J.J. Abrams’ highly anticipated fantasy film is generating buzz as its release date approaches. Abrams has been a successful filmmaker since starting his career in 1982, working as a sound effects composer for the film Nightbeast. He’s known for writing and producing hits like Armageddon and Cloverfield, and for directing blockbusters such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Star Trek, Mission: Impossible III, and Super 8. Like many of his projects, details about this new movie are being kept under wraps.
J.J. Abrams is currently working on multiple projects, including a Hot Wheels movie, Flowervale Street, and he’s producing an adaptation of Oh the Places You’ll Go!. However, his next self-directed film is generating a lot of buzz. Originally known as Ghostwriter, the movie—now titled The Great Beyond—will star Glen Powell, Jenna Ortega, Emma Mackey, and Samuel L. Jackson. The combination of this talented cast and the intriguing premise of The Great Beyond is already creating a lot of excitement.
What Might We Expect From J. J. Abrams’ The Great Beyond?
The Writers Guild of America categorizes The Great Beyond as an adventure, action, and drama, suggesting an exciting fantasy story. Aside from the confirmed actors and the cinematographer James Friend (known for his work on All Quiet on the Western Front and Ballad of a Small Player), details about the film are scarce. First announced in May 2024, Glen Powell (Twisters, The Running Man) and Jenna Ortega (Wednesday, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice) signed on to star that August. Emma Mackey (Sex Education, Barbie) joined the cast in November 2024, and Samuel L. Jackson (The Avengers, Pulp Fiction) was added in April 2025.
The film already boasts a fantastic cast of well-known actors, and more are still to be announced. Filming for The Great Beyond took place in Edinburgh and Glasgow in June, then moved to Cranston and Providence, Rhode Island, wrapping up on August 25, 2025. While a release date hasn’t been set yet, the film will be produced by J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot and distributed by Warner Bros., a studio Abrams frequently works with.
There’s talk that the upcoming film, The Great Beyond, could be about a fantasy writer who learns his fictional world is actually real. The movie, potentially set in the 1980s with a retro-futuristic vibe, might appeal to fans of shows like Stranger Things or those awaiting another Cloverfield installment. The Great Beyond will be J.J. Abrams’ first directing project since Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019), and many are hopeful it will signal a return to form for the filmmaker and his signature style of storytelling.
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2026-01-06 16:40