From long-awaited franchise returns to bold swings from acclaimed directors, 2026 is shaping up to be a massive year at the movies. The release calendar is stacked with everything from epic sci-fi to buzzy literary adaptations to would be Oscar players. Here are the 20 most important films on our radar for the new year, in order of release.
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (Jan. 16)
Director: Nia DaCosta
Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell, Emma Laird, and Cillian Murphy
The follow-up to 2025’s acclaimed zombie-apocalypse film and the second installment a planned trilogy, this film follows characters introduced in 28 Weeks Later and was shot back-to-back with that film. Per the synopsis, the Rage Virus has returned, and a group of survivors must survive in a world ravaged by hordes of the infected. After being reintroduced at the end of the last film, Oscar winner Murphy, who was the protagonist in 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later, is expected to play a bigger role in Bone Temple.
Wuthering Heights (Feb. 13)
Director: Emerald Fennell
Cast: Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi
Warner Bros. looks to extend its hot streak with Fennell’s film starring Robbie and Elordi as the ill-fated lovers Catherine and Heathcliff, which, per the logline, is “inspired by the greatest love story of all time” — the tragic gothic novel by Emily Brontë. In addition to Oscar winner Fennell and her awards-caliber cast, Charli XCX is producing a full album for the film, which will feature the recently released track “Chains of Love.”
The Bride! (March 6)
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Cast: Jessie Buckley, Christian Bale, Annette Bening, Peter Sarsgaard, Penélope Cruz and Jake Gyllenhaal
Just as Guillermo del Toro‘s Frankenstein has established itself as a monstrous force in the awards race, the next spin on Mary Shelley‘s classic is about to be unleashed, courtesy of Gyllenhaal and a loaded cast. Set in 1930s Chicago, Bening’s Dr. Euphronious creates a romantic companion for Bale’s monster using the corpse of a murdered woman (Buckley). Warner Bros. promises The Bride! will be filled with “murder,” “possession,” and “romance” — all amid the backdrop of “a wild and radical cultural movement.” This take riffs on James Whale‘s 1935 classic Bride of Frankenstein, which was based on Shelley’s 1818 novel.
Hoppers (March 6)
Director: Daniel Chong
Cast: Dave Franco, Kathy Najimy, Meryl Streep, and Jon Hamm
Pixar hopes to rebound from its Elio fiasco with this high-concept toon, which centers on an animal lover named Mabel (Disney Channel alum Piper Curda) who uses a new technology to “hop” her consciousness into a life-like robotic beaver and communicate directly with animals. Mabel then uncovers mysteries within the animal world that are beyond anything she could have imagined.
Project Hail Mary (March 20)
Director: Phil Lord and Christopher Miller
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Sandra Hüller
Based on the 2021 bestseller by author Andy Weir, whose The Martian became an Oscar-contending blockbuster thanks to director Ridley Scott and star Matt Damon, this near-future tale follows Ryland Grace (Gosling) who goes from middle school science teacher to humanity’s last hope. With the sun’s rays suddenly about to be extinguished millennia ahead of projections, the Earth is facing the prospect of another extinction-level Ice Age. Grace is enlisted — rather forcibly, it should be noted — to join a last-ditch space voyage to find a solution. Along the way, he has a close encounter with an extraterrestrial on its own rescue mission.
The Drama (April 3)
Director: Kristoffer Borgli
Cast: Zendaya and Robert Pattinson
The Drama sounds like an on-the-nose title for this story of couple — Zendaya as Emma Harwood, a bookstore clerk; Pattinson as Charlie Thompson, a museum director — whose relationship is shaken just days before their wedding, when one partner uncovers unsettling truths about the other.
Michael (April 24)
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Cast: Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, Nia Long, Miles Teller, Kat Graham, Larenz Tate, Laura Harrier, and Derek Luke
After a serious cut-down in the editing room, the long-delayed biopic is finally ready for its closeup — and we’ll finally see if it’s been worth the wait. Michael stars Jackson’s nephew and the son of Jermaine Jackson as the King of Pop, tracking the singer’s career from his start in the Jackson 5 to his death in 2009. Domingo plays family patriarch Joe Jackson, while Long plays matriarch Katherine Jackson.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 (May 1)
Director: David Frankel
Cast: Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Stanley Tucci, and Lady Gaga
The much-antici film pated sequel checks in with Streep’s Priestly, who still runs the fashion magazine Runway, but now has to navigate a brave new world of online publishing and social media influencers. Priestly is competing with Blunt’s character, the former conniving assistant now running a luxury brand and both must get reacquainted with Hathaway’s Andy Sachs.
Star Wars: The Mandalorian & Grogu (May 22)
Director: Jon Favreau
Cast: Pedro Pascal, Sigourney Weaver, Jeremy Allen White
In this continuation of the Emmy-winning Disney+ series, Pascal’s Din Djarin and his little buddy Grogu (aka Baby Yoda) make their theatrical feature debut in an original story bridging the Mandalorian TV saga with the larger Star Wars universe. Lucasfilm hopes to recapture some of its big-screen glory following 2019’s much-maligned The Rise of Skywalker, the last film to be set in that galaxy far, far away.
Disclosure Day (June 12)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Cast: Emily Blunt, Coleman Domingo, Josh O’Connor, Colin Firth, Eve Hewson, and Wyatt Russell
Spielberg is keeping the plot under wraps, but we are expecting a return to popcorn-crunching classics like Close Encounters and E.T. Based on the teaser (above), it appears O’Connor’s character is ready to announce the existence of aliens among us. All Universal is saying so far is: “If you found out we weren’t alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you? This summer, the truth belongs to 7 billion people. We are coming close to … Disclosure Day.”
Toy Story 5 (June 12)
Directors: McKenna Harris, Andrew Stanton
Cast: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts, Joan Cusack, Ernie Hudson, and Conan O’Brien
Pixar’s signature Oscar-winning toys are back in town in what should be the de facto favorite for 2027’s Best Animated Feature. According to early details shared by the filmmakers, Toy Story 5 will explore the role of toys in an age dominated by screens. Bonnie, last seen as a young child in Toy Story 3, is now 8 years old and spending more of her time with a new tech tablet she’s named Lillypad. Her growing attachment to the device has led to a gradual disinterest in her traditional toys, sparking an identity crisis among her longtime favorites. The situation comes to a head with the arrival of Lilly, a sleek, voice-interactive AI character who quickly becomes the center of Bonnie’s attention. Meanwhile, Woody (Hanks) — who chose to live as a “lost toy” with Bo Peep (Potts) at the end of Toy Story 4 — is drawn back into the fold as the situation with Bonnie escalates.
Moana (July 10)
Director: Thomas Kail
Cast: Catherine Lagaʻaia, Dwayne Johnson, John Tui, Frankie Adams, and Rena Owen
Disney has had an uneven track record with its live-action adaptations: for every Lilo & Stitch, there’s been a Snow White. This latest remake, coming just 10 years after the Academy Award-nominated animated feature, stars newcomer Lagaʻaia as the fearless young wayfinder, with Johnson returning as the charismatic trickster demigod Maui. Although Emmy and Tony winner Kail is directing, there’s still no word yet whether his Hamilton partner Lin-Manuel Miranda will be writing any new songs.
The Odyssey (July 17)
Director: Christopher Nolan
Cast: Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson, Jon Bernthal, Charlize Theron, Elliot Page, Hamesh Patel, Benny Safdie, and Samantha Morton.
The early betting favorite for 2027’s Best Picture, Nolan’s Oppenheimer follow-up features a sprawling, all-world cast in a sweeping retelling of Homer’s epic poem. The film chronicles the journeys of Odysseus (Damon), the king of Ithaca, as he voyages home from the Trojan War, a trip that takes 10 years and costs him more than a few shipmates.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day (July 31)
Director: Destin Daniel Cretton
Cast: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Tramell Tillman, Mark Ruffalo, Liza Colón-Zayas, Sadie Sink
Determined to leave Spider-Man behind, Holland’s Peter Parker dives into college life — until a rising threat targets those closest to him. With no other choice, he suits up once more, joining forces with an unexpected ally to protect the ones he loves. The film features Bernthal’s Punisher and Ruffalo’s Hulk, as well as Stranger Things star Sink in a much-debated mystery role. This Sony-Marvel joint looks to reestablish the MCU as a box-office force after the so-so 2025 releases of Captain America: New World Order, Thunderbolts, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
Digger (Oct. 2)
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu
Cast: Tom Cruise, Sandra Hüller, John Goodman, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Jesse Plemons
Another shrouded-in-secrecy project from an Oscar-winning auteur, Digger has been described as a dark dramedy with Cruise looking to stretch himself after wrapping Mission: Impossible. The Warner Bros. film has labeled itself as “a comedy of catastrophic proportions.”
The Social Reckoning (Oct. 9)
Director: Aaron Sorkin
Cast: Mikey Madison, Jeremy Allen White, Jeremy Strong, and Bill Burr
After winning an Oscar for writing the David Fincher-helmed The Social Network, Sorkin is moving into the director’s seat for what’s being described as a “companion piece” (the studio refuses to say “sequel”). Sorkin’s original screenplay tells the true story of how Frances Haugen (Madison), a young Facebook engineer, enlists the help of Jeff Horwitz (White), a Wall Street Journal reporter, to go on a dangerous journey that ends up blowing the whistle on the social network’s most guarded secrets. White’s Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere buddy Jeremy Strong replaces Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping (Nov. 20)
Director: Francis Lawrence
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Glenn Close, Kieran Culkin, Ralph Fiennes, Elle Fanning, and Jesse Plemons
The film marks the sixth installment in the Hunger Games film franchise and the second prequel after the 2023 hit The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. Sunrise on the Reaping is set 24 years before the events of The Hunger Games. The teaser trailer, which debuted in November, featured Joseph Zada as a 16-year-old Haymitch Abernathy (later played by Woody Harrelson) preparing to compete in his own games, but had no sign of returning stars Lawrence and Hutcherson.
Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew (Nov. 26)
Director: Greta Gerwig
Cast: Daniel Craig, Carey Mulligan, Emma Mackey
Gerwig is following up her Oscar-nominated Barbie with this passion project for Netflix, a reboot C.S. Lewis‘ classic children’s fantasy series beginning with the sixth book published (but first chronologically in the story). Producer Amy Pascal told Deadline that Gerwig’s vision features a “very new take” and is “all about rock and roll.”
Avengers: Doomsday (Dec. 18)
Director: Anthony and Joe Russo
Cast: Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Paul Rudd, Anthony Mackie, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, and Sebastian Stan
Marvel’s next major team-up event is not only bringing back heroes from across the MCU but also from Fox’s X-Men universe in an attempt to reclaim its box-office mojo. The two biggest returnees are Downey, trading in his Iron Man armor for big bad Doctor Doom’s armor, and Evans, who had presumably hung up his star-spangled Captain America costume after Endgame, but whose comeback was featured in the first teaser.
Dune: Messiah (Dec. 18)
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, and Florence Pugh
Based on the novel Dune Messiah, this third installment in Villeneuve’s franchise takes place 12 years after the Dune: Part 2 cliffhanger, with Chalamet’s Paul firmly entrenched as the emperor and embraced as god-like by religious zealots. The first two installments both received Best Pictures nominations and Villeneuve hopes to go 3-for-3.