Back in August 2024, it emerged that J.J. Abrams was quietly developing a new project wrapped in secrecy. At the time, the only confirmed details were that it would star Wednesday and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice breakout Jenna Ortega alongside Top Gun: Maverick actor Glen Powell. For months, the project circulated under the working title Ghostwriter, but now its official name appears to have been revealed.
According to a listing from the Writers Guild of America, the film is an action-adventure titled The Great Beyond. The cast extends beyond Ortega and Powell, with Sex Education standout Emma Mackey and Samuel L. Jackson also set to appear. While no release date or plot details have been disclosed, production has already wrapped, with filming completed last year across multiple locations in the U.K. and in Rhode Island in the United States.
Warner Bros. is handling the release, and the movie could mark a crucial turning point for Abrams. Since signing a major deal with the studio in 2019 reportedly worth between $250 million and $500 million, the filmmaker has struggled to deliver the slate of high-profile projects many expected. Planned titles such as DC’s Madame Xanadu and Zatanna, the original series Demimonde, and The Shining spinoff Overlook were all ultimately scrapped. A revised deal in 2024 led to the series Duster, starring Josh Holloway, which was canceled after one season, and paved the way for the upcoming Ortega and Powell-led film.
Jenna Ortega and Glen Powell Can Help J.J. Abrams Finally Find Success with Warner Bros.
While no movie is guaranteed success based on casting alone, The Great Beyond appears to have made a strong move by pairing Jenna Ortega and Glen Powell in the lead roles. Both actors are riding major waves of popularity, and bringing them together could amplify that momentum—particularly if Abrams is able to recapture the creative spark that once defined his career.
Ortega has recently appeared in two Scream films and led Netflix’s hugely successful Addams Family series Wednesday. Powell, meanwhile, has continued his upward trajectory with Top Gun: Maverick opposite Tom Cruise, Anyone but You with Sydney Sweeney, and this year’s Stephen King adaptation The Running Man. The ensemble is further strengthened by Samuel L. Jackson, whose decades-long career includes numerous MCU appearances as Nick Fury, and Emma Mackey, who starred in 2023’s Barbie and is set to play Jadis, the White Witch, in Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Narnia film The Magician’s Nephew. Together, the cast suggests a project positioning itself for a strong release later in the year.
Abrams was once regarded as one of the most influential creators in television and film, with credits that include Lost, Fringe, Armageddon, the 2009 Star Trek reboot, and the Star Wars sequels The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker. However, following the deeply divisive reception to the final film in the sequel trilogy, his output has been limited largely to Duster and a handful of producer roles. As a result, The Great Beyond is shaping up to be a potential make-or-break moment for Abrams, who has much to prove after several quiet and challenging years.
