve as a direct sequel to the original, there would be no reason to film in anything but color. If the film was a prequel set in the 1950s, then black-and-white might be an inspired creative decision, but otherwise, fans hope to see it colorful.
Hope To See: Bigger Budget
The original Cloverfield cost roughly $25 million to make in 2008. 10 Cloverfield Lane was reduced to a $15 million price tag, while The Cloverfield Paradox had a budget of roughly $45 million.
For the fourth film, an even larger budget should be allocated by Paramount. If superhero movies cost a minimum of $100 million, then Cloverfield 4 ought to be a spectacular and monumental blockbuster event movie a la Godzilla Vs. Kong ($155 million).
Hope To Avoid: Invasion Recycle
Cloverfield 4 scribe Joe Barton has already wrapped an extraterrestrial sci-fi film called Invasion, which is currently in post-production. The film stars Riz Ahmed and Octavia Spencer.
One thing fans do not want to see is Invasion repackaged as a post-facto fourth Cloverfield outing. By all accounts, Barton will write a new script based on the 2008 viral hit. However, the two prior chapters in the franchise were movies that were conceived and produced outside of the Cloverfield canon then tethered to it after the fact. Invasion better not become Cloverfield 4.
Hope To See: New Monsters
The best way for Cloverfield 4 to captivate new audiences while revitalizing old fans is to unleash a whole new race of terrifying monsters, the likes of which no one has seen before.
Part of the appeal of the original film was the limited amount of screen time dedicated to the central monster, which is seen in drips and drabs through shaky found footage. The new film should take the opposite approach and put the newfangled creature front and center from the get-go.
Hope To Avoid: Overabundant CGI
If Cloverfield 4 does take a smaller approach, then the filmmakers would be wise in limiting the amount of CGI. Part of the appeal of the original film was the cinema verite approach and documentary feel, lending a verisimilitude that went away by the third film.
Nothing saps credibility quicker than visual artifice, so the best way for the filmmakers to avoid viewers rolling their eyes is to contain the computer imagery and not over-rely on cartoonish technology.
Hope To See: Static Camerawork
One of the things that made the original Cloverfield so exciting was the immediacy of the hand-held camerawork. By the same token, however, the shaky-cam template can induce queasiness after a while and make the whole experience less pleasant.
Moreover, the shaky-cam found-footage formula has already run its course in modern mainstream cinema, just as the 3D fad of the 2010s has subsided. Fans hope the new Cloverfield movie employs more formalistic, static camerawork that draws the viewer in rather than make the viewers ill with the tired and trampled shakiness.
Hope to Avoid: Shameless Sequels
The thing we hope the new Cloverfield film avoids is a cheap attempt to end the story with a cliff-hanger that necessitates a sequel. The newest entry should give the audience a definitive and satisfying conclusion to the Cloverfield saga.
Since sequels rule Hollywood, the idea of giving closure to the Cloverfield series would be the most refreshing aspect Abrams and Barton could come up with. Rather than continue indefinitely, the film ought to respect the storytelling process and give the world one giant showstopping finale to remember with fondness.