The basics:
- Officials mark Netflix closing on $55M, 292-acre Fort Monmouth parcel
- Site will establish $1B production hub with 12 soundstages totaling nearly 500K sf
- Event features Netflix co-CEO Sarandos, Murphy, Sherrill and local leaders
- Campus ON former US Army base spans Oceanport, Eatontown
It was a milestone day in Monmouth County.
NJBIZ was on the scene Jan. 12 at Fort Monmouth, as officials marked the recent closing of Netflix’s $55 million land purchase to officially take ownership of a 292-acre “mega parcel” on the shuttered former U.S. Army base. The site will house a $1 billion state-of-the-art production hub. Spanning Oceanport and Eatontown, it will include 12 cutting-edge soundstages totaling nearly 500,000 square feet.
The Monday event took place at Park Loft, located on the Fort Monmouth grounds. It featured top officials from Netflix, including co-CEO Ted Sarandos; Gov. Phil Murphy and First Lady Tammy Murphy; Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill; and key officials from the state, county and local levels of government.
“This project has been a long time in the making,” said Sarandos. “We first announced our plans to transform Fort Monmouth into a new state-of-the-art facility way back in 2022.”
Reflecting on the process, Sarandos pointed back to the company’s May 2025 groundbreaking, which kicked off demolition at the site. “There’s a simple reason we keep coming here,” said Sarandos. “Fort Monmouth is now home – and it’s always good to be home.”
Written in the stars
“This is far and away the most complex project we have done in our eight years in office,” said Murphy, who’s second and final term in office ends Jan. 20. “But at every point along the way – it was a joy. As complicated as it was, it was a joy because we were all locked in. We all knew where the end zone was; where we were trying to get to.”
Murphy noted how the project offers a resurrection and new chapter for the area, which he described as at one time the thriving heartbeat of this great county.
“Now, here we are with the incredible, bright future in store for Fort Monmouth, led by an almost 300-acre campus by our friends at Netflix,” said Murphy. “It’s one of these things where it’s almost meant to be. And it is an extraordinary day.”
Project teaser
See what the $1 billion Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth will look like upon completion. Check out the photos here.
Sherrill said she is excited to take the baton and work with Netflix and the local and county officials on the project, as well as to keep the momentum in the film and television production sector and also train the next generation of its workforce right here in New Jersey.
“I have already heard from so many mayors and county executives about just what they want to do to train this workforce that we are going to need. And the job opportunities that they see coming in the future,” said Sherrill. “And we are truly just getting started. With Netflix acquiring the site and already breaking ground in Fort Monmouth, we are opening up a whole new world of possibilities.”
Please stay tuned to NJBIZ for further coverage of the event and the project.
