J.J. Abrams Says Cloverfield 4, Overlord, is a ‘Crazy Movie’

It was recently reported that Paramount Pictures is planning to release the fourth Cloverfield movie, tentatively titled Overlord, in theaters. After The Cloverfield Paradox (the third in the franchise) made a surprise debut on Netflix right after the 2018 Super Bowl, the movie made a splash in the media despite being met with punishing reviews (20% on Rotten Tomatoes). Many wondered if the fourth movie in the series would end up on the streaming site as well, but it sounds like plans for the franchise to continue on the big screen are still underway.

J.J. Abrams is producing Overlord and recently spoke with Digital Spy about the project. In the interview, Abrams didn’t give much away, saying that he felt it wasn’t really “any fun to release [The Cloverfield Paradox] with everybody knowing that it was coming,” and that the “spirit of these movies” and of the series is to “keep it a secret” so talking about what the next film is and “what’s going to happen sort of feels counter-intuitive.”

When pressed on whether Overlord will fit into the Cloverfield franchise, Abrams remained tight-lipped, simply stating: “Overlord… first of all, it’s something that I can’t wait for you to see ’cause the director, Julius Avery, has done an amazing job on it. But the specifics, you know, we should wait and see. But that’s really a crazy movie.”

Overlord, which is said to involve two Allied soldiers shot down behind enemy lines on the eve of D-Day in 1944 who encounter supernatural forces that the Nazis are using to their advantage, has apparently garnered a more positive reception at test screenings than its predecessor. However, Heat Vision notes that the ultimate fate of the film’s release is not yet determined at the studio, so anything goes.

The fourth Cloverfield movie features stars Wyatt Russell, Pilou Asbæk, and Bokeem Woodbine, and is directed by Julius Avery (Son of a Gun) from a script by Billy Ray (The Hunger Games) and Mark L. Smith (The Revenant). Paramount plans to stick to its theatrical release on October 26, 2018.

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