The following is a list of unproduced J. J. Abrams projects in roughly chronological order. During a career that has spanned over 30 years, J. J. Abrams has worked on projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction.
In July 2002, Abrams wrote a script for a possible fifth Superman film entitled Superman: Flyby.[1]Brett Ratner and McG entered into talks to direct,[2] although Abrams tried to get the chance to direct his own script.[3] However, the project was finally cancelled in 2004, due to Superman Returns.
In 2008, it was reported that Abrams purchased the rights to a New York Times article Mystery on Fifth Avenue about the renovation of an 8.5 million dollar co-op, a division of property originally owned by E. F. Hutton & Co. and Marjorie Merriweather Post, for six figures and was developing a film titled Mystery on Fifth Avenue, with Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot Productions,[4] and comedy writers Maya Forbes and Wally Wolodarsky to write the adaptation. According to the article, a wealthy couple Steven B. Klinsky and Maureen Sherry purchased the apartment in 2003 and live there with their four children. Soon after purchasing the apartment, they hired young architectural designer Eric Clough, who devised an elaborately clever "scavenger hunt" built into the apartment that involved dozens of historical figures, a fictional book and a soundtrack, woven throughout the apartment in puzzles, riddles, secret panels, compartments, and hidden codes, without the couple's knowledge. The family didn't discover the embedded mystery until months after moving into the apartment.[5][6] After Abrams purchased the article, Clough left him an encrypted message in the wall tiles of a Christian Louboutin shoe store he designed in West Hollywood.[7]
Hot for Teacher film
On April 24, 2008, it was reported that Abrams and Bad Robot Productions were producing Jay Dyer's script Hot for Teacher.[8]
Untitled Aline Brosh-McKenna/Simon Kinberg film
On October 13, 2009, it was reported that Abrams and Bad Robot Productions were producing a film from writers Aline Brosh McKenna and Simon Kinberg.[9] Since then, there have been no further developments.
On 4 November 2009, it was reported that Abrams and Bad Robot Productions would produce 500 Rads, aka an "Absorbed Radiation Dose," from a Jeff Pinkner script.[12] Since then, there have been no further developments.
Micronauts (film)
On November 6, 2009, it was reported that Abrams and Bad Robot Productions would produce a film based on the Micronauts toy line.[13] On October 23, 2015, Tom Wheeler submitted a Micronauts draft to Paramount and Bad Robot.[14] This iteration of the project is unrelated to the Hasbro Cinematic Universe.[15]
Let the Great World Spin film
On December 11, 2009, it was reported that Abrams' Bad Robot Productions and Paramount Pictures were producing the film adaptation of Colum McCann's novel Let the Great World Spin.[16] Since then, there have been no further developments.
2010s
Boilerplate film
In July 2010, Abrams was producing the Boilerplate film.[17]
7 Minutes to Heaven film
On August 10, 2010, Abrams was producing Jake Bender's 7 Minutes to Heaven film.[18]
Untitled Brad Parker/Michael Gilio film
In January 2012, Abrams and Matt Reeves were producing Michael Gilio's action film with Brad Parker on board to direct for Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot.[19]
Untitled Josh Campbell/Matt Stuecken film
In January 2012, Abrams will produce the sci-fithriller with Josh Campbell and Matt Stuecken for Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot.[20]
Wunderkind film
On June 11, 2012, Abrams was producing Patrick Aison's sci-fi, action, thriller film Wunderkind, for Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot.[21]
Collider film
On July 23, 2012, Abrams was producing Mark Protosevich's sci-fi film Collider, with Edgar Wright directing for Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot.[22]
On October 11, 2012, Abrams, Bad Robot, Ken Olin, and Warner Bros Television were producing the family drama Electropolis, for The CW.[24]
Portal and Half-Life (films)
Abrams announced at the 2013 D.I.C.E. Summit that Bad Robot Productions had made a deal with Valve to produce a film based on either the video game Portal or Half-Life.[25] In 2021, Abrams announced that the Portal movie was still being worked on with a script currently being written, even expressing interest for J.K. Simmons to reprise his role as Cave Johnson from Portal 2. However, he also confirmed that he was no longer currently involved in a Half-Life adaptation.[26]
One Last Thing Before I Go film
On April 23, 2013, Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot partners Abrams and Bryan Burk were producing the film adaptation of Jonathan Tropper‘s book One Last Thing Before I Go, with Mike Nichols as director and Tropper writing the script.[27] There have been no further developments since Nichols’ death in 2014.
Cycle Of Lies: The Fall Of Lance Armstrong
In 2013, Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot partners JJ Abrams and Bryan Burk were producing a film based on Juliet Macur‘s book Cycle Of Lies: The Fall Of Lance Armstrong[28] with Bradley Cooper in talks to star as Armstrong,[29] and D.V. DeVincentis writing the script.[30] There have been no further developments since then, especially after The Program was released.
The Stops Along the Way series
In June 2013, Abrams was producing the series The Stops Along the Way from an abandoned Rod Serling script for Warner Bros Television.[31] There have been no developments since.
Untitled Chris Alender/Justin Doble film
On 9 December 2014, Abrams and Michael De Luca were producing Chris Alender's sci-fi film with Alender directing and co-writing the script with Justin Doble, as a coproduction between Columbia Pictures and Bad Robot.[32]
Thomas Edison biopic
On 15 February 2015, Abrams was set to produce a biopic about Thomas Edison through Bad Robot, with no word about who will write or direct film.[33]
On April 1, 2016, Abrams was planning on producing the film adaptation of Greg Grunberg's graphic novel Dream Jumper for Paramount Pictures. It is unknown if the project will be live-action or animated and who will write the script.[36]
Kolma film
On April 18, 2016, Abrams was producing Marielle Heller’s film Kolma, a remake of the Israeli film All I’ve Got, with Daisy Ridley in talks to star for Paramount.[37]
Beta film
On 23 June 2016, Abrams was set to produce Ed Solomon’s script Beta, which is said to be combine Solomon’s comedy with Inception and The Matrix, for Paramount.[38]
The Flamingo Affair film
In 29 June 2016, Abrams was planning on directing and producing the animated film The Flamingo Affair from writer Pamela Pettler for Paramount Animation.[39]
The Nix series
In September 2016, Abrams was planning on directing and producing the series The Nix from author Nathan Hill, with Meryl Streep starring and producing.[40]
Glare series
On 9 December 2016, Abrams was producing the Javier Gullón sci-fi TV series Glare through Bad Robot for HBO.[41] There have been no developments since.
Untitled RuPaul bio-series
In March 2017, Abrams was producing a TV series based on RuPaul’s childhood, with RuPaul co-producing and Gary Lennon writing the Hulu series.[42]
The Market TV series
On April 27, 2017, Abrams and Jesse Eisenberg were producing the comedy The Market with Eisenberg starring, writing and directing the series.[43]
Quentin Tarantino's R-rated Star Trek film
It was announced in December 2017 that Quentin Tarantino had pitched an idea to Paramount Pictures for a new Star Trek film.[44] A writers room, consisting of Mark L. Smith, Lindsey Beer, Megan Amram and Drew Pearce, was assembled to flesh out the concept. The plan would be for Tarantino to direct the film, with J. J. Abrams onboard to produce.[45] Smith later became the frontrunner to write the screenplay later that month.[46][47]
In May 2019, Tarantino confirmed that his Trek film was still in development, saying "It's a very big possibility. I haven't been dealing with those guys for a while cause I've been making my movie. But we've talked about a story and a script. The script has been written and when I emerge my head like Punxsutawney Phil, post-Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, we'll pick up talking about it again."[48] Tarantino discussed the project in June 2019, stating that Smith had turned in his script, and Tarantino would soon be adding in his notes. He asserted his intention for the film to be rated R.[49]
In December 2019, it was reported that Tarantino had left the project, looking to make a smaller budget film.[50][51] In January 2020, Tarantino stated the film "might" be made, but he would not direct it.[52]
The Heavy film
On May 3, 2018, Abrams was producing Julius Avery’s The Heavy with Daniel Casey writing the script for Paramount.[53]
Piece of Mind film
On May 4, 2018, Abrams was producing Paramount’s adaptation of Michelle Adelman’s Piece of Mind with Ryan Knighton writing the script and Daisy Ridley set to play Lucy.[54]
Aphoria film
On 4 June 2018, Abrams was set to produce the sci-fi film Aphoria, with Jared Moshe writing and directing the film.[55]
Reincarnation Type film
On July 13, 2018, Abrams was producing Robert Specland’s thriller Reincarnation Type and collaborate with Bristol Automotive.[56]
On November 8, 2018, Abrams was producing Ed Hemming’s untitled thriller.[58]
They Both Die at the End TV series
On February 13, 2019, Bad Robot was producing the adaptation of Adam Silvera's book They Both Die at the End with Chris Kelly creating the series with Abrams for HBO.[59]
2020s
Overlook TV series
On April 14, 2020, Abrams and his production company Bad Robot was producing Overlook, a prequel to The Shining based on Stephen King's Before the Play, and explore the tales of the Overlook Hotel, for HBO Max.[60] However, in August 2021, it was announced that the show would not go forward at HBO Max.[61]
Demimonde TV series
In February 2018, HBO ordered Abrams' sci-fi drama Demimonde to series.[62] On June 7, 2022, it was announced the project would no longer be moving forward.[63]
Offers
Father Daughter Time
On April 14, 2010, Abrams was offered to direct Matthew Aldrich's spec script Father Daughter Time, for Paramount Pictures,[64] however, in January 2017, Gavin O'Connor was officially confirmed to direct the movie.[65]
Jeffrey Jacob Abrams is an American filmmaker and composer. He is best known for his works in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. Abrams wrote and produced such films as Regarding Henry (1991), Forever Young (1992), Armageddon (1998), Cloverfield (2008), Star Trek (2009), Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019).
Bad Robot is an American film and television production company founded on May 27, 1999 and led by Katie McGrath and J.J. Abrams as Co-CEO. Under its Bad Robot Productions division, the company is responsible for the television series Alias, Lost, Fringe, Person of Interest, Revolution, and Westworld alongside the feature-length films Cloverfield, Star Trek, Super 8, Star Trek Into Darkness, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Star Wars Episodes VII and IX, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Star Trek Beyond, The Cloverfield Paradox, Mission: Impossible – Fallout, and Overlord.
Akiva Goldsman is an American filmmaker. He is known for making motion pictures and adaptations of popular novels.
Matt Reeves is an American filmmaker who first gained recognition for the WB drama series Felicity (1998–2002), which he co-created with J. J. Abrams. Reeves came to widespread attention for directing the hit monster film Cloverfield (2008). He also directed the vampire drama Let Me In (2010), and the critically acclaimed science fiction sequels Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) and War for the Planet of the Apes (2017). He directed the superhero film The Batman (2022), which stars Robert Pattinson as the title character.
Kalinda Vazquez is an American television writer and producer.
Star Trek Beyond is a 2016 American science fiction action film directed by Justin Lin, written by Simon Pegg and Doug Jung, and based on the television series Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry. It is the 13th film in the Star Trek franchise and the third installment in the reboot series, following Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto reprise their respective roles as Captain James T. Kirk and Commander Spock, with Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldaña, John Cho, and Anton Yelchin reprising their roles from the previous films. This was one of Yelchin's last films; he died in June 2016, a month before the film's release. Idris Elba, Sofia Boutella, Joe Taslim, and Lydia Wilson also appear.
The Cloverfield Paradox is a 2018 American science fiction horror film directed by Julius Onah and written by Oren Uziel, from a story by Uziel and Doug Jung, and produced by J. J. Abrams and Lindsey Weber. It is the third film in the Cloverfield franchise, following Cloverfield (2008) and 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016). It stars Daniel Brühl, Elizabeth Debicki, Aksel Hennie, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Chris O'Dowd, John Ortiz, David Oyelowo, and Zhang Ziyi. It follows an international group of astronauts aboard a space station who, after using a particle accelerator to try to solve Earth's energy crisis, must find a way home when the planet seemingly vanishes.
The following is a list of unproduced Darren Aronofsky projects in roughly chronological order. During his long career, American film director Darren Aronofsky has worked on a number of projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects fell in "development hell" or were cancelled.
Monkeypaw Productions is an American film and television production company founded in 2012 by Jordan Peele. The company is known for producing horror films, such as Get Out, Us, Candyman, Nope and Wendell & Wild.
The following is a list of unproduced Michael Bay projects in roughly chronological order. During his career, American film director and producer Michael Bay has worked on a number of projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects fell in "development hell" or are officially canceled.
Sunday Night Productions is an American film and television production company founded by John Krasinski and Allyson Seeger in 2013. It has produced the television series Lip Sync Battle, Dream Corp LLC, and Jack Ryan, the YouTube streaming news show Some Good News (2020), and the films Brief Interviews with Hideous Men (2009), Promised Land (2012), The Hollars (2016), and A Quiet Place Part II (2020).
The Picture Company is an American entertainment company founded in 2014, by Andrew Rona and Alex Heineman, in Glendale, California. It specializes in film, starting off moderately in 2018 with Jaume Collet-Serra's The Commuter and Albert Hughes' Alpha.
The following is a list of unproduced Quentin Tarantino projects in roughly chronological order. During his career, American film director Quentin Tarantino has worked on a number of projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects were officially cancelled and scrapped or fell in development hell.
Star Trek 4 is the working title of an American science fiction film in development at Paramount Pictures based on the television series Star Trek by Gene Roddenberry. It is intended to be the 15th feature film in the Star Trek film franchise and the 5th of the franchise's reboot films. There have been several different iterations of the film in development since 2015.
The Shining is an American supernatural horror media franchise that originated from the 1977 novel of the same name by Stephen King. The novel was later adapted into a 1980 film and a 1997 television miniseries. King later wrote a 2013 sequel novel, Doctor Sleep, which was adapted to film in 2019.
The following is a list of unproduced Kathryn Bigelow projects in roughly chronological order. During her long career, film director Kathryn Bigelow has worked on several projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under her direction. Some of these projects fell in development hell, were officially cancelled, were in development limbo or would see life under a different production team.
The following is a list of unproduced Ron Howard projects in roughly chronological order. During his long career, American film director Ron Howard has worked on several projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these projects fell in development hell, were officially cancelled, were in development limbo or would see life under a different production team.
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