The Correct Order To Watch The Quiet Place Movies

It may not have been planned as a franchise, but the "A Quiet Place" universe is expanding rapidly. Beginning with an inventive script from writer Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, with a lot of help from director John Krasinski, the 2018 sci-fi horror flick became a much bigger hit than anyone expected it to be. Seriously, on paper it was a tough sell to picture Jim from "The Office" directing a killer monster movie. Yet, that's precisely what he did, paving the way for not just a sequel, but a full-on franchise.

To date, we've had three movies in the series, with "A Quiet Place Part III" and other installments likely on the way because, put simply, Paramount likes making money. So, for those who maybe fell off at some point or never got on the train in the first place, we're going to go over the correct order to watch these movies. For those who want to watch them in the order they were released, or those who would prefer to watch them chronologically, we've got it covered. Is there a right way to go? A wrong way to go? We'll discuss that as well. Let's get into it.

First, let's go over the release order for these films. It all starts with 2018's "A Quiet Place" (which itself, in some ways, actually started with "Jurassic Park" in 1993 as a single scene in Steven Spielberg's classic blockbuster inspired Krasinski in crafting his film). From there, we got a direct sequel and, more recently, a prequel set in New York City. All laid out in order, here's what that looks like:

• "A Quiet Place" (2018)

• "A Quiet Place Part II" (2021)

• "A Quiet Place: Day One" (2024)

So there we have it. Simple as that. My preference as a viewer — and as a huge fan of these movies — would be to watch them in the release order. My feeling is that what Krasinski does in that first film to intimately set the stage for this universe, showing us just enough while leaving plenty of room for intrigue, all while giving us characters we truly care about, is an outstanding starting place. Prequels, the good ones anyhow, tend to fill in gaps but aren't essential to understand the stories that came before. That's certainly the case with this franchise and I would argue that watching "Day One" last is more enriching after one is already familiar with the world.

Now, for those out there who still wish to watch the films in chronological order, that's quite easy to do. "Day One" would be first, then roll into the first two films in order. The only caveat there is that "A Quiet Place Part II" does have an opening scene that takes place on the first day of the alien invasion, so if someone were inclined to get really clever, they could watch "Day One," then the opening scene from "Part II," then go back to the first movie, then the rest of the sequel. That's a bit messy though, admittedly. To keep it simpler for the average viewer:

• "A Quiet Place: Day One" (2024)

• "A Quiet Place" (2018)

• "A Quiet Place Part II" (2021)

So there we have it, either way one wants to go about it. This is just for now though. A few key scenes in "A Quiet Place: Day One" (especially that very weird one) made it clear there is still much to discover in this universe. It's a big world with lots of cities and lots of people trying to survive despite the existence of these brutally dangerous aliens. And, if history has taught us anything, Paramount will continue to make sequels and spin-offs until they stop making money. For now at least, it doesn't look like that's going to happen any time soon.