Cloverfield 2 Years Away

In an interview with MovieWeb, director Matt Reeves tells the site that a sequel to Cloverfield is probably years away.

"Cloverfield 2 will most likely not be the next movie because that's still in the really nascent stages. We haven't really had time to get together and talk about what that would be. That journey will probably be a bit longer, when we find that idea that we really get excited about. We're still hatching the story. It has yet to be hatched. It was funny. Someone said to me the other day, 'Yeah, we hear you're going to get the band back together.' I said, 'Yeah, but at this stage, we're just talking about getting the band back together. We actually haven't gotten the band back together.'

I really want to continue to press and try to make this smaller project that I've been trying to make since before Cloverfield. It's a project called The Invisible Woman. It's sort of a character thriller. It's the anatomy of this woman's desperation. It's the same sort of storytelling that I did in Let Me In. It's an intimate character story, so I'm excited to do that to. Probably what I would do is find the next project and find a way to marry that schedule to the bigger project. So, hopefully, we could do two in a row and then maybe Cloverfield 2."

Cloverfield was really a self contained movie that doesn't necessarily require a sequel unless the goal is to explain the creature which is 50/50 if Abrams is involved. The more time that passes, the less likely a sequel will be made. I would be really shocked if a sequel is ever made as I get the feeling that creatively Reeves, Abrams and the others are simply not interested and all have moved on in such a way that financially they don't have too make a sequel even if the studio wants it.

Super 8 Super Bowl Trailer Set

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Super 8 will have a TV trailer that will air during the Super Bowl XLV on February 6th. The movie will join trailers from Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Thor, Captain American, Pirates of the Caribbean, Cowboys & Aliens and others. Rates for this year's Super Bowl ads are around $3 million per 30-second spot.

Super 8 Trailer Coming March 25th?

A list of trailer release dates through May on ComicBookMovie.com suggests that the first theatrical trailer (vs. the previous teaser trailer) will be released on March 25th, with Sucker Punch. This date falls within the month that JJ Abrams said he expected the trailer to be out so while unconfirmed it does seem very plausible. The list as a whole is realistic in its pairing.

JJ Abrams on Future Projects

In an interview with Collider, JJ Abrams spoke a little bit about the many projects he has in the pipeline. To talks briefly about the move of Fringe to Fridays (not exactly happy about it), the cancellation of Undercovers (audiences felt a bit lacking"), Alcatraz (shooting starts on Jan 19th), Super 8 (trailer in March), and directing Star Trek 2 (waiting on the script to decide). The full interview is here, below are snippets.

How do you feel about the move to Friday nights for Fringe?
ABRAMS: Oh, I’m horrified beyond belief, but as a fan of the genre and the show, I’m hoping that fans will tune in. I certainly can promise that it will be worth their while. The episodes that are coming up are spectacular. I guess you can just be hopeful and say that, if the work is good enough, it will find the audience. I think they’re doing better work now, even in the second half of Season 3, than they’ve ever done on the series. I’m just crossing my fingers that fans of the show, show up.

Do you have anything else in development for network television right now?
ABRAMS: We do. We have a few projects. We have a show for Fox called Alcatraz, that starts shooting on the 19th, which I could not be more excited about. And, we have a show for CBS called Person of Interest, that Jonah Nolan wrote. We have Odd Jobs for NBC. And we have a new script called Pulp, that was written by Alison Schapker and Monica Breen. That’s a spectacular script. We’re about to go out with that.

What is the status of Odd Jobs, with Terry O’Quinn and Michael Emerson? Where is that, in the process?
ABRAMS: A script is being written right now. The intent would be to make the pilot for this season.

Do you have a date by which you have to decide whether you’re going to direct Star Trek 2?
ABRAMS: That’s a good question. I probably do. I don’t know. There’s a script that should be coming in, hopefully by the time there’s a trailer for Super 8, and then we’ll know.

What’s the biggest proponent of that decision for you?ABRAMS: I guess the idea of not wanting to choose to direct a film, for which I’ve not read a script. It’s a tough decision to make without seeing any pages. That’s not to say that I don’t have all the faith in the world in the spectacular writers. Damon Lindelof, Bob Orci and Alex Kurtzman are awesome. My hope is that they’ll write the script, it will be great and we can make a fun, exciting sequel to Star Trek.

M:I4, Super 8 Hitting IMAX Theaters

JJ Abrams' Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and Super 8 will be released in IMAX theatres when the movies officially debut later this year. The films are part of a 4 picture agreement that Paramount Pictures announced today. From the Hollywood Reporter:

Imax Corp. has booked four upcoming Paramount tentpole pics for its 2011 slate. The pact with Paramount Pictures will see Toronto-based Imax screen super-sized versions of Super 8, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn.

Each movie will bow worldwide on Imax screens day-and-date with its traditional 35mm release. Super 8 will be released on June 10, 2011, with Transformers: Dark of the Moon bowing on July 1, 2011. Paramount will also release Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol on Dec. 16, 2011, while The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn will debut on Dec. 28, 2011 in the U.S. market.

Super 8 Will Not Be Renamed

Paramount Pictures has denied the recent report that the international title of Super 8 may have changed to Darlings. From Cinema Blend:

We checked in with the folks at Paramount who tell us that not only will Super 8 not be retitled in the United States, it’ll still go by Super 8 in Brazil as well. Apparently the title Darlings was something they only used for security purposes, and they’re still calling it what they’ve always called it.

Abrams Developing Pulp TV Series

JJ Abrams may have struck out with Undercovers (and possibly Fringe if the Friday "death slot" lives up to its name) but that isn't stopping him from adding more TV shows to his Bad Robot production slate.

The latest addition is "Pulp", "an hour-long crime drama set in a slightly heigtened reality, a-la Pulp Fiction" according to TV Line. Monica Breen and Alison Schapker (Alias, Brothers & Sisters) will be write the pilot script and exec produce the potential series.

The goal seem to have it ready for pilot season later this yearm joining Abrams other TV projects of Odd Jobs (NBC), Alcatraz (Fox) and Person of Interset (CBS). Sounds like this one should go to ABC for the full network set.

Super 8 Renamed Darlings?

It seems that Super 8 is going to experience a name change, at least based on the release of the teaser trailer in Brazil. MovieWeb has posted that trailer and if noticed at the end, where it normally says "Super 8", it instead says "Darlings", and no that is not the Spanish translation of the movie. The website tried to verify the name change with Paramount. It isn't known if this is a worldwide, Brazil only or international title change. My guess is Paramount is assuming that most international audiences will not know what a Super 8 camera and film is and chose a name that might be less confusing. Then again a name of "Darlings" for a film with a trailer of a dramatic train derailment and sudden attack is confusing too.

JJ Abrams' Neighborhood Kindness

An article from gossip blog Crazy Days and Nights, a story was revealed that involved JJ Abrams showing an extra effort for a Los Angeles neighborhood one of his movies was performing pick up shots for. It’s a nice change of pace in a time when most of the stories from Hollywood seem to be mostly about ego and making sure every little act is seen by cameras. While its truth may never be 100% known, it’s still makes for a good story.

Is this the biggest kindness in the history of the world? Nope. Not by a long shot, but it is pretty big to show you what happens when people take time to do the little things. This initialed A++ list producer/writer/director and creator was filming in a local Los Angeles neighborhood recently. It is not a street that usually sees a lot of filming and took place on a quiet street. It was just some pick up shots for a movie, but our producer/director was there to supervise. When the residents discovered who was shooting and for what movie, they of course came out to gawk. Not a problem for our producer who took pictures, signed autographs and even let all the kids come out and listen on headsets and explained each shot in advance. Many of the residents baked cookies or brought out food for the crew and the producer got all their names and addresses and sent a personalized, signed note mentioning each item of food to each person. Definitely a nice touch and left everyone with some great holiday spirit and lots of love for our producer.

J.J. Abrams