Jeff Nichols, the director of “Midnight Special,” “Take Shelter,” “Mud,” and “Loving,” is set to direct … “A Quiet Place Part III”? What? Deadline is reporting that Paramount has brought on Nichols to write and direct the third film in the “A Quiet Place” franchise. Actor-filmmaker John Krasinski helmed the first two. The plot and title of the film are still unknown, and Deadline can’t even guarantee that this film is actually a sequel and not some sort of spinoff. Regardless, Nichols coming into a franchise basically means that the opportunities to make personal arthouse films these days is scant to none. I’m not surprised. The COVID-19 pandemic has transitioned the movie industry into an alternate universe.
“A Quiet Place Part II” hasn’t even been released yet, its original March 20 release plagued by, well, a plague. Its new release date is now slated for April 23, 2021. The third film from Nichols will hit theaters, or maybe VOD, sometime in 2022.