With films being delayed due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA stikes, viewers going through superhero fatigue, and #Barbenheimer solidifying itself as a pop-culture moment, 2023 was a pretty chaotic year for cinema. Slowly, 2024’s movie roster is shaping up to be, if not equally intriguing, at least a worthy rival.
From action-packed films such as Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga to sci-fi thrillers like Mickey 17 and star-studded dramas with Challengers, the lineup is a notably varied one. And as far as guaranteed knockouts, enter the return of the Dune and Beetlejuice sagas to the big screen. Ahead, here are 11 films set to be turned loose in 2024 that you should have on your calendar now.
1. Drive-Away Dolls
Release Date: Feb 23
1/2 of Coen Brothers, Ethan Coen goes solo for his action-comedy Drive-Away Dolls, where two stuck-in-a-rut friends (played by Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan) ditch town for Tallahassee, where they cross paths with a group of criminals. So much for a fresh start, but it sounds like fun.
2. Dune: Part Two
Release Date: March 1
Denis Villeneuve, in a smart move, has decided to split Frank Herbert’s 1965 sci-fi novel into two parts. With the first installment of Dune sweeping ten Oscar nominations, many are eager to see if the next meets its predecessor’s hype. Speaking of hype, the second film’s cast is somehow even more stacked than the first, seeing Zendaya and Timothee Chalamet welcomed back, and introducing Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, and Christopher Walken.
3. Mickey 17
Release Date: March 29
Award-winning director Bong Joon Ho returns with a science-fiction thriller that tells the story of Mickey, a “disposable employee” sent on a hazardous mission to colonize an icy planet. As the premise goes, if any of the employees die, they are cloned with the memories of the previous traveler.
4. Challengers
Release Date: April 26
Originally meant to premiere at last year’s Venice Film Festival, Challengers was postponed until this year due to the strike. In the film, former tennis prodigy-turned-coach (played by Zendaya) finds herself in somewhat of a love triangle between her husband and her ex, who happens to be her husband’s former friend, all amid the backdrop of Grand Slam tennis tournaments.
5. The Fall Guy
Release Date: May 3
Further cementing his return following the success of “Barbie” after a 4-year hiatus, the internet’s favorite, Ryan Gosling, is back on screens thanks to an action-comedy adaption of the eponymous 1980s series The Fall Guy. The film follows a stuntman who needs to find his missing co-star. Interestingly, the director of the movie, David Leitch, started his career as a stuntman, which makes the project all the more amusing.
6. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Release Date: May 24
It took George Miller three decades to revive the post-apocalyptic 1979 Mad Max through 2015’s Oscar-winning blockbuster, Fury Road. Eight years later, the spinoff, Furiosa, revived the series, with Anya Taylor-Joy playing a younger version of Charlize Theron’s character.
7. The Bikeriders
Release Date: June 21
This fictional drama film is loosely inspired by Danny Lyon’s formative 1968 photojournalism book of the same title, depicting the lives of the Outlaws MC, a predominantly Chicago-based motorcycle club. The movie is directed by Jeff Nichols, who makes a comeback after seven years, and features a stellar cast including Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, and Jodie Comer.
8. Beetlejuice 2
Release Date: Sep 6
Whispers of a Beetlejuice sequel have fluttered about for, well, a long time, and it finally comes to fruition in 2024 with an addition of Jenna Ortega, as well as Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, and Catherine O’Hara reprising their roles.
9. Joker: Folie à Deux
Release Date: Oct 4
With Lady Gaga as Joaquin Phoenix’s co-star, and a subtitle that translates to “shared psychosis or madness,” Joker’s sequel is among the most anticipated films of 2024 for more reasons than one. Returning as a musical, the film is rumored to be Todd Phillips’ take on the 1977 movie “New York, New York,” likely setting the expansion of the Joker universe up for a campy twist.
10. Wicked: Part One
Release Date: Nov 27
Hollywood is known for its love of prequels, and in this particular one, Ariana Grande stars as Glinda, the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz, while Cynthia Erivo takes on the role of the Wicked Witch of the West. Even though Wicked has been playing on Broadway for over 20 years, the star power of this cast alone is enough to warrant anticipating box office records.
11. Nosferatu
Release Date: Dec 25
Christmas is getting an October treatment this year with Robert Eggers’ take on the classic 1922 film Nosferatu. The terrifying vampire is played by none other than the Pennywise actor Bill Skarsgård, with Lily Rose-Depp as Ellen Hutter, the subject of Nosferatu’s obsession. Even better, Willem Dafoe, who often plays the villain, is the vampire slayer in this one.
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