The 33 Most Anticipated Movies of 2024 

(Photo by ©Marvel Studios, ©Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, David James/©Paramount Pictures, Niko Tavernise/©Warner Bros.)

[Updated 6/6/2023]

What will the future of movies be? After a pandemic, the continued rise of streaming, the IP-ificiation of blockbusters, and tough times for theaters, it’s hard to predict exactly where cinema will go. However, in the not-too-distant future, we have a lot to look forward to. The year 2024 will be upon us before you know it, and with it comes exciting superhero movies, a highly anticipated musical adaptation, George Miller’s return to Mad Max, a third Avatar, and much, much, more. See below for the movies we’re most looking forward to in 2024, and check back regularly as we make more updates to the list!

El Muerto (2024)
Directed by: Jonás Cuarón
Starring: Bad Bunny
Opening on: January 12, 2024

Originally, Sony’s Madame Web (see below) was going to be the studio’s first Spider-adjacent film to hit theaters in 2024, but now it’s going to be El Muerto, starring pop star-turned-actor Bad Bunny as one of Spidey’s most obscure allies. The film reportedly has not gone into production yet, so it remains to be seen if it will hold the January release date.

Directed by: S.J. Clarkson
Starring: Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, Celeste O’Connor, Isabela Merced, Tahar Rahim, Emma Roberts, Mike Epps, Adam Scott, and Zosia Mamet
Opening on: February 16, 2024

Sony’s “Spider-Man Movie Franchise (Without Spider-Man)” has had highs (Venom) and lows (Morbius), but Madame Web, which stars Dakota Johnson as the clairvoyant Spidey side character, might be worth sticking around for, even if Peter Parker himself never shows up. Sydney Sweeney, Adam Scott, and Zosia Mamet co-star.

Elio (2024)
Directed by: Adrian Molina
Starring: America Ferrera, Yonas Kibreab
Opening on: March 1, 2024

Announced in 2022, Pixar’s 28th feature film (following 2023’s Elemental) will focus on an 11-year-old boy (named Elio, of course) who is inadvertently beamed up into space and is mistaken to be an ambassador for Earth on another planet. It will be the directorial debut for Adrian Molina, who previously worked on Pixar films like Coco, Toy Story 4, and Luca.

Directed by: David Leitch
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt
Opening on: March 1, 2024

Is there a better action director than David Leitch these days? Leitch, a former stuntman who previously helmed John Wick, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2, and Hobbs & Shaw, is tackling a film adaptation of an ‘80s TV show about a stuntman who moonlights as a bounty hunter. Sounds right up his alley. Ryan Gosling will play the lead alongside Emily Blunt.

(Photo by ©20th Century Fox)

Directed by: Mike Mitchell
Starring: Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, Dustin Hoffman, and David Cross
Opening on: March 8, 2024

DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda series is quietly incredible, taking what could have been a silly premise (Jack Black voices a fat panda who does martial arts) and turning it into something funny, heartfelt, and full of impressive fight scenes. At CinemaCon 2023, we learned that Mike Mitchell (Trolls, The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part) would be directing the film, and that the story would follow Po as he faces off against a chameleon foe and searches for a new Dragon Warrior.

Directed by: Michael Sarnoski
Starring: Lupita Nyong’o, Joseph Quinn, Alex Wolff, Djimon Hounsou, Denis O’Hare
Opening on: March 8, 2024

With the thrilling exception of the second movie’s opening scene, the action in the A Quiet Place franchise has taken place after the super-hearing, super-deadly aliens have already invaded and destroyed society as we know it. As the title here implies, the third film in the series will show the first days of the alien attack, well before anybody knows what’s going on or what to expect from these monsters, and it will be directed by Michael Sarnoski, who gave us one of Nicolas Cage’s best performances ever in 2021’s Pig. While most of the cast announced so far are new, we will see the return of Djimon Hounsou’s character from Part II.

Directed by: Adam Wingard
Starring: Dan Stevens, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Kaylee Hottle, Fala Chen, Alex Ferns, and Rachel House
Opening on: March 15, 2024

The two greatest kaiju of all time are back for round two in the follow-up to the Monsterverse’s 2021 showdown. However, the synopsis suggests that they might be allies from the start rather than enemies this time around, as Godzilla and Kong will face “a colossal undiscovered threat hidden within our world.” Dan Stevens has been cast as the lead of the film, alongside returning GvK actors Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, and Kaylee Hottle. Adam Wingard, who directed the previous bout, will be behind the camera for this one, too.

Directed by: Marc Webb
Starring: Rachel Zegler, Gal Gadot, and Andrew Burnap
Opening on: March 22, 2024

Although critics haven’t been kind to most of Disney’s live-action remakes of their classic animated films, they’ve been a hit with moviegoers at the box office, which might explain why Snow White is getting the same treatment some 87 years after the original 1937 cartoon came out. West Side Story’s Rachel Zegler stars as Snow White, with Wonder Woman’s Gal Gadot playing the Evil Queen.

(Photo by Sony Pictures)

Directed by: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Jake Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Vélez, Issa Rae, and Jason Schwartzman
Opening on: March 29, 2024

The 2018 film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is one of the best superhero movies and one of the best animated movies to grace theaters in recent years, so it’s only natural that there would be a sequel. However, there were simply too many Spider-Men for just one movie, and the sequel was split into two films. 2023’s Across the Spider-Verse premiered to rave reviews and a monster opening weekend but ended on a cliffhanger for Miles Morales and his friends, which Beyond the Spider-Verse will look to conclude.

Directed by: Bong Joon-ho
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Naomi Ackie, Toni Collette, Mark Ruffalo, Steven Yeun
Opening on: March 29, 2024

South Korean director Bong Joon-ho follows up his Academy Award-winning film Parasite with this adaptation of the sci-fi novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton. Robert Pattinson stars as a disposable employee — one whose body is regenerated with previous memories intact every time he dies — on a mission to colonize a distant world.

Directed by: Kenji Kamiyama
Starring: Brian Cox, Miranda Otto
Opening on: April 12, 2024

Warner Bros. latest film in the Lord of the Rings universe is this animated prequel that follows the exploits of Helm Hammerhand, the legendary king of Rohan, home of the horsemen known as the Rohirrim that played a big part in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Brian Cox will lend his voice to the central character, who reigned 183 years before the events of The Two Towers, while the latter film’s Miranda Otto reprises her role as Eowyn, who will serve as a framing device for the story.

(Photo by Marvel Studios)

Directed by: Julius Onah
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Tim Blake Nelson, Harrison Ford, Carl Lumbly, Danny Ramirez, and Shira Haas
Opening in: May 3, 2024

Sam Wilson, the superhero formerly known as The Falcon, took on Cap’s mantle in the Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and now he’s ready for the big screen. Tim Blake Nelson, who played the character who becomes the Marvel villain known as The Leader, will reprise the role first teased in The Incredible Hulk and seemingly forgotten about until now. Harrison Ford will also star, stepping into the role of Thaddeus Ross following the death of William Hurt.

Directed by: George Miller
Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke, Nathan Jones, and Angus Sampson
Opening on: May 24, 2024

Anya Taylor-Joy will play a younger version of the war rig-driving badass Imperator Furiosa in this prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, one of the best films of the century so far. George Miller will, naturally, direct once more, and Chris Hemsworth will co-star in the movie, which tells the tale of Furiosa’s kidnapping and her rise through Immortan Joe’s ranks.

Garfield (2024)
Directed by: Mark Dindal
Starring: Chris Pratt, Samuel L. Jackson, Nicholas Hoult, Cecily Strong, Hannah Waddingham, and Ving Rhames
Opening on: May 24, 2024

After Chris Pratt voiced Mario, he wept, for there were no more animated characters to conquer. Just kidding! He’ll be voicing everybody’s favorite lasagna-loving, Monday-hating cat, Garfield, in a new movie adaptation of the long-running comic strip. Samuel L. Jackson will voice Vic, Garfield’s father. Sure! Okay!

IF (2024)
Directed by: John Krasinski
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, John Krasinski, Fiona Shaw, Cailey Fleming, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Steve Carell, Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Maya Rudolph, Awkwafina
Opening on: May 24, 2024

John Krasinski and Ryan Reynolds — both of whom also star in this film, by the way — developed this fantasy comedy also written by Krasinski about a young girl who learns she has the ability to see Imaginary Friends (hence the title IF) that have been abandoned. Reynolds and Krasinski are joined by massive voice cast (presumably for those imaginary friends) that includes Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Matt Damon, Steve Carell, Emily Blunt, Awkwafina, and more.

(Photo by ©20th Century Fox)

Directed by: Wes Ball
Starring: Owen Teague, Freya Allan, Peter Macon, Eka Darville, and Kevin Durand
Opening on: May 24, 2024

Caesar, the chimpanzee who led the apes to world domination, died at the end of 2017’s War for the Planet of the Apes, the third film in the reboot trilogy of the classic sci-fi franchise. However, there’s more monkey business to be had. (Yes, apes and monkeys are different, but let us have this.) Wes Ball, who helmed the Maze Runner films, directs the fourth film in the series, which takes place many years after the events of War.

The Karate Kid (2024)
Directed by: TBA
Starring: TBA
Opening on: June 6, 2024

The popular Netflix series Cobra Kai has helped keep the iconic ‘80s martial arts franchise alive and kicking in the popular consciousness, and in 2024 Sony will head back to the IP dojo with a remake of the original flick. Few additional details have been revealed, though it is confirmed that the movie will have no connection to the Netflix show.

Directed by: Len Wiseman
Starring: Ana de Armas, Keanu Reeves, Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, Norman Reedus, Anjelica Huston, Gabriel Byrne
Opening on: June 7, 2024

The first spin-off film of the John Wick universe stars Ana de Armas as one of the female assassins trained by the Ruska Roma, the criminal organization headed by Anjelica Huston’s “Director” and glimpsed in John Wick: Chatper 3 – Parabellum. Details are thin so far, but we know it will be another revenge tale, and we know that it will be set specifically between the events of Chapter 3 and Chapter 4, so Keanu Reeves and his Continental cohort will also appear.

(Photo by ©Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

Directed by: Kelsey Mann
Starring: Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, and Lewis Black
Opening on: June 14, 2024

The wonderful Pixar film Inside Out showed us what things are like inside of an emotional young girl’s head. How do you raise the stakes for the sequel? Go inside a teenager’s head, of course. Inside Out 2 will revisit Riley now that she’s in college, and it will fittingly introduce a host of new emotions. There are reports that, aside from Amy Poehler, not all of the original voice cast, whose ranks included Bill Hader and Mindy Kaling, will return for the sequel.

(Photo by David James/©Paramount Pictures)

Directed by: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Ving Rhames, Henry Czerny, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Hayley Atwell, Shea Whigham, Esai Morales, and Pom Klementieff
Opening on: June 28, 2024

One can only imagine what death-defying stunts Tom Cruise will do in the eighth film in the Mission: Impossible franchise, which is a direct follow-up to 2023’s Dead Reckoning Part One. Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, and Rebecca Ferguson look set to reprise their roles from previous films, along with newcomers Hayley Atwell and Esai Morales, who plays the villain.

(Photo by ©Universal Pictures)

Directed by: Chris Renaud, Patrick Delage
Starring: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Miranda Cosgrove, and Steve Coogan
Opening on: July 3, 2024

Don’t forget which master the Minions serve. Coming two years after the last installment in the franchise, the spin-off Minions: The Rise of Gru, Despicable Me is going back to the mainline series, though there are no specific details at this point about what trouble Gru and the Minions will get into this time around.

Directed by: Barry Jenkins
Starring: Aaron Pierre, Kevin Harrison Jr., Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, and John Kani
Opening on: July 5, 2024

The “live-action” Lion King (which was 100 percent computer-generated and not actually live action, to be clear) is getting a prequel that will explore the backstory of Simba’s father, Mufasa. James Earl Jones, who voiced Mufasa in the original Lion King and the remake, will not voice this younger version of Mufasa, and instead Aaron Pierre will play the character. Kelvin Harrison Jr. will play Scar, who goes by Taka when the events of the film take place.

Twisters (2024)
Directed by: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, Anthony Ramos, Brandon Perea, Maura Tierney
Opening on: July 19, 2024

Originally planned as a remake of the 1996 disaster movie Twister, Twisters eventually took form as a sequel, though it’s being called a “new chapter” and it isn’t clear if it will have any connection to its predecessor. Minari director Lee Isaac Chung makes the leap from indie drama to summer blockbuster, with Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, and Anthony Ramos set to star.

Directed by: Jake Schreier
Starring: Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Hannah John-Kamen, Wyatt Russell, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, David Harbour, Olga Kurylenko, and Harrison Ford
Opening on: July 26,2024

The MCU is getting its Suicide Squad equivalent. The 35th film in the franchise will gather several villains or anti-hero characters from previous movies — including Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova, Sebastian Stan’s Winter Soldier, Wyatt Russell’s U.S. Agent, David Harbour’s Red Guardian, and Hannah John-Kamen as the Ant-Man and the Wasp villain Ghost — and send them off on a mission. Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who has appeared in a couple of post-credits scenes as Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, will presumably be pulling the shadowy super-team’s strings.

Directed by: Tim Burton
Starring: Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Monica Belluci, Willem Dafoe
Opening on: September 6, 2024

Tim Burton reteams with Michael Keaton to return to one of his early iconic characters in this sequel to 1988’s Beetlejuice. Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara are also both on board to reprise their characters Lydia and Delia Deetz, while Jenna Ortega joins the cast as Lydia’s daughter.

Directed by: Yann Demange
Starring: Mahershala Ali, Mia Goth, Delroy Lindo, and Aaron Pierre
Opening on: September 6, 2024

Blade, the vampire-hunter first played by Wesley Snipes, is actually a Marvel Comics character, and Mahershala Ali is set to star in a Blade movie that formally introduces the Daywalker to the MCU after making a brief voice cameo in one of Eternals’ post-credit sequences. The movie has faced a couple of hurdles, including a production delay resulting from a switch in director, but it now appears to be back on track.

Transformers One (2024)
Directed by: Josh Cooley
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, Jon Hamm, Laurence Fishburne, Keegan-Michael Key
Opening on: September 13, 2024

The Transformers franchise returns to its roots with an animated prequel that explores the origins of the titular robots’ home world of Cybertron and the rivalry between Optimus Prime and Megatron. It will be separate from the ongoing narrative of the live-action films, and it will be helmed by Toy Story 4 director Josh Cooley, with Chris Hemsworth as the voice of Optimus Prime and Brian Tyree Henry as Megatron.

(Photo by Niko Tavernise/©Warner Bros.)

Directed by: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Zazie Beetz, Catherine Keener, and Jacob Lofland
Opening on: October 4, 2024

Director Todd Phillips helms this follow-up to the wildly successful R-rated take on the iconic Batman villain that earned Joaquin Phoenix the Oscar for Best Actor. In Folie à Deux, he’ll be joined by Lady Gaga, who is playing his love interest (it’s complicated) Harley Quinn, and the film will reportedly be a musical. Yes, you read that right.

(Photo by Joe Lederer/20th Century Fox Film Corp.)

Directed by: Shawn Levy
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, and Leslie Uggams
Opening on: November 8, 2024

The Merc With a Mouth is back — and so is Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine? The first Deadpool movie since Disney bought Fox will certainly be a sight to behold, as the Ryan Reynolds-led franchise is beloved for its R-rated humor. How that will blend with the MCU’s decidedly PG-13 tone is a mystery, as is how and why Jackman is unsheathing Wolverine’s claws after the acclaimed swan song that was Logan.

Directed by: Ridley Scott
Starring: Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Connie Nielsen, Djimon Hounsou, Joseph Quinn, Derek Jacobi
Opening on: November 22, 2024

Ridley Scott returns to direct this sequel to the historical epic Gladiator. The story will reportedly revolve around a grown-up Lucius (played by Paul Mescal), who has become emperor, and will see the return of Connie Nielsen as Lucilla.

Directed by: Jon M. Chu
Starring: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, and Jonathan Bailey
Opening on: November 27, 2024

The legendary Broadway musical that tells the tale of the Wicked Witch of the West from a different perspective is getting a two-part film adaptation. Director Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights) will take audiences to Oz, while Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande will play Elphaba and Glinda, respectively.

(Photo by ©20th Century Studios)

Directed by: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis
Opening on: December 20, 2024

James Cameron shot the third film in a planned series of five Avatar movies while filming the second one, 2022’s The Way of Water. Few details about what this return to Pandora will be about, but Cameron and Co. have said that the fourth and fifth Avatar movies are dependent on the success of 2 and 3. Considering The Way of Water has passed that test with flying colors, there’s even more pressure on the third film to deliver similar results.

(Photo by ©Paramount Pictures)

Directed by: Jeff Fowler
Starring: Ben Schwartz, Idris Elba, James Marsden, and Colleen O’Shaughnessey
Opening on: December 20, 2024

The Sonic the Hedgehog film franchise is speeding right along with a third installment that will presumably bring back Ben Schwartz as Sonic, Colleen O’Shaughnessey as Tails, and Idris Elba as Knuckles. Jim Carrey, who played the villainous Dr. Robotnik in the first two movies, might sit this one out as he’s been talking about retiring from acting. But, there will be at least one foe giving Sonic a run for his money, as Sonic 2 teased a new villain, Shadow the Hedgehog, in its post-credits scene.

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