Third Cloverfield film might be skipping theatres, going to Netflix

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

There are no confirmations just yet, but a "strong rumor" is spreading through such reliable sources as The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline that Paramount is looking to hand the delayed third entry in the CLOVERFIELD anthology series, a film formerly titled GOD PARTICLE and now possibly titled CLOVERFIELD STATION, over to Netflix.

The decision to send "CLOVERFIELD 3" to Netflix instead of giving it a theatrical release would have been made by Jim Gianopulos, who became chairman of Paramount last spring. Since then, Gianopulos has been watching the films he inherited and deciding "what is theatrical, what is not in this day and age". Paramount recently made a deal with Netflix for the streaming service to release director Alex Garland's film ANNIHILATION internationally.

The new CLOVERFIELD may not be making the cut for a theatrical release because, according to sources, "the movie needed some work", and producer JJ Abrams is too preoccupied with putting together the next STAR WARS film to give it enough attention.

The movie had originally been scheduled for a February 2017 release, but then got bumped three times, first moving to October of 2017, then February of 2018, and was recently re-scheduled for an April 20th release. A Netflix deal might be its best chance of escaping into the world.

Directed by Julius Onah from a screenplay by Oren Uziel and Doug Jung, the project formerly known as GOD PARTICLE stars David Oyelowo, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Ziyi Zhang, Elizabeth Debicki, Daniel Brühl, and Chris O’Dowd. The story follows 

the efforts of scientists aboard an international space station to tap into a new energy source — the mysterious “God Particle.” They inadvertently trigger catastrophic side effects.

We'll keep you updated on this and will let you know if the film does end up going straight to Netflix or if you'll have a chance to see it on the big screen.