New ‘Cloverfield’ Film in the Works With J.J. Abrams Serving as Producer

Cloverfield fans should be elated: a new installment of the horror film franchise is in the works.

Deadline reports that the forthcoming Cloverfield chapter is being helmed by director Babak Anvari, with J.J. Abrams, Hannah Minghella, and Jon Cohen as producers, Joe Barton writing the script, and Matt Reeves, Bryan Burk, and Drew Goddard serving as executive producers.

It isn’t known at this time how the Cloverfield storyline will continue in the new pic. The first franchise film arrived in 2008, directed by Reeves, and became beloved for its pioneering found-footage camera style. The original movie kicked off Reeves’ career as a director, and now, Anvari is picking up the torch for the fourth installment and his first studio tentpole.

This is the first time it’s been revealed that a new Cloverfield film is being developed. In 2016, the second film, 10 Cloverfield Lane arrived and in 2018, The Cloverfield Paradox premiered on Netflix—and both were announced with different titles and only disclosed as Cloverfield movies when the trailers debuted.

Anvari has a background in crafting thriller films. His first offering was 2016’s Under the Shadow, which landed him a BAFTA for Outstanding Debut Filmmaker. Next, he directed Wounds with Armie Hammer and Zazie Beats, which released via Hulu in 2019 and premiered at that year’s Sundance and Cannes Directors’ Fortnight. He also recently worked on Netflix’s 2021 movie, I Came By—his first big studio film with George Mackay, Kelly Macdonald, and Hugh Bonneville.