The entertainment industry thrives on hyperbole, but it wouldn’t be too much of an exaggeration to call Cloverfield one of the most important and influential sci-fi movies of the 21st Century for a huge number of reasons.
It marked Matt Reeves’ first effort from behind the camera in 12 years, and it would be fair to say that The Batman director has done pretty well for himself since. It was also the first screenplay from Drew Goddard that made it into production, and he too has carved out an impressive career as writer, director, and producer.
On top of that, it was Bad Robot’s first major feature film release as a production company, with J.J. Abrams now regarded as one of the most powerful figures in Hollywood that oversees a multimedia empire.
All that, and we haven’t even mentioned the ingenious marketing campaign that kept people in the dark for as long as possible, generating massive amounts of viral buzz and online speculation in the process.
14 years later and Cloverfield is still drawing in a crowd, too, with Paramount Plus subscribers propelling it towards the upper echelons of the platform’s viewership rankings, as per FlixPatrol.
Throw in a $172 million box office haul on a $25 million budget on top of the aforementioned accolades, strong reviews from critics and fans, the unlikely multi-genre franchise that followed in the aftermath via 10 Cloverfield Lane and The Cloverfield Paradox, as well as the direct sequel that officially entered development last year, and the found footage creature feature’s long-lasting impact is undeniable.
