It’s 2026, and if the world doesn’t erupt into all-out war (eep!), we are in for a phenomenal year at the cinema with some major releases from big directors, returning franchises, comic book movies, superhero movies and some old franchises that are being brought back from extinction. Here in no particular order are 26 movies to keep an eye out in 2026.
Toy Story 5 – No surprises here! A new take on the next chapter of our favourite toys wil see Buzz, Woody and gang go up against iPad/Leapfrog style tablets for playtime. With the trend of digital detoxing, it seems it is the right time for this story to work.
Digger – Tom Cruise stars in this comedy from director Alejandro G. Iñárritu about the most powerful man in the world, who is convinced he is our saviour. We don’t know too much else, but Tom Cruise coming back to comedy is something we can get behind.
Project Hail Mary – From filmmakers Phil Lord & Christopher Miller who have done a few things you might know like the Spider-Verse animated films, The Mitchells Vs The Machines, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs The Lego Movie, 21 Jump Street to name a few. Adapting the novel of the same name and starring Ryan Gosling, this looks set to be one of the biggest action films of the year.
Wuthering Heights – Valentine’s Day, Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi and writer/director Emerald Fennell sounds like a winning combo. While it’s hard to imagine this will be a faithful adaptation of the novel, Fennell always delivers a spectacle if her previous films like Promising Young Woman and Saltburn are anything to go by, this could be just as big.
The Chronicles of Narnia : The Magician’s Nephew – Writer/Director Greta Gerwig is back for her first film since Barbie, with a new take on the classic 1940 novels that have been adapted twice so far (three times if you include the animated CTW film) time will tell if this lands, we are getting the very first novel in the series which has never been done before.
Supergirl – The DCU continues with its follow up from 2025’s Superman film, this film is being directed by Craig Gillespie (I,Tonya) and stars Milly Alcock (House of the Dragon) based on a very popular comic book series, this will be a true test of the new universe can succeed.
Disclosure Day – Director Steven Spielberg returns to the big screen with an alien sci fi pic starring Emily Blunt. The creepy trailer has already dominated pop culture on its release and we can’t wait to see what the famed director has in store.
28 Years Later : The Bone Temple – The fourth film in the 28 series is a follow-up to 2025’s 28 Years Later. Director Nia Costa takes the reins here, and we cannot wait to see the crazier direction this franchise can head into.
Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die – Director Gore Verbinski teams up with Sam Rockwell for a sci-fi adventure. We are really interested to see how this one turns out.
The Hunger Games : Sunrise on the Reaping – The franchise that keeps reinventing itself and producing solid stories is back at it again. This time around, Glenn Close joins the cast in what looks to be the closest to the first film in a while. We have only seen a short snippet, but this promises to be one of the year’s biggest releases.
The Bride – The Monster Movies of the 1930’s keep getting re-invented for new audiences, this time around writer/director Maggie Gyllenhaal uses the inspiration from the 1935 film and novel to reinvent the story of the Bride of Frankenstein for modern audiences.
Werewulf – Famed director Robert Eggers is back with his take on the werewolf genre. After the massive success of Nosferatu, Eggers claims this is his darkest script to date, and with a Christmas Day release date, this looks to be one hell of a way to spend the holidays!
Lee Cronin’s The Mummy – Sadly this is not The Mummy 4, or anything even closely related to the Brendan Fraser franchise. It is a Cronin take on the character of the Mummy from the original Monster Movies. We haven’t seen a trailer or know any information so time will tell if this lands well or not.
Clayface – the third film in the DCU, this time around Mike Flanagan dives into the the Batman villain from a body horror angle. We don’t have too many details to go on yet, but it’s a brave direction for a comic book film.
Avengers : Doomsday – The only film from Marvel Studios will quite potentially determine the future direction the studio goes in. With all three of their movies underperforming in 2025, the trailers are relying on nostalgia to bring the franchise back. Time will tell whether a villainous RDJ and Chris Evans returning as Steve Rogers are enough to save it.
Dune Part 3 – Coming out the same day as Avengers, the now claimed Dunesday event is the highly anticipated follow-up to Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of the books. With new cast members including Robert Pattinson, it will be the final instalment in the trilogy.
The Adventures of Cliff Booth – We are still confused about how this is going to play out. Based on Brad Pitt’s character in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Tarantino is handing the reins over to director David Fincher for a comedy/crime/drama. This is heading to Netflix and we are unsure if a cinema release will happen, either way it will be sure to get everyone talking.
The Social Reckoning – the sequel to The Social Network, is expected to explore the aftermath of social media and its impact on society. Facebook engineer Frances Haugen and The Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz blow the whistle on the social network’s most guarded secrets. In a digital detox world, it will be interesting to see how writer/director Aaron Sorkin presents this project.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day – Tom Holland is the first Spider-Man to get a fourth film, and we can’t wait to see how a world that has forgotten who Spider-Man is will navigate Peter Parker’s story. The Punisher is set to join the cast, with some set photos released, we don’t know much more than that.
Resident Evil – fresh off the success of 2025’s Weapons, writer/director Zach Cregger delivers a stand alone story set inside the RE gaming universe. Not much is known about the story or what characters will be involved, if it is anything like his previous films, this one will be BIG!
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie – Following up the billion-dollar success of the first film and taking a very surprising turn into the Mario Galaxy games, this sequel looks surprisingly good. Hopefully, we get a bit more spectacle this time around.
The Odyssey – Christopher Nolan’s follow-up from Oppenheimer, is an adaptation of the ancient Greek epic. This fantasy action film has an all-star cast, including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Tom Holland and Charlize Theron. We cannot wait to see this in IMAX!
The Devil Wears Prada 2 – Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway are returning for the highly demanded follow-up to the classic 2006 film. Not much details are known outside of the locations we have seen them filming in, but we know that Streep and Hathaway wouldn’t sign on if it wasn’t at least half-way decent right….RIGHT?
Scream 7: Kevin Williamson returns to the franchise to write the seventh instalment following the retcon of the sequel. The series is pivoting back to Sidney Prescott and her daughter. The first teaser trailer has racked up over 11 million views in 2 months, it is clear that fans are very excited for the new direction.
Honourable mentions
Artificial – Luca Guadagnino’s latest project is a biopic starring Andrew Garfield as the CEO of OpenAI.
Cliffhangers – the remake of the Sylvester Stallone film is finally heading to theatres this year. Starring Lily Collins and Pierce Brosnan, we don’t have much information apart from a tentative August release date.
The Great Beyond – Director J.J Abrams returns to filmmaking with a massive cast including Glen Powell, Jenna Ortega, Emma Mackey and Samuel L. Jackson. Not much is known beyond a cast announcement and release date.
Masters of the Universe – Fans of the 1980’s franchise have been clamouring for a film adaptation that they can be proud of, and it looks like we just be getting it with this one. The only question is, will Jared Leto’s involvement keep audiences away?
