Tag Archives: The Mandalorian

Jan 4 2026

Top Ten Most Anticipated Films & TV Shows Of 2026

2026 looks to be another jam-packed year with all the sci-fi, horror, fantasy and animated projects planned for the year. There are many promising original films and TV shows and returning franchises that will excite any fan. Also, it can be said that 2026 will be do or die for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), since it has struggled lately. Once their films were guaranteed to rake in the money, but that’s not the case anymore and Marvel Studios is betting it all with the films Avengers: Doomsday and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. On the other hand, the DC Universe is off and running with this year thanks to the success of last year’s Superman film. Now let’s look at the most anticipated films and TV shows of 2026.

Films

10. Toy Story 5

It’s incredible that Pixar has been able to come up with a new angle for a Toy Story film that is very relevant to current times. Tom Hanks and Tim Allen return to voice the iconic toy characters Woody and Buzz as they and their toy companions now have to contend with a tablet that threatens their popularity with their child owner.

8. The Dog Stars

Not a lot is known about this post-apocalyptic film about a pilot, his dog and a disgruntled veteran, but master director Ridley Scott is behind this adaptation of Peter Heller’s novel. Given Scott’s track record with genre classics like Alien, Blade Runner and The Martian, this one should be another winning notch in the director’s filmography.

8. The Mandalorian and Grogu

Earlier this decade, a film based on the TV show, The Mandalorian, would have set fandom on fire. But given how Disney loves to milk their IP to the death, interest in the galactic bounty hunter Mandalorian and his adopted Force-sensitive child Grogu has declined and the timing of this film may be unfortunate. Still, it will be the first Star Wars film released since 2019, so that should generate interest.

7. Supergirl

The next DC Universe (DCU) film features Superman’s drunken cousin, Kara-Zor-El (Milly Alcock) aka Supergirl, in an outer space adventure that supposedly adapts Tom King’s acclaimed comic book mini-series, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. The film gets bonus points for featuring the return of Krypto the Superdog and Jason Mamoa making his DCU debut as Lobo, the intergalactic bounty hunter.

6. Project Hail Mary

The directing team of Christopher Miller and Phil Lord return to live-action with this adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel about a lone astronaut (Ryan Gossling) sent on a desperate mission to another star system to find out why the stars in the universe are suddenly being extinguished. Given the credentials of the directors, who were revered for their work on the Spider-Verse films, and the off-kilter look of the trailer, Project Hail Mary should be a unique and off-beat film that could resonate.

5. Dune, Part Three

The third film adapts the Dune sequel novels, Dune Messiah and Children of Dune and completes the epic sci-fi trilogy by director Denis Villeneuve. The first two films received nearly universal praise from critics and fans for its faithful adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novel about political intrigue and religion in the distant future, which featured stunning visuals, strong performances and engrossing worldbuilding. Dune, Part Three will conclude the spiritual journey of the messiah-like Paul Atreides as he struggles to set a course for humankind in the universe while retaining his own humanity.

4. The Odyssey

The latest film from director Christopher Nolan which is based on the epic Greek fantasy poem by Homer has generated tremendous word of mouth thanks to the meticulous artistry of Nolan and the reputation his films have garnered. The Odyssey is a suitable project for Nolan because of its grand nature, and he is only one of a handful of directors who can do justice to the film. The six-minute trailer that was recently released which focused on the subterfuge of the Trojan Horse increased the fervor for the film given how impressive and large scale the scenes looked on large screens.

3. Disclosure Day

Steven Spielberg, one of the most acclaimed directors of all time, returns to his genre roots with this UAP/UFO-related film that is largely shrouded in mystery. Unlike his previous UFO films that seemed hopeful, Disclosure Day feels more grounded, mysterious and ominous judging by the teaser trailer alone. The teaser implies the film will tackle government conspiracies and spirituality. After a long period of non-genre dramas and musicals, seeing Spielberg tackling aliens once again is a welcome event.

2. Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Following the aftermath of Spider-Man: No Way Home, the latest MCU Spider-Man picks up after Spider-Man’s (Tom Holland) civilian identity has been erased thanks to a magical spell. Not a lot has been revealed about the next MCU Spider-Man film but it features popular Marvel characters like the Hulk and Punisher, a bunch of new supervillains and a mysterious new character played by Sadie Sink. Aside from speculation about Sink’s role, the film is noted for being directed by Destin Daniel Cretton who directed the well-received MCU film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

1. Avengers: Doomsday

From the chair announcement trailer to the character teasers, no other film coming out in 2026 has generated the amount of buzz as the first Avengers film since Avengers: Endgame. The film begins the conclusion of the MCU’s Multiverse Saga, which will finish with next year’s film Avengers: Secret Wars. Marvel Studios has a lot riding on the success of this film given how MCU films and TV shows have had uneven reception lately. The film is pulling out all stops to bring back fans to guarantee a box office win with its hard pivot to legacy characters and actors, notably those from the Fox X-Men films and Robert Downey, Jr. who returns not as Iron Man but as the premier Marvel villain Doctor Doom. No matter how it ends up, Avengers: Doomsday will be the event film of 2026.

Notable Mentions:

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple; The Bride!; Clayface; Coyote vs. Acme; Evil Dead Burn; Flowervale Street; Forgotten Island; Godzilla: Minus Zero; Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die: Greenland 2: Migration; Hokum, Hoppers; The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender; Masters of the Universe; Primate; Redux Redux, Werwulf, Wildwood

Avatar: The Last Airbender; Blade Runner 2099; The Boroughs; Invincible; A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms; Paradise; Silo; Star City; Star Trek: Strange New Worlds; Star Wars: Maul-Shadow Lord; The Testaments; Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man; Stranger Things: Tales From ’85; Wonder Man

3 Body Problem, Army of Shadows, The Beauty, House of the Dragon, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, One Piece, Paradise, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, The Testaments, Wonder Man, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man

Television

10. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

Most likely the latest Star Trek TV show will be garbage given the cringy publicity images and clips that highlight cliche teenage angst. Also going against it is that not many fans were interested in a Star Trek show set in the unpopular Star Trek: Discovery era of the 31st century, but it looks well produced and could surprise us.

9. The Boroughs

Fresh off concluding their popular TV series, Stranger Things, the Duffer Brothers follow up that TV show with The Boroughs. This one focuses on middle-aged residents of a suburban community instead of kids who team up to face an unusual threat. Starring Al Molina, Geena Davis, Bill Pullman and others, The Boroughs should echo the same magic that made Stranger Things so well regarded.

8. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

The second season of the Monsterverse TV show is finally upon us. The first season unexpectedly provided depth and intriguing worldbuilding for the action-oriented Monsterverse films while featuring many appearances by our favorite kaijus like Godzilla. The second season will provide more of this and should develop the Monsterverse storyline further.

7. Neuromancer

Apple TV has turned into the premier streaming service for high-quality sci-fi programs and given recent adaptations of popular sci-fi literary works like Foundation and Silo, it was time for the streaming service to jump into adapting the William Gibson novel that jumpstarted the cyberpunk subgenre. Details are not available but since Neuromancer will stream on Apple TV, it should be a quality adaptation.

6. Spider-Noir

While it is lamentable that this program about an alternate take on Spider-Man set in the 1930s will stream on MGM+ (who actually subscribes to that streaming service?), it offers a unique take on Spider-Man. Filmed in black and white to establish a noir mood, the series will star Nicolas Cage (who voiced the same character in the Spider-Verse animated films) as Ben Reilly, an older and more jaded version of Marvel’s most popular hero.

5. X-Men ’97

After the triumphant first season that redefined the animated X-Men TV shows, this second season takes place right after the events of the first season as the heroic mutants find themselves scattered in different time periods and have to find a way back home. Only this time, the X-Men have to grapple with the mega-villainy of Apocalypse. However, being that Beau DeMayo, the showrunner of the first season, has been fired by Marvel Studios, it has to be seen if the new showrunners can match DeMayo’s work.

4. VisionQuest

This MCU TV show concludes the loose trilogy made up of WandaVision, Agatha All Along, and now VisionQuest. This shows follows the journey of the white android Vision (Paul Bettany) who was imbued with the memories of the original Vision in the final episode of WandaVision and now he has to struggle to find his identity. What makes the concluding part of the trilogy more exciting is that Terry Matalas, who was responsible for the popular third season of Star Trek: Picard, will be the showrunner.

3. Lanterns

The sole DCU TV show coming out in 2026 is a detective show will feature the intergalactic sentinels Green Lanterns Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) and John Stewart (Aaron Pierre) investigating a murder in Nebraska that will lead to dark and otherworldly events. Given the success of other DCU TV programs like Peacemaker and Creature Commandos, and the bonafides of the showrunners, including DCU head James Gunn, Lanterns should be another win for the fledgling superhero cinematic universe.

2. The Boys

The final season of the adaptation of Garth Ennis’ comic book series about “superheroes” dominating popular culture and the world itself promises to go all out as a ragtag group of anti-heroes led by Bill Butcher (Karl Urban) have their final confrontation against the twisted and sadistic Homelander (Anthony Starr) who rules the United States in a reign of terror with his lackeys and cohorts. The final season of The Boys promises to be just as brash, graphically violent and sardonic as the previous four seasons and its spinoff TV show Gen V.

1. Daredevil: Born Again

It’s true that the first season of Daredevil: Born Again turned out to be uneven, but the best episodes of that season were produced by Dario Scardapane and directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, who were the showrunners of the original Daredevil TV program on Netflix. The second season will be completely done by them and that is reason alone to look forward to it. Another reason is that it will focus on how the blind superhero Daredevil (Charlie Cox) and his allies (including Kristen Ritter reprising her role of Jessica Jones) operate on the streets of New York City under martial law as the police enforce a ban on vigilantes imposed by Daredevil’s nemesis Mayor Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio).

Notable Mentions

3 Body Problem, Army of Shadows, The Beauty, Blade Runner 2099, Invincible, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, One Piece, Paradise Silo, Star City, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Star Wars: Maul-Shadow Lord, The Testaments, Wonder Man, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man

Aug 27 2023

Disney + Has Damaged Pixar, Star Wars & Marvel

When it was announced that the streaming app Disney + would feature exclusive content for their purchased intellectual properties Star Wars and Marvel, most fans were understandably excited. In the closing years of the 2010s both properties were riding high, especially Marvel with its Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The people running Disney + promised that subscribers would have access to a vast video library of its properties and that the exclusive content would be top-of-the-line when it came to quality. At first, this seemed to be the case. At first.

Shortly after Disney + became available, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, which shut down theaters and the streaming platform became the only medium available to get new content based on Disney IP, Pixar, Star Wars and the MCU. Due to the pandemic many films were delayed and this happened with the Pixar films scheduled for release. At the same time, Disney was desperate to generate streaming traffic for Disney + and to gain subscribers, new product had to be available. The easiest solution was to take the delayed films like Soul and premiere them exclusively on Disney +.

For a short while, this tactic worked, but unlike the other MCU films that were released exclusively in theaters, Disney kept debuting other Pixar films like Luca and Turning Red on the streaming app. This gave the impression that the Pixar films were inferior in quality, because people began thinking that these films were not good enough for theatrical releases. Also, when the Pixar films Lightyear and Elemental actually premiered in theaters, viewers were conditioned to wait for them to come out weeks later on Disney + and save some money. To be fair other streaming apps like HBO Max did this as well, but this tactic was abandoned soon after studios realized they were losing revenue. It took Disney some time to forego premiering some of their films on the app.

The app premiered with The Mandalorian, the hit TV show set in the Star Wars universe about a Clint Eastwoodish, intergalactic bounty hunter and his infant alien ward. The Mandalorian became a huge hit and actually helped keep the Star Wars brand alive. Actually, for a couple of years it was the only Star Wars-related property for fans to watch. Obviously, Disney had to put out more Star Wars content and last year more Star Wars-related TV shows streamed on Disney +, which included The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, and now Ahoska. While some of the TV shows were well received and even earned Emmy nominations, the Boba Fett show was a huge misfire with its unfocused scripts. Unfortunately, these same problems bled into the third season of The Mandalorian, and Ahsoka is receiving criticisms, as well. It is clear with The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett and Ahsoka that Disney wants to create a more integrated universe with a part of Star Wars history: the period of time after the fall of the Galactic Empire. Reportedly the goal is to have the TV shows lead to a film that ties all the elements together. While it is ambitious and echoes what happened with the MCU, there are problems in that the Star Wars universe is becoming too convoluted. Viewers are forced to watch other shows and even animated programs like Star Wars: Rebels to fully understand what is going on with many of the Star Wars TV shows. With interest in the Star Wars brand waning, this development could not have happened at a worst time.

The problem with the scripts for some of the Star Wars TV shows also plagued the MCU TV shows. What was worse was that the production values for many MCU TV shows was shockingly poor. The MCU, like Star Wars, got off to a promising start on Disney + with TV shows like WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. But the quality of the MCU TV shows soon began to falter and it became more and more obvious that budget limitations were impacting the shows. For example, with the time travel TV show Loki, even though it was well acted and written, it seemed as if there was a lot of talking instead of showing. Instead of time traveling to pivotal events in the MCU, the main characters traveled to mundane time periods.

The problem with limited budgets affected some of the effects work on later TV shows. This was best seen with Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and Secret Invasion. With She-Hulk, the limited special effects was fatal for the show because its poor, unfinished special effects left She-Hulk looking like a SIM character. The same budget limitations has severely affected Secret Invasion, which has a lot of talking scenes about world events with limited action scenes. What is even more unbelievable is that the budget for the TV show was about $200 million. Where did that money go? The budget for Secrect Invasion is not the main reason for its poor execution, it is actually due to the scripts which make the show feel small scale. This also went on with many other MCU TV shows that should have had great payoffs. This even happened with WandaVision. For the most part that show was terrific with clever scripts and acting. But the payoff at the final episode felt like a letdown with the scope of the confrontations between characters.

Disney CEO Bob Iger recently said that the market was oversaturated with Star Wars and Marvel TV shows and films, and he is correct. There was a lot of pressure for the Disney + app to have new and original content, which meant that there had to be a lot of content about two of its most popular IPs. Unfortunately, the demand stretched the capability to keep up the quality of the products in order to meet scheduling deadlines. The result was that many fans were disappointed with the finished TV shows as the brands became diluted. To correct this, the brands need to pull back and Disney is doing this as per Iger’s orders. They are giving their properties the time needed to produce quality over quantity. However, there will be more inferior TV shows until the better-produced TV shows come out.

Disney and other studios are facing a new problem with their inability to provide new content thanks to the crippling writer and acting strikes which have shut down productions for film and TV studios. As content dries up and films and TV shows get delayed again or canceled, there will be increased demand. Will the studios make the same mistakes they did earlier this decade and force creators to pump out products before they are ready? Probably, so it is up to the studios to learn from their missteps regarding their streaming platforms.

Feb 12 2022

The Uneven Book Of Boba Fett

The Book of Boba Fett is the latest Star Wars TV show and is streaming on Disney+. It serves as a spinoff of the popular TV show, The Mandalorian, and a sequel of sorts to previous Star Wars films, but in this case focusing on the mysterious bounty hunter, Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison).

Boba Fett was supposedly killed by a giant sarlaac in the film Return of the Jedi, but being that he was a fan favorite, he had to come back, as he did in various books and stories. In Star Wars canon, he officially returned in the second season of The Mandalorian and the post-credits scene of that show’s season finale showed Boba Fett taking over the criminal underworld in the planet Tattooine with his partner, the assassin Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen).

The series is in some ways part Western, part gangster drama as flashbacks reveal how the bounty hunter survived from being eaten by the sarlaac and his emotional transformation from a cold-blooded killer to someone who is more empathic and honorable. At the same time, the episodes chronicled his ordeal of being a crime lord and dealing with deadly competitors, namely the Pyke gang – intergalactic spice dealers who want to take over Boba’s turf.

There have been many complaints about The Book of Boba Fett, many of them are valid, but overall, the series is fine. It’s just that it should have been better and could have been if it had a better narrative flow and its scripts were more fine tuned. This is surprising considering the episodes are written by Jon Favreau (he shared a co-writing byline with Dave Filoni in the sixth episode), who was the mastermind behind The Mandalorian. What gives? Interference from the top execs at Disney? Maybe one day, we’ll learn the full story behind the scenes.

The narrrative flow of the series was quite jarring at times and also infuriating. The best example of this are with the fifth and sixth episodes. For some reason, the show stopped being about Boba Fett and became a mini-season for The Mandalorian as the story abruptly shifts to Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and we see what he and Grogu have been up to since the second season of their show ended. Boba Fett only appears once in the sixth episode in what is basically a cameo, while he is completely absent in the fifth episode. It did not make sense to do this, especially being that The Book of Boba Fett only has seven episodes. At least, these two episodes were well done.

The impression we are given is that the showrunners or Disney did not like where the main story was going or ran out of ideas and panicked by going back to what excited viewers. This was not fair to Boba Fett’s story and associated characters. Those two episodes could have been used to further develop these characters. We could have learned more about Boba and is time before The Empire Strikes Back. They should have shown more of how he was before his spiritual transformation so that his metamorphosis would have more impact. Maybe they wanted to perserve some of his mystery. Who knows?

Fennec’s back story could have been explored, or Boba’s old rival, Cad Bane (voiced by Corey Burton) could have appeared sooner and being more directly tied to the tragedy that Boba underwent during his recovery. Or even the minor characters of Tatooine could have been fleshed out more. Even the dumb cyborg biker gang, who were poorly conceived and executed.

There are many plot holes that are undeniably irritating and make the characters look stupid. Here’s an example, in the final episode during the big showdown with the Pyke gang, why didn’t Boba or Din get into their spaceships and just lay waste to the criminals as they attacked the town of Mos Espa? Boba Fett kept bragging about how much money he had and could afford to hire extra muscle, yet his army only consisted of the silly biker gang, two Gamorrean pig guards, Din and Fennec, and later some townspeople from nearby Freetown. Did Boba Fett actually expect to defeat an entire army of Pykes and their allies with what he had? Also, it would have made more sense and been more satisfying if the townspeople that helped him where actually residents of Mos Espa. You know, seeing that Boba is fighting for their town, the people could have decided to help him. Why did he hire the biker gang when he first met them? Nothing they did gave the impression they were qualified to be formidable fighters. Then in one flashback scene, Boba takes his spaceship and has it hover directly over the mouth of the sarlaac to look for his armor. Guess what happens? The tentacled monster attacked his ship and nearly killed him. Wouldn’t that ship have sensors to scan the animal from afar? Maybe his time fermenting in the sarlaac’s stomach damaged his brain more than we know.

This does not mean The Book of Boba Fett is a bad TV show. There are so many great things about it. Take Temuera Morrison, who delivers a fine performance as the grizzled former bounty hunter trying to find a purpose in his life. Boba’s spiritual journey when he is first a captive then a valued member of the Tusken Raiders was inspiring as he built relationships with the clan and we learned more about their culture. That is why it was so devastating when later in the flashbacks Boba finds his adopted clan massacred.

Continue reading →
Nov 15 2021

Lucasfilm In Disarray?

Something is not right with Lucasfilm. It can be seen by the behind-the-scenes drama going on with the film studio once owned by George Lucas before he sold it to The Walt Disney Company nearly a decade ago. Another sign is the lack of solid information about their upcoming films and TV shows.

Lucasfilm has been mired in controversy for several years despite its early Disney-era success of Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. What is often overlooked with the latter film is that it had significant re-shoots which ultimately made the film a success. After that dilemma followed the film studio.

There was the heated reaction to Star Wars: The Last Jedi which sharply split Star Wars fans. Then the saga of revolving directors plagued Solo: A Star Wars Story and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. With those two films the original directors were removed from the projects. Solo suffered greatly as the directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller were fired when filming was nearly complete and forced the film to be essentially redone from scratch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D62UfAOklCc

Now that the final Sequel Saga Star Wars films have concluded nearly two years ago, there is little sign of new Star Wars films coming up. Of course, there are many Star Wars TV shows slated to stream on Disney+ and they are eagerly awaited. In fact, many rightly argue that the TV shows are what is keeping the franchise alive thanks to The Mandalorian, Star Wars: The Bad Batch and hopefully The Book of Boba Fett, which debuts next month.

The upcoming TV projects such as Obi-Wan Kenobi, the new season of The Mandalorian, Andor, and Ahsoka are eagerly anticipated, but we have little news about those shows. The recent Disney+ Day event which revealed many exciting Disney, Pixar and Marvel projects failed to deliver anything significant that was Star Wars related. Only a documentary about Boba Fett, cast interviews of the upcoming Willow TV show, and a sizzle reel for Obi-Wan Kenobi streamed on Disney+ while other studios rewareded subscribers with first looks at upcoming projects. What is confounding are rumors that there were Star Wars trailers and footage planned to be unveiled, but for some reason this did not happen. In the end, while the sneak peaks at other Disney properties were impressive, Star Wars looked threadbare on the streaming platform.

As for the films, there are more signs of trouble. The next Indiana Jones film was filmed and expected to come out next year, but has been bumped to 2023 with rumors of extensive re-shoots and revisions of the plot pending. This is alarming given the age of the film’s star Harrison Ford and declining interest in the film.

But the most disconcerting news came recently that director Patti Jenkins’ pet film project Rogue Squadron has been put on indefinite hold. Originally, the film was supposed to come out in 2023, but supposedly creative differences between the director and Lucasfilm derailed the project. Now, it is doubtful Rogue Squadron will ever be made. This is embarrassing for the film studio after all the hoopla they created last year when they released a video promoting Rogue Squadron that featured Patti Jenkins passionately talking about the film as she was shown next to a full-scale mock up of an X-Wing fighter. Talk about putting the cart before the horse!

That is not all, ballyhooed announcements of Star Wars films from director Rian Johnson and executive producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have led nowhere. What is next? Will the announced Kevin Feige-produced Star Wars film be shelved as well?

Many have pointed fingers and blame on Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. She has proven to be a somewhat controversial film executive who has enraged some fans and members of the alt-right. Despite the overreaction from some, she should accept the blame for the issues with the directors and the delays these events are causing because it is damaging the brand of Lucasfilm and its properties.

Given the image of Lucasfilm being in disarray, several fans have called for Kathleen Kennedy to be replaced by someone else, such as Jon Favreau, the showrunner of The Mandalorian. However, news has come out that Disney extended Kennedy’s contract for another three years. Surely, this demonstrates that the Disney executives have faith in Kathleen Kennedy, but can she turn things around? What convinced Disney that she deserved to continue running Lucasfilm? We have to hope that Disney’s continued faith in Kennedy is warranted because Star Wars as a film property sorely needs a win and there isn’t anything on the horizon. More importantly, Lucasfilm and Kennedy have to prove to fans that they can still deliver quality films and TV shows and time is running short.

Jan 7 2021

Top Ten Most Anticipated Films & TV Shows of 2021

Alright, time to put 2020 behind us with its bleak film landscape (and boom for television) and look ahead to this year. Obviously, after undegoing a drought we are in for a rich offering of genre films to make up for the lost year of 2020. Meanwhile, the television field will continue enthralling with even more new programs. Bear in mind, with the COVID-19 still going on, it’s not guaranteed these films or TV shows will come out this year, but they will if the pandemic subsides as we all get our vaccinations. Here are the most highly anticipated films and TV shows of 2021:

Films

10. The Matrix 4

Keanu Reeves and others stars from the original films return in The Matrix 4. Given the definitive ending of the less-than-well-recieved third film, it is a puzzle on how Neo and his human freedom fighters will return to battle once more against their AI oppressors in virtual reality. But it should be entertaining.

9. The Tomorrow War

A holdover from 2020, this sci-fi military film stars Chris Pratt as a soldier drafted into a future war against aliens. According to its premise, humanity in the future is losing a war and must recruit warriors from the past to help turn the tide against the aliens. It sounds like a great concept, hopefully the film will deliver thrills, action, and memorable sci-fi trappings.

8. Venom: Let There Be Carnage

The first Venom was a terrific guilty pleasure that surprised many audiences. It was an enjoyable superhero/anti-hero film thanks to Tom Hardy’s performance and for delivering genuine excitement. The Venom sequel hopes to capture that same excitement with Woody Harrelson featured as Carnage, Venom’s greatest nemesis. And if Spider-Man appears in the film as many think then all bets are off!

7. Little Fish

A young couple struggle to hold onto their memories of each other and their relationship after contracting a virus that causes people to lose their memories. Sounds like a great compromise film to watch for geeks and their dates. If it is anything like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, then this romance with a relevant sci-fi twist will be just a memorable.

6. BIOS

Tom Hanks stars in another 2020 holdover as a dying scientist who has to train an android on how to care for his dog.  Miguel Sapochnik, a Game of Thrones director, helms this sci-fi film which might evoke the retrospective nature of Hanks’ classic Cast Away.

5. The Suicide Squad

James Gunn directs this sequel/soft reboot of the original Suicide Squad but now with more flavor! After he was temporarily fired by Disney, Warner Bros. scooped him up and he picked this film about captured DC supervillains forced to undertake a secret mission for the U.S. but now The Suicide Squad will be more brazen and outrageous since the film will boast Gunn’s comedic tone that made his Guardians of the Galaxy films so beloved.

4. A Quiet Place, Part II

One of the most highly anticipated films of 2020 was delayed just as the COVID-19 pandemic took effect, which frustrated many who were anxious to see the sequel to the successful sci-fi/horror film from actor/director John Krasinski. The sequel showcases the further adventures of the lone family struggling to survive after savage aliens have overrun Earth and as hinted in the trailers they also have other humans to worry about.

3. Godzilla Vs. Kong

Frankly, who cares if this film will debut on HBO Max at the same time as it’s released in theaters? This film must be seen on the ginormous silver screen as is befitting the two legendary behemoths starring in the film! Not much is known about the film except that it will be the conclusion of Legendary Pictures’ Monsterverse saga that culminates in an epic showdown between the silver screen’s greatest giant monsters.

2. The third untitled MCU Spider-Man film

Whatever the third film featuring Spider-Man (Tom Holland) from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) winds up being called, it does not matter at this point. Not only will we finally get a followup to the cliffhanger ending that Spider-Man: Far From Home left us, with Spider-Man’s identity revealed to the world, but the the film will deliver much more. Apparently, it will be a live-action version of sorts to the Spider-Verse saga, meaning it will probably focus on different realities.

It’s already a fact that villains from the previous incarnations of the Spider-Man film will turn up, as well as Doctor Strange (played once more by Benedict Cumberbatch), but the hottest rumors have it that the previous actors who played Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield) will reprise their roles. Now throw in live-action versions of Miles Morales and Spider-Gwen and we will have a bonafide treat for Spider-Man fans. BTW, the third MCU Spider-Man film allegedly is tied to the WandaVision TV show and next year’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. 

1. Dune

Even though there have been two previous adaptations of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi masterpiece novel, this version by director Denis Villeneuve might be the definitive and most faithful version. This version of Dune was originally supposed to be the big release for the holidays last year but has been bumped to later this year and a guaranteed theatrical release. No HBO Max for Villeneuve’s Dune, thankfully. 

For anyone who has not read the book or seen the previous film and TV mini-series, Dune is truly an epic sci-fi story of  political intrigue and how a young man became a messianic figure and upends the universe. The look of the film is just stunning and meticulous and its subject matter and adult themes elevates Dune above the standard sci-fi fare of action scenes. This could be one of the most influential sci-fi films of all time and we cannot wait to see if it lives up to the anticipation. 

Other Noteworthy Films

Black Widow, Eternals, Free Guy, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Infinite, Last Night in Soho, Luca, Malignant, Morbius, Old, Raya and the Last Dragon, Samaritan, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Continue reading →