J.J. Abrams Drops The First Trailer For ’10 Cloverfield Lane’ [Video]

Cloverfield hit theaters in 2008, and since that found footage film debuted as a unique mix of horror and science fiction, fans have been anticipating a sequel. In fact, J.J. Abrams has talked much about his intentions for a sequel with little in the way of real plans, but it now seems he’s managed to keep a lid on just how far he’s come toward making good on those promises.

J.J. Abrams Presents A First Look At 10 Cloverfield Lane

It seems everyone was so obsessed with Abrams’ plans for Star Wars that no one noticed he had another project in production. The film, 10 Cloverfield Lane brings John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and John Gallagher, Jr. together in a story of post-apocalyptic survival and, considering the film’s title, one can’t help but conclude it’s a sequel to the 2008 Abrams-produced film. More on that later. First, take a look at at 10 Cloverfield Lane:

It seems that John Goodman either plays a father figure to the younger man and woman or he may just be the owner of that bomb shelter, which is quite obviously a throwback to the 50s and 60s, when such structures were big business. All seems copacetic until Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s character gets a touch of cabin fever and, after striking Goodman, heads for the only exit.

The film, 10 Cloverfield Lane, may be a sequel to 2008’s Cloverfield, but it more closely resembles post-apocalyptic films of the 80s. Who can forget 1983’s The Day After and the intense depiction of life following a nuclear war. Particularly interesting, in that 10 Cloverfield Lane seems to mimic it, is the scene in which Denise Dahlberg (Lori Lethin) is driven mad with hysterics and flees the safety of the basement. As she runs out onto the family’s farm, among dead and decaying livestock and pets, Stephen Klein (Steve Guttenberg) chases after her.

“You can’t see it… you can’t feel it… and you can’t taste it. But it’s here, right now, all around us! It’s goin’ through you like an X-ray! Right into your cells! What do you think killed all these animals,” says Klein, as Denise kicks up the dust leftover by the fallout.

The Cloverfield Sequel We’ve All Been Waiting For — Or Is It?

First off, J.J. Abrams deliberately deceived audiences and fans by leaking news that the post-apocalyptic film he was working on was entitled Valencia. This was done to throw fans off the track, hoping that he could avoid revealing that the film was related to Cloverfield.

“The idea came up a long time ago during production. We wanted to make it a blood relative of Cloverfield,” says Mr. Abrams. “The idea was developed over time. We wanted to hold back the title for as long as possible.”

Recently, Ms. Winstead was out promoting another film project, Faults, when she provided deeper insight into 10 Cloverfield Lane, confirming that the plot does indeed concern the aftermath of a nuclear fallout.

“He tells me that basically the world is over outside because there’s been a nuclear fall-out. It does have similarity to Faults, in some ways, because you don’t know who’s telling the truth or who to believe. There’s a lot of, who’s manipulating who, and all of that. Tonally, it’s very different, but it has some of those same themes.”

It seems J.J. Abrams is again taking stories from previously successful films and rehashing them with his own spin. Both of the Star Trek films in which Abrams was involved relied heavily on previous plots and characters, as does Star Wars: The Force Awakens. It should come as no surprise that he has again borrowed heavily from previous films to create 10 Cloverfield Lane, so audiences shouldn’t be surprised by that deja vu feeling as they leave theaters.

Find out soon as 10 Cloverfield Lane is scheduled to hit theaters on March 9.

[Featured image by Paramount Pictures]