14 DAY TRIAL // With movies such as “Cloverfield,” the documentary-style 2008 film telling the story of a group of youngsters caught during a monster attack of New York City, thinking of a sequel is close to impossible – or, at least, that’s what critics would say. For producer J.J. Abrams, coming up with a second film for the box-office hit that was “Cloverfield” is just a matter of time, as he has revealed during a WonderCon press conference.
Abrams produced “Cloverfield,” while friends and longtime collaborators Drew Goddard and Matt Reeves served as writer and director for the film with a $25 million budget. Given this, when Abrams says they’re working on some sort of follow-up, then Abrams must know what he’s talking about. At the moment, he confirms, they’re just tossing around ideas, so an official announcement is still a rather long way from being made.
“We’re working on one right now. The key obviously is with a sequel, certainly with this film, is that it had better not be a business decision. If you’re going to do something, it should be because you’re really inspired to do it.” Abrams shares, stressing that making another film on the same topic just to make money would be one of the dumbest decisions anyone could ever make – although it’s common practice in Hollywood, as several movie-oriented publications are pointing out.
“It doesn’t guarantee anything and it doesn’t mean that it’s gonna work, but it means you did what you did and not because you’re trying to make a buck. We have an idea for something that’s pretty cool that we’re playing with. It’s something that would be related to ‘Cloverfield,’ and hopefully we’ll do something sooner than later, because the idea’s pretty sweet.” J.J. Abrams further adds. Obviously, it has been noted, a genuine sequel would be impossible to pull off without getting “Cloverfield” fans rolling their eyes, so a follow-up is to be expected instead.
One of the things that set “Cloverfield” apart from other films of the genre was not so much the success it enjoyed at the box-office from its opening day until it ended its run, but the viral campaign that preceded it. Spanning more months and engaging more people than it would have reached otherwise (i.e. by “traditional” marketing), the “Cloverfield” viral campaign is considered, to this day, one of the most accomplished and successful of the lot.