Netflix’s Massive NJ Studio Takes Big Step Forward, Report Says

EATONTOWN, NJ — Fort Monmouth will need to tear down at least 95 — and likely more —abandoned U.S. Army buildings in order to build the highly-anticipated Netflix studios at Fort Monmouth.

This is according to a report Thursday in the Asbury Park Press. There are five million square feet of buildings at the old U.S. Army base, 70 percent of which are targeted for demolition.

Last December, Netflix announced they will pay $55 million to buy 292 acres at Fort Monmouth. Netflix plans to construct one of their biggest film studios in the world there, including 12 soundstages, rivaling their current 300-acre production facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

But a Netflix film studio at Fort Monmouth is still several years away:

Their purchase of the 292 acres has still not been finalized yet: On Oct. 31, the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority was required by law to begin a 45-day public comment period to allow the Netflix deal to go through.

Should Netflix’s plans go through, they will build their massive film studio complex in two phases over the next several years: The first phase will be building 12 soundstages, ranging in size from 15,000 square feet to 40,000 square feet.

After those are built, Netflix said they "may" then build office space, production services buildings and studio backlots, "with the potential for consumer-facing components, such as retail and consumer experiences." This will likely include a Netflix retail store/restaurant, which is a new concept from Netflix just launched this October; it's called Netflix Bites. Imagine a store or restaurant decorated in the theme of "Stranger Things," where you can buy all the swag from your favorite TV show.

The 292-acre lot purchased by Netflix spans the towns of Eatontown, Oceanport and Tinton Falls. Netflix says it will open blocks and blocks of studio spaces, similar to old Hollywood, and say they will bring 1,500 permanent production jobs and more than 3,500 construction jobs.

It was Gov. Murphy who first wooed Netflix to come to New Jersey two years ago. The Murphy administration is giving many tax breaks to movies/TV shows filmed in the Garden State; that's why you are going to see a lot of movies being filmed in New Jersey, in case you haven't already noticed.

The Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority is trying to rebuild Fort Monmouth into a live-work-leisure development. To date, 86 percent of Fort Monmouth's 1,126 acres are sold, under contract or in negotiations.

It was late last December when Netflix confirmed months of rumors they were moving to New Jersey: Netflix Approved To Open Massive NJ Film Studio: How It Will Look (Dec. 21, 2022)