Surprise! Paramount Drops Trailer for ‘Cloverfield’ Spinoff ’10 Cloverfield Lane’

People in the movie industry knew Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Goodman, and John Gallagher Jr. were making a post-apocalyptic thriller called Valencia that takes place mostly in an underground bunker. What they did not know was that the movie is actually called 10 Cloverfield Lane, and that the cause of said apocalypse is apparently the giant spacemonster that destroyed New York City in the 2008 found footage masterpiece Cloverfield.

That's right, everybody. Surprise! It's Cloverfield 2...sort of. 

Here's how producer J.J. Abrams' explained the relation between Cloverfield and 10 Cloverfield Lane to the folks at Collider:

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

Got that? It's not a sequel, it's a "blood relative."

In any case, 10 Cloverfield Lane, directed by Dan Trachtenberg, hits theaters March 11. So basically, Bat Robot and Paramount kept the movie's very existence a secret until two months before the premiere. Which is absolutely amazing. 

Forget priests. If you've got things you need to get off your chest, go to J.J. Abrams. That man can keep a secret.