Each crisp winter brings in another new year, and often it’s just the right time for film enthusiasts to catch up on the passing year’s buzziest movie releases. But there’s already a lineup of upcoming releases waiting to pull audiences back out and to theaters in 2026. With some well-known classics continuing or being reimagined, there’s also great potential for new classics to be defined.
There’s always the usual suspects — big-name releases that will likely be fighting for records at the box office. These would be large-scale epic adaptations, awaited sequels, superhero action-flicks and powerhouse filmmakers returning to built-in audiences. But there’s also ample lesser-known, lower-budget works waiting to be picked up by a niche crowd.
As the curtains close on 2025, here’s what’s known about some movies set to come out next year:
“Wuthering Heights” (Feb. 13)
In this adaptation of Emily Brontë’s novel of the same name, Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi will star as Catherine and Heathcliffe, respectively. “Saltburn” director Emerald Fennell returns to set a moody, audacious ambiance, as the trailer alone has initiated a lot of debate surrounding the film. Charli xcx is set to release an original album as part of the film’s soundtrack closer to its release date, with one single off the album, “House” featuring John Cale, being released already. Given the timely release date right around Valentine’s Day, whatever this new take on the classic novel is, it’ll be a spectacle worth bringing a date to.
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“The Odyssey” (July 17)
Christopher Nolan’s last film, the Oscar-winning “Oppenheimer,” was one of the most talked-about releases from summer 2023. He now returns to the same release time three years later with another epic through IMAX’s 70 mm cameras. Drawing inspiration from Homer’s ancient Greek epic, the star-studded ensemble will feature familiar names like Matt Damon, Zendaya, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Mia Goth, Anne Hathaway, Lupita Nyong’o and Elliot Page. One trailer has already been released, and Nolan seems to have set himself up for a successful streak.
“Dune: Part Three” (Dec. 18)
Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” trilogy ends next year, with the usual ensemble and crew returning for its final installment with Part Three. While Parts One and Two both drew from two separate halves of the novel “Dune,” the third film is sourced from the sequel, “Dune Messiah.” Villeneuve has not been completely loyal to the source materials for the previous two movies, and with how the second one ended, fans anticipate Part Three to be the loosest adaptation out of them all. He has proven to be successful with most of the creative jumps he’s taken thus far, and one can only expect that to continue with next year’s biggest sci-fi release.
For the films with less information and publicity around them, there are still some recognizable names to look out for.
“Werwulf” (Dec. 25)
Robert Eggers, director of winter 2024’s gothic horror “Nosferatu,” returns next year with another holiday season horror release. Lily-Rose Depp and Willem Dafoe, who have both previously worked with Eggers, are both in the cast.
“The Drama” (April 3)
This will be Robert Pattinson and Zendaya’s third film together in 2026. The trailer doesn’t give too much away, but sets the stage for an awkward romantic comedy.
“Digger” (Oct. 2)
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, the visionary director behind films like “Birdman” and “The Revenant,” is directing Tom Cruise and Riz Ahmed in this upcoming dramedy. A short ambiguous promotional clip was released near the holidays, describing the film as a “comedy of catastrophic proportions.”
“The Social Reckoning” (Oct. 9)
Picking up right around where David Fincher’s 2010 film “The Social Network” left off, this follow-up film is also expected to come out in October. However, Fincher will not be returning to direct, and instead, Aaron Sorkin, a writer for the previous film, is taking over as director. Similarly, none of the cast will be returning either, with Jeremy Strong set to play Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeremy Allen White and Mikey Madison co-starring as well.
There’s also some well-known sequels set to come out — like “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” “Ready or Not 2: Here I Come,” “Toy Story 5,” “Avengers: Doomsday,” and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Plus, with the hype of this summer’s “Superman” still lingering, “Supergirl” is set to take over that slot for next summer.
Regardless of whether one is the indie or blockbuster type, the next year is bound to bring some entertaining, worthwhile experiences at the cinema for all kinds of audiences.
