As any dedicated, detail-driven fan of the blockbuster franchise knows, the first Quiet Place film started with a black screen and the words "DAY 89'"in stark, clinical white as instruments groaned discordantly in the background. This, as far as we knew, was the beginning of everything; at least where the tip-toeing Abbott family was concerned. As viewers, we were just as stranded from the rest of civilization as the family themselves, awash with desolate landscapes and convenience stores ransacked to bare and brittle bones. That really did help us feel as if we were right there with them, barely clinging to survival by the skin of our teeth. But as great as that is as a narrative device, many have wondered what happened in the days that came before. How did the population deplete so drastically? What happened to everyone else that had to face these sightless, bloodthirsty aliens with ears attuned to the slightest snap of a twig? Luckily for us, we won't have to sit in the dark for much longer. Salvation, a light switch illuminating what was once a dark room; A Quiet Place: Day One is in the works to answer all the questions that keep us up at night.
While this prequel film's sky may not glitter with the franchise's usual stars it by no means will disappoint, if recent casting announcements are anything to go by. In the first two Quiet Place films, John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Noah Jupe, and Millicent Simmonds endeared audiences nationwide with their performances as a tight-knit, admirably resilient family. Now with a mostly new cast taking the lead, this highly anticipated spin-off could very well (dare I say it?) shape up to be the best installment yet.
Editor's Note: This piece was updated on June 26, 2024.
Experience the day the world went quiet.
Release Date June 28, 2024 Director Michael Sarnoski Cast Lupita Nyong'O , Alex Wolff , Djimon Hounsou Main Genre Drama Writers Scott Beck , John Krasinski , Jeff Nichols Studio(s) Platinum Dunes , Paramount Pictures , Sunday Night Productions Distributor(s) Paramount Pictures Sequel(s) A Quiet Place , A Quiet Place: Part II Franchise(s) A Quiet Place ExpandA Quiet Place: Day One is set to release in theaters on Friday, June 28, 2024. Originally set for a March 31, 2023, release, the post-apocalyptic feature underwent three delays in schedule; pushed first to September 22, 2023, then again to March 8, 2024, before landing on its final June release date. The movie will be opening opposite Kevin Costner's western epic Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1.
While all these delays have been disappointing to those of us eagerly awaiting the prequel, it only seems inevitable that this movie will be worth the wait.
A Quiet Place: Day One will initially enjoy an exclusive theatrical release. However, once that window concludes, the horror prequel will be made available to stream on the Paramount+ service, alongside the previous two entries in the popular franchise. The movie will also be made available to stream on Amazon's Prime Video service at some point in the latter half of 2024, where it will join other titles from Paramount Pictures such as Bob Marley: One Love and Mean Girls.
The official trailer for A Quiet Place: Day One was released by Paramount Pictures on February 7, 2024, ahead of a Super Bowl spot for the film that will air on February 11, 2024.
The second trailer for A Quiet Place: Day One was released by Paramount Pictures on May 9, 2024.
The very brief official synopsis for A Quiet Place: Day One, simply reads:
Experience the day the world went quiet.
The first trailer reveals that A Quiet Place: Day One, will largely be set in the city streets of Brooklyn, New York, a change in pace from the first two films, which were set in much more remote and quiet areas. As previously stated, while the film is the third installment of the franchise, it will not be a direct sequel to the two that came before it. Instead, Day One will be a spin-off prequel navigating the utter pandemonium of society's initial collapse.
Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong'o stars in the prequel as a character named Sam. While her role as Patsey in 12 Years A Slave won her the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, her lead role in Jordan Peele's critically lauded Us proved that she can handle genre fare just as well. Nyong'o's other credits include playing Nakia in Black Panther and its sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, voicing and performing motion capture for Maz Kanata in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, the horror-comedy Little Monsters, and the chess drama Queen of Katwe.
Joseph Quinn will play the male lead in A Quiet Place: Day One, a man named Eric. Quinn initially got his start with a small role in an episode of Game of Thrones as well as a supporting role in the J.J. Abrams-produced action-horror movie Overlord. It wasn't until 2022 that he broke out in a major way with his role as Eddie Munson in Stranger Things Season 4. A Quiet Place: Day One will mark his first acting role since his break-out performance and will be quickly followed by roles in Ridley Scott's Gladiator 2 and Matt Shakman's Fantastic Four reboot as the Human Torch.
While Nyong'o and Quinn will be playing the film's leads, the supporting cast around them is also strong. Alex Wolff (Hereditary) will play a character named Reuben, after having previously collaborated with director Michael Sarnoski in the 2021 drama Pig. Academy Award nominee Djimon Hounsou will be the sole returning cast member for the prequel as Henri, after his brief but memorable role in A Quiet Place Part II. Hounsou's character was only credited as "Man on the Island" in the sequel.
In November 2020, Paramount announced that Jeff Nichols was set to write and direct the prequel based on John Krasinski's idea, but in October 2021 the news hit the press that he would be amicably departing from the film, citing creative differences and shifting his focus to other projects. In a later interview for his movie The Bikeriders (which opened the weekend before the prequel), Nichols elaborated on his reasons for exiting the project, saying:
"It's hard to say this without sounding pretentious, but I've made enough films at this point in my career, that if I do this, it's going to become my film. And the truth is 'Quiet Place,' those are [John Krasinski's] films."
The search for a replacement began immediately and, a few months later, Michael Sarnoski was attached to the project. In an interview with Indiewire, Sarnoski described what it was like taking over the film from Nichols, saying:
“Thankfully, John Krasinski set me up really well in this in that he wanted to bring someone on who could bring a new tone to this movie and asked to bring some of the ‘Pig’ touch to this movie. He was really generous in saying, ‘This is your movie. Make it how you want to make it.’”
Sarnoski also talked about reading Nichols' version of the script and consulting with the filmmaker:
“I did see that script, and I spoke to Jeff. He was really gracious in just being like, ‘Hey, here was my experience. Don’t feel any pressure to do this or that.’ I was pretty clear [with Jeff Nichols and John Krasinski] that I needed to find my own way into this story. It was a really beautiful script … he loved it, he cared about it, he did a beautiful job with it, but he just didn’t feel like doing a studio job at that point.”
As well as directing the flick, Sarnoski also wrote the script for the movie. Working alongside him as producers are John Krasinski, Michael Bay, Andrew Form, and Brad Fuller. The film is produced by Platinum Dunes in partnership with Paramount Pictures and Krasinski's Sunday Night Productions. Allyson Seeger is also credited as an executive producer on the project. While the process of this project's production hasn't necessarily been smooth sailing, Sarnoski is a highly in-demand name after his 2021 directorial debut Pig earned him incredible critical acclaim, and therefore a more than worthy talent to helm the ship. In fact, his attachment to the project only bodes to intrigue us more. With such a powerhouse team driving the horror, it reads like the perfect recipe for upcoming cinematic gold.
ncG1vNJzZmibn6G5qrDEq2Wcp51krm691KKcrWWgoa6ksYydmLJln6Oybr7EpZyaq5VisaLAxGanpaekYrCiv9Nmmqudkam8s7%2BO