The spring movie season proved to be a late bloomer, failing to draw people into theaters until “Minecraft” generated huge rowdy audiences and then Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” sank its fangs deep into the box office.
But does Coogler’s megahit — a daring original work — and the loopy “Minecraft” portend blockbuster things ahead at the summer box office? It might.
Certainly, the genre-defiant “Sinner’s” sends out a strong, most welcome message that movies that are original and dabble in horror can pack fannies into theaters. That’s because Hollywood is set to unleash a steady stream of horror films from now till the end of August.
But scares aren’t the only thing looming on the summer film horizon. Moviegoers can also expect a number of family-friendly offerings, franchise entries and even the occasional original comedy or drama.
Although the summer season doesn’t seem to offer another Barbenheimer phenom to send the box office into the stratosphere; there are plenty of releases to get excited about.
Here are some, but by no means all, of the films headed to theaters now though late August.
Note: dates are subject to change, and this rundown is dedicated to theatrical releases only, not such streaming biggies as Charlize Theron’s “The Old Guard 2” (July 2) or Adam Sandler’s “Happy Gilmore 2” (July 25).
“Jane Austen Wrecked My LIfe” (May 23): Rom-coms are mostly sitting it out this summer, except for Laura Piani’s ode to romance and literature. Camille Rutherford stars as a Paris bookshop employee getting inspired at a Jane Austen Writers’ Residency in England where her heart swings into two directions.
“Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning” (May 23): Some franchises don’t know when to throw in the towel (see “Transformers”). But we’ll say this for Tom Cruise’s exciting stunt- and spy-palooza, the durable franchise hit a groove at its midway point and just keeps getting better. In this action-packed outing — maybe it’s truly the final chapter, or maybe not — death-defying spy hunter Ethan Hunt (Cruise) tries to put the brakes on a gone-rogue AI program. We’re there.
“Lilo & Stitch” (May 23) and “How to Train Your Dragon” (June 13): While the case could be made that no one was exactly frothing at the mouth for either of these releases — each a live-action adaptation of a beloved animated tale — we’re holding out hope these reboots are just as charming and touching as the originals. Dean DeBlois, who helmed the “Dragon” animated trilogy, returns to direct the live-action version, while Dean Fleischer Camp (2021’s wonderful enchantment “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On”) takes the reins of “Lilo & Stitch.”
“Bring Her Back”: (May 30): “Talk to Me” directors Danny and Michael Philippou — aka RackaRacka — follow up their terrifying debut “Talk to Me” with this new shocker, a freaky tale about siblings who uncover something odd that involves their stepmom (Sally Hawkins).
“Karate Kid: Legends” (May 30): Nostalgia has always done well in the summer, and this foolproof teaming of Ralph Macchio (“The Karate Kid” and “Cobra Kai”) and martial arts superstar Jackie Chan can’t help but warm the hearts of young and old alike. Ben Wang stars as Li Fong, a protege learning all the right moves in director Jonathan Entwistle’s ode to the series and the movies.
“The Phoenician Scheme” (June 6, Bay Area theaters): All the kooky Wes Anderson-isms are there: quirky characters, impeccable production details and a killer cast (Benicio del Toro, Michael Cera, Mia Threapleton, Riz Ahmed, Tom Hanks, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch and more). Even the story sounds positively Andersonesque as a wealthy man (del Toro) decrees his riches to his nun-daughter (Threapleton) at the same time that his new venture curries the attention of some nefarious types.
“Life of Chuck” (June 6): If there’s one filmmaker that Stephen King fans can trust to do the author proud, it’s Mike Flanagan (“Doctor Sleep,” “The Fall of the House of Usher”). King’s novella comes from his “If It Bleeds” collection (outstanding, go read it) and takes us through phases in the life of Charles ‘Chuck” Krantz. The hitch here is that it catalogues it in reverse. A delicate, not ham-fisted approach is required o pull something like this off. We’re willing to bet Flanagan was a good choice. Tom Hiddleston and Jacob Tremblay star.
“Ballerina” (June 6): If you’re a “John Wick” fan, you won’t want to miss watching Ana de Armas playing tough ballerina Eve Macarro undergoing rigorous training so she can join the Ruska Roma ranks. If you have no idea what that means, you’ve got a lot of “John Wick” catching up to do before diving into this spinoff. Fremont native Len Wiseman directs.
“Materialists” (June 13): Pity poor East Coast matchmaker Lucy (Dakota Johnson). She’s adored not only by a cute ex (Chris Evans) but a very sexy, suave and rich new guy (Pedro Pascal, looking fab in a tux). Filmmaker Celine Song’s follow-up to her justly praised “Past Lives” explores the transaction of love and how passion’s fickle nature debunks clear-headed formulas and theorems.
“Elio” (June 20): When Emeryville-based Pixar blasted off to outer space in 2008 that journey netted one of its best features, “WALL-E.” Will the stars align again with its 29th animated feature? Looks like it. Their latest outing about a lonely young space enthusiast hobnobbing with alien galaxy leaders sounds intriguing and, per Pixar’s standards, heartwarming.
“28 Years Later” (June 20): You can always count on a batch of hangry zombies to give you the creeps. The previous entries in this freak-out franchise — Danny Boyle’s “28 Days Later” and Juan Carlos Fresnadillo’s “28 Weeks Later” — certainly ate its way right into our nightmares. Boyle returns to direct an impressive cast (Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes, Aaron Taylor-Johnson).
“Everything’s Going to Be Great” (June 20): The pairing of Bryan Cranston and Allison Janey as a career show-biz couple dealing with some family matters and scrappy regional theater productions, guarantees we’ll want to see this one.
“Bride Hard,” (June 20): Wedding plans get turned upside down due to spy games in this comedy starring Rebel Wilson as a super agent mucking up her bestie’s big day. The trailer looks promising.
“F1” (June 27): Brad Pitt revs up movie fans’ engines with “Top Gun: Maverick” director Joseph Kosinski’s race-car drama. He lands the moody role of a Formula 1 racer who gets a shot of redemption three decades after a crash appeared to have ended his career.
“Jurassic World Rebirth” (July 2): The recent “Jurassic” incarnations got way too silly for their own good. Supposedly, this reboot with Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey gets back into the spirit of the 1993 original from Steven Spielberg. With Gareth Edwards jumping into the director’s seat, we have high hopes.
“40 Acres” (July 4): Afrofuturist thrillers don’t get much more compelling or suspenseful than director R.T. Thorne’s astonishing feature debut. Danielle Deadwyler stars as a mother standing her ground and defending her home turf from a nasty pack of famished haters.
“Sorry, Baby” (July 4, Bay Area theaters): Actor/screenwriter/director Eva Victor performs a tightrope walk with their acclaimed Sundance debut that recounts the ways that New England professor Agnes (Victor) copes and moves through the aftermath of a traumatic event. Naomi Ackie co-stars.
“Superman” (July 11) George Reeves. Christopher Reeve. Henry Cavill. Each actor has portrayed the comic-book icon from Smallville (and beyond) who turned into a do-gooding journalist and superhero. Now, let’s welcome David Corenswet to that tough act to follow. He carries a lot on his broad shoulders since the DC film empire has been struggling. James Gunn appears to be the right director to turn things around, though. The pooch looks cute, too.
“Eddington” (July 18): Could Ari Aster soar back to “Heritage” or “Midsommar” heights after that “Beau Is Afraid” letdown? We think so. The idiosyncratic filmmaker’s latest might well be the definitive COVID-19-related thriller. An all-star cast (Austin Butler, Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, Luke Grimes, Pedro Pascal and so on) see hot tempers boiling over in a New Mexico town after a sheriff and a mayor get into a major scuffle. Since this is Aster, expect the unexpected.
“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” (July 25): With the MCU now revitalized thanks to Berkeley native Jake Schreir’s “Thunderbolts*,” fans can only hope that there will be at least one good theatrical movie made out of the exploits of Marvel’s First Family. So far, the three that came before have been duds. Now it’s “WandaVision” director Matt Shakman’s time to step up to the plate with a cast that includes Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. He might well hit it out of the park.
“Together” (July 30): Palo Alto native Dave Franco and Alison Brie, who are married in real life, play a stuck-in-a-rut married couple venturing to the country to live where they run smack into some body horror craziness. Director/writer Michael Shanks’ squirmable film was a hot ticket at Sundance.
“The Naked Gun” (Aug. 2): Berkeley-born director Akiva Schaffer reboots one of the most irreverent, gag-filled cop comedies ever and gives Liam Neeson a role to relish, playing lethal weapon Lt. Frank Drebin Jr. – the son of Frank Senior (a role immortalized by the late Leslie Nielsen). The trailer is one of the funniest ones of the summer.
“The Bad Guys 2” (Aug. 2): This rascally animal from DreamWork Animation’s 2022 runaway hit (which is based on a book series) runs afoul of a new lawless team — the Bad Girls. The simple fact that Sam Rockwell returns to voice Mr. Wolf should get us into the theater.
“Weapons” (Aug. 8): Zach Cregger’s “Barbarian” ranks as one of the best horror debuts, but will lightning strike twice for the guy who recently produced one of 2025’s biggest surprises — “Companion”? We certainly think so after watching the “Weapons” unsettling trailer. In his diabolical follow-up, a teacher (Julia Garner) becomes a community pariah after her entire class vanishes into the dead, the very dead, of night.
“Freakier Friday” (Aug. 8): More than two decades later, Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan reunite to play Tess and Anna, mother and daughter who swapped bodies in the funny 2003 comedy, a remake of the original 1976 movie with Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris. This time, it looks like the body hopping will extend throughout the family. We have high hopes, too, given what Nisha Ganatra previously directed – “The High Note” and “Late Night.”
“Splitsville” (Aug. 22): The crack duo (Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin) behind the hilarious and cringey boy-man comedy “The Climb” cycle their way through another squirm-inducing comedy. Marvin stars as an amiable guy seeking relationship counsel from his married friends (Covino and Dakota Johnson) after his wife (Adria Arjona) says she wants to call it quits. What he gets is more than he bargained for.
