Film lookahead: 20 highlights to watch out for in 2026

The last time we had an epic Christopher Nolan release in 2023, Oppenheimer -together with Barbie – gave cinema a huge audience boost. Could Nolan’s The Odyssey, along with one or two other 2026 releases, produce a similar result?

The industry is hopeful that a number of highly anticipated projects like Tom Holland’s fourth Spider-Man movie, the second Super Mario Brothers film, and The Devil Wears Prada 2 could lead to a box office bonanza. Not to mention Avengers: Doomsday and the third Dune movie.

Together with Oscar hopefuls like Hamnet, 2026 looks to be a potentially huge year for an industry still feeling the after-effects of the Covid lockdown. Here are 20 films to watch out for in 2026.

Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s award winning book, Hamnet follows the relationship between WIlliam Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) and his wife Agnes (Jessie Buckley). And explores the tragic events that engulf the couple and which inspire Shakespeare’s play Hamlet.

Release date: 9 January

This fourth instalment of the series that began back in 2002, continues the events of 2025’s 28 Years Later. Spike (Alfie Williams) becomes embroiled with a deadly group led by Jimmy Crystal (Jack O’Connell). While Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) enters into a new relationship that could have devastating consequences.

Release date: 16 January

Loosely inspired by the career of comedian John Bishop, Is This Thing On? is the third film directed by Bradley Cooper after A Star Is Born and Maestro. It follows a comedian who unexpectedly tries stand-up comedy and finds that he has a talent for making people laugh.

Release date: 30 January

Amanda Seyfried stars as real life figure Ann Lee, the leader of an 18th Century religious movement known as Shakerism. Originally a Quaker, the story follows her as she moves away from that order, and crosses the Atlantic to America where hundreds join her on her religious journey.

Release date: 20 February

Kevin Williamson, who wrote the original Scream, along with two of its sequels, has rejoined the Scream family, this time directing as well as writing the screenplay. In front of the camera, originals Courtney Cox, who played Gale Weathers, and Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott, also return to face a new Ghostface – who’s menacing Prescott’s daughter.

Release date: 27 February

Thirty years after the live action Super Mario Bros. movie was a box office failure, an animated take on the adventures of the lively plumber – The Super Mario Bros. Movie – made more than a billion dollars at the box office. This sequel, based on a 2007 game where Mario and Luigi set off to rescue Princess Peach, was inevitable.

Release date: 3 April

Meryl Streep’s wry wit as editor of fashion magazine Runway and Anne Hathaway’s performance as Andy, the naive newcomer to the fashion world, made the original film a must-watch for millions. Twenty years later both are back. Few details are known right now, but also returning are fan favourites Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci as Emily and Nigel.

Release date: 1 May

Over three series, The Mandalorian has become the most successful Star Wars TV spin-off. Now its makers will be hoping its popularity can help reinvigorate Star Wars on the big screen, with the franchise’s first movie since 2019’s Star Wars episode IX The Rise of Skywalker. The film will also star Sigourney Weaver.

Release date: 22 May

This latest Steven Spielberg project is shrouded in secrecy. Even its two-minute teaser trailer doesn’t shed much light on the plot. But it does hint strongly at extraterrestrial visitors being revealed to humankind with a tagline: “If you found out we weren’t alone, if someone showed you, proved it to you, would that frighten you?”

Release date: 12 June

The 2020s haven’t been an easy time for Pixar. By its own super-high standards, several films have underperformed including Turning Red, Elio and the spin-off Lightyear. So they’ll be hoping this fifth instalment of its most successful series, and the return of Tom Hanks as Woody and Tim Allen as Buzz can help restore things.

Release date: 19 June

Milly Alcock’s brief introduction as Supergirl in Superman was one of the film’s highlights. In her own movie, the plot may be about “an epic, interstellar journey of vengeance and justice”. But it looks to be equally about her personality – the trailer shows her doing everything from battling bad guys to dancing beneath a glitterball.

Release date: 26 June

The first animated Moana was a huge hit, its sequel Moana 2 an even bigger one grossing more than a billion dollars at the box office. So hopes are high for this live-action remake of the original movie, which tells the story of young Moana leaving her island home on a voyage that she hopes can save her people.

Release date: 10 July

Oscar-winning director Sir Christopher Nolan doesn’t usually like audiences knowing too much about the plot of his films in advance. In this case, though, his follow-up to 2023’s Oscar-winning Oppenheimer is based on Homer’s Greek epic which follows Odysseus (Matt Damon) journeying home after the Trojan War.

Release date: 17 July

At the end of the previous film Spider-Man: No Way Home, a spell cast by Dr Strange caused the whole world – including Peter Parker’s girlfriend MJ – to forget that Parker (Tom Holland) was Spider-Man, or that Parker even existed. So many expect the film to explore how he deals with this lonely phase of being a superhero.

Release date: 31 July

It’s the fourth in the series that began with Meet The Parents. Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Teri Polo, Blythe Danner, and Owen Wilson are all back. But there’s a question mark over Dustin Hoffman and Barbara Streisand who played Stiller’s parents in previous films. One confirmed newcomer joining the cast is Ariana Grande.

Release date: 25 November

This is another project currently shrouded in secrecy. So far, only one photo has been released, and confirmed plot details are hard to come by. But we do know that the core cast of Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Karen Gillan, and Kevin Hart are returning. And that this is being touted as the final Jumanji film.

Release date: 11 December

It’s been a quietish time for the once all-conquering Marvel Cinematic Universe. Marvel will be hoping that Avengers: Doomsday will live up to expectations and be a box office juggernaut. This film sees Robert Downey Junior returning, but as villain Doctor Doom. Along with a huge ensemble including members of the X-Men.

Release date: 18 December

The third in director Denis Villeneuve’s epic space trilogy will be reportedly based on the second Dune novel Dune: Messiah. The main cast including Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya will be reprising their roles, along with newcomer Robert Pattinson. Villeneuve’s next project after this will be the next James Bond film.

Release date: 18 December