Last year was a big one for film, but 2026 is setting up to be an all-time season for movies, from blockbusters to indie.
And with that, the race for Best Picture in 2027 is already ignited, with numerous teasers and trailers coming out for films that believe they will be next in line after “One Battle After Another” to take home the prestigious Academy Award.
If you want to feel like you know more than your friends and are on top of the film game, here are five movies that are already positioned to be major contenders for Best Picture in 2027.
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Project Hail Mary (March 20)
You don’t have to wait long to watch one of the movies that could be a factor at next year’s Oscars.
Ryan Gosling is back in space, but it’s not his upcoming “Star Wars” project. Instead, he’s playing the role of a science teacher who becomes humanity’s last hope in the movie adaptation of the lauded book by the same name.
The Odyssey (July 17)
If there was a frontrunner for next year in almost every award imaginable, it would be Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey,” which has a lineup of actors and actresses that would make even Marvel Studios blush.
The classical epic has been adapted many times before, but never on this scale, and with Nolan giving his own spin to the tale, it has all the makings of a gigantic critical and box-office hit.
Digger (October 2)
How crazy is this film going to be? A black comedy from the mind of Alejandro González Iñárritu, famed for Oscar favorites “Birdman” and “The Revenant.”
Tom Cruise is set to star in the lead role of this mysterious film about an uber-powerful man with a shovel as his companion, hoping to save the world.
Dune: Part Three (December 18)
The conclusion to the sci-fi epic by Denis Villeneuve is coming at the end of 2026, and it could be redemption for Timothée Chalamet after falling at the most recent Oscars with “Marty Supreme.”
There hasn’t been hype to this magnitude over a trilogy that could be a factor at the Oscars since “The Lord of the Rings,” and if the third installment can live up to lofty expectations, it will be a factor come next March.
Michael (April 24)
Everyone knows that “Michael,” the biopic about Michael Jackson, is going to be a box office juggernaut. Regardless of how good it is, people will show up in droves to see the movie.
But if it’s good, and many pundits believe it will be, then Michael could be a powerhouse come next Oscars season. It’s already seen as a contender for a Best Picture nomination, and if it’s received well by critics, it could be a threat to win it all.