CONCLAVE (January 9)
Electing a new pope is a mysterious affair in so far as those very few who have ever been involved tends to keep their traps firmly shut. But if it’s anything like the politicking, manoeuvring and power plays imagined in Conclave, then, what a wild time.
Adapted from a Robert Harris novel by German director Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front) and starring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci and Isabella Rossellini.
A COMPLETE UNKNOWN (January 23)
There’s a very good chance Timothee Chalamet will win the Oscar for best actor for his performance here as a young Bob Dylan, which would make him the youngest ever person to be victorious in his category.
The story follows Dylan as he arrives in New York and becomes feted on the folk scene, and takes it up until his controversial switch over to the electric guitar. A meditation on fame, artistry and the cost of both.
THE BRUTALIST (January 23)
Brady Corbet’s ambitious and sweeping historical epic interrogates the most pervasive myth of America: That vision and hard work are enough to “make it big” in a country of limitless opportunity.
Over three-and-a-half hours (including an old-fashioned intermission), the film explores this through the fictional story of Laszlo Toth, an architect and Holocaust survivor, and his relationship with a wealthy patron.
Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce and Corbet are all contenders in the Oscar race for The Brutalist.
SEPTEMBER 5 (February 6)
A tight 90-minute drama, the propulsive September 5 is set on the day of the 1972 Munich Olympics hostage crisis where terrorists stormed the Israeli athletes’ quarters.
The film is told from the perspective of an American sports news broadcast team who was on the ground, the first time in history a terror attack was covered live. The cast includes John Magro and Peter Sarsgard.
BRIDGET JONES: MAD ABOUT THE BOY (February 13)
Australians should count themselves lucky that we’re going to get the next Bridget Jones adventure on the big screen (the Americans have to settle for streaming, those poor schmucks).
As everyone knows by now, Mark Darcy is dead and the widowed Bridget is juggling career, family and, of course, love, which includes the much younger man Roxster (Leo Woodall) and a teacher at her kids’ school (Chiwetel Ejiofor).
Hugh Grant’s Daniel Cleaver will also be back, and he may even be a reformed man. If nothing else, it can’t possibly be as bad as Bridget Jones’ Baby, so the only way is up.
THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG (February 28)
The winner of a Jury Special Award at Cannes, The Seed of the Sacred Fig is a potent political drama blended with a family. It’s centred on an investigating judge who is expected to rubber stamp sentences for political prisoners in Iran, which puts him at odds with his family in a pressurised social climate.
The film’s director, Mohammad Rasoulof, was sentenced to eight years in prison for making this film and had flee from his homeland to evade Iranian authorities.
MICKEY 17 (March 6)
The follow-up to Parasite from Bong Joon-ho has faced a couple of delays, which makes it one of the most anticipated films of the year. It stars Robert Pattinson as Mickey, an “expendable” employee who is cloned and regenerated each time he dies, usually in an accident.
But then one copy, Mickey 17, unexpectedly survives a fatal expedition to an ice planet and comes face-to-face with his next iteration, Mickey 18. It also stars Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun and Mark Ruffalo.T
BLACK BAG (March 13)
We can all be thankful that Steven Soderbergh rethought his 2013 retirement and was out of action for less time than other filmmakers take between projects.
The prolific director has since made at least one movie a year and the next is Black Bag, an espionage thriller starring Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender. They play a married couple who are both spies and when one of them is suspected of treason, the other has to decide who they will stand by.
FLOW (March 20)
This animated film from Latvia features no dialogue and a cavalcade of awards nominations from all over the world. The hero of the story is an expressive black cat with big eyes trying to survive in the aftermath of a massive flood.
He encounters other stranded animals including dogs, whales, and even a lemur, and along with a Labrador and a secretary bird, they set off on adventures large and small.
ALTO KNIGHTS (March 20)
Robert De Niro reunites with his Wag the Dog director Barry Levinson in a genre he is very comfortable in – the gangster drama. Alto Knights is demanding for De Niro in a different way though.
The actor plays two real-life mobsters, Vito Genovese and Frank Costello, rivals with one ordering a hit on the other. It also features Debra Messing, Kathrine Narducci and Cosmo Jarvis.
I’M STILL HERE (March 27)
I’m Still Here is Brazilian director Walter Salles’ first feature in 12 years, and it’s based on the memoirs of writer Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s memoirs. It details the disappearance of Paiva’s father in 1971 at the hands of the military dictatorship, and the fallout for his mother, Eunice Paiva, an activist and mother-of-five, as she fought for justice or even an acknowledgment.
The film was a commercial success in Brazil, which is contending with some of the same radical right elements, including a general who was part of the dictatorship in 1964 and returned to power as part of Jair Bolsonaro’s cabinet in 2019 to 2023.
SINNERS (April 17)
Sinners will mark the fourth time director Ryan Coogler and actor Michael B. Jordan have come together on a project. Given the creative successes of the previous three – Fruitvale Station, Creed and Black Panther – there is every reason to expect Sinners will be one to watch.
The horror film, which Coogler also wrote, will feature Jordan as twin brothers who have returned to their hometown where an evil is lurking and awaiting them.
A BIG, BOLD BEAUTIFUL JOURNEY (May 8)
The filmmakers have been forthcoming when it comes to A Big, Bold Beautiful Journey, other than it involves two strangers being connected by an emotional quest. So, what we do know about, and what makes this film an interesting prospect are the people involved.
First, you have Kogonada, an artful director whose previous work includes the quiet dramas Columbus and After Yang and four episodes of Pachinko, while the top-notch cast features Margot Robbie, Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Lily Rabe.
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: THE FINAL RECKONING (May 22)
Is a mission finally going to be impossible for Ethan Hunt, the super spy who proves the title of the franchise wrong? The eighth movie is a direct sequel to the 2023 film which was gazumped by opening one week before Barbenheimer, but still brought the goods in terms of extraordinary stunts.
Expect nothing less in this final movie, which wraps up the story of a sentient AI program that could end the world – and it’s about time because Tom Cruise has been running at full speed since 1996. The man deserves a break.
BALLERINA (June 6)
Ana de Armas stars in this John Wick spin-off which takes place between the third and fourth of the Keanu Reeves movies. The story is centred on Eve, a ballerina who starts training as an assassin to avenge her dad’s death.
She is under the protection of the New York Continental Hotel and the movie, which was filmed two years ago, will mark the final screen appearance for Lance Reddick, who died in March 2023.
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON (June 12)
Adapted by Dean DeBlois, who directed or co-directed all three animated How to Train Your Dragon films, this live-action version will revisit the story of underestimated Viking Hiccup and Toothless, the Night Fury the dragon he rescues.
The original trilogy was one of the most beloved animated franchise in recent years, revered for its beautiful storytelling, so it’ll be interesting to see what the same filmmaker can do with live-action.
28 YEARS LATER (June 19)
You can’t keep a good zombie apocalypse down, it’ll lumber towards you, no matter where you’re hiding. As the title suggests, this threequel is set 28 years after the events of 28 Days Later, with director Danny Boyle, screenwriter Alex Garland and star Cillian Murphy all returning.
How Murphy’s character Jim will be incorporated in this follow-up is unclear as the first trailer focused on new ones played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes as survivors in an isolated community on an island that is invaded by the evil undead.
F1 (June 26)
We’ve seen photos and videos of Brad Pitt and co galivanting around the world at Formula 1 tracks, filming for this movie on the same weekends as actual races, which doubles as quite the publicity build-up.
The plot is centred on a retired driver (Pitt) who comes out of retirement to mentor a rookie. It’s directed by Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick) and also stars Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem and Tobias Menzies.
SUPERMAN (July 10)
A new superhero era begins with Superman, the first feature of James Gunn’s tenure as the co-head of DC Studios. The filmmaker has promised the film will get back the humanity of the character, ironic for an alien.
It stars David Corenswet as the caped hero with a supporting cast which includes Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luther and will debut for the first time as a live-action big screen character, Superdog. Woof.
FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS (July 24)
Fantastic Four is one of three Marvel movies out in 2025 (the others being Captain America: Brave New World in February, and Thunderbolts in May) but it is the most anticipated. Marvel’s “first family” has been given short shrift on screen in two previous iterations, plus an unreleased 1994 film, so there are a lot of fans eager to see what Kevin Feige and co can do now they have regained the screen rights to the characters.
Set in a retrofuturistic world that looks like the 1960s, Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) is trying to save their world from the villainous Galactus.
FREAKIER FRIDAY (August 7)
The Lindsay Lohan comeback continues apace, and we’re here for it. But no resurgence would be complete without a return to one of the favourites of her oeuvre, Freaky Friday. This sequel to the body swap comedy reunites Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis, and now Anna is an adult with kids of her own and all those grown-up challenges that come with age.
There’s the promise of a second swap, which would be the whole point. The cast includes OG members Mark Harmon, Lucille Soong and Chad Michael Murray while newcomers include love interest Manny Jacinto.
THE BATTLE OF THE BAKTAN CROSS (August 7)
Sometimes still referred to as the “Untitled Paul Thomas Anderson film”, the details for this are fuzzy, other than it is a decently budgeted collaboration between Anderson (There Will Be Blood, Phantom Thread) and Leonardo DiCaprio with a supporting cast which includes Sean Penn, Regina Hall and Alana Haim. There is some speculation that the story is drawn from Thomas Pynchon’s 1990 novel, Vineland.
DOWNTON ABBEY 3 (September 11)
There is still so much love for Downton Abbey that a third film felt inevitable. The previous instalment ended in 1928 and the death of Violet Crawley, the family’s formidable matriarch. Of course, since then, Maggie Smith has also died and the film is expected to pay tribute to her legacy.
The main cast is expected to return plus Paul Giamatti (who played Cora’s brother in one episode in the series) and newcomers Joely Richardson, Simon Russell Beale and Alessandro Nivola.
THE BRIDE! (September 25)
There are two Frankenstein-y movies out next year, which could easily be complementary rather than competing. One of them is Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, which is releasing to Netflix, so that feels like less of an event.
The other, potentially more intriguing one is The Bride! which tells the story of the monster’s bride. Jessie Buckley plays the titular character with Christian Bale as Frankenstein’s monster with a cast that also includes Penelope Cruz, Peter Sarsgard and Annette Bening. The film is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s second feature as director.
TRON ARES (October 9)
The third Tron movie will bring back Jeff Bridges who was in the original 1982 Tron and the 2010 movie Tron: Legacy, along with a cast which includes Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Jodie Turner-Smith, Gillian Anderson and Evan Peters.
With a score by Trent Reznor’s Nine Inch Nails, the sci-fi film will feature Leto as a sophisticated AI program who enters the real world on a mission.
BUGONIA (November 6)
The rule now is anytime Yorgos Lanthimos makes a movie, you pay attention. With the likes of Poor Things, The Favourite and Dogtooth, he has more than earnt that respect.
Bugonia is a remake of a Korean film, Save the Green Planet!, and is the story of two conspiracists who kidnap the chief executive of a major company because they’re certain she’s an alien out to destroy Earth. The film stars frequent Lanthimos collaborator Emma Stone, plus Jesse Plemons and Alicia Silverstone.
THE RUNNING MAN (November 20)
Based on Stephen King’s 1982 novel, which was previously made into a 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, The Running Man is set in a dystopian future (not so futuristic anymore as King’s book takes place in 2025) in which a desperate man signs up to a deadly game show in which he is chased by hunters. If he survives, he earns a huge cash prize.
The most exciting part is this film is directed by Edgard Wright and it stars Glen Powell.
WICKED: FOR GOOD (November 20)
Earnest to the extreme and very big-hearted, Wicked (or maybe that was just Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s promo tour) will round out its story with its part two later this year.
The revisionist tale of Wizard of Oz’s Wicked Witch of the West will pick up the story with Elphaba now in open revolt against the Wizard, and the question of what will happen to the friendship between Elphie and Glinda.
AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH (December 18)
James Cameron has been keeping quiet about the plot for his third Avatar movie, except for a tease that we might meet some not-so-nice Na’vi. But the story has never been the highpoint of this franchise.
After all, what was the second movie but a rehash of the first – they even resurrected the same villain who, we’re pretty sure, recycled the dialogue as well. It didn’t matter because the movie still made over two billion dollars, as Fire and Ash will probably do as well. No doubt, some of the visuals will be impressive.
THE ORDER (TBC)
There’s a chance The Order will not get a cinema release in Australia and will go straight to streaming instead, but it’s had rave reviews overseas, so it would be a shame if that was its fate.
Especially as Australian director Justin Kurzel is known for making visceral, punchy films that command a big screen. Based on a true American story from the 1980s, it’s about an FBI agent hunting down a white supremacist group. It stars Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, Jurnee Smollett and Tye Sheridan.
THE SURFER (TBC)
A co-production between Australia and Ireland, The Surfer was filmed in Western Australia and premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May.
Tagged as a B movie thriller with a bruising, trippy vibe, it stars Nicolas Cage as a middle-aged man who just wants to surf but the local beach has its own pecking order and he is well outside of it
IN VITRO (TBC)
A low-key Australian horror starring Ashley Zukerman and Talia Zucker, In Vitro hums with dread and questions you don’t really want to know the answer to.
On the surface, it’s a story about a husband and wife who live and work on a cattle farm where he is conducting mysterious experiments. The real story, though, is about a different kind of horror.
