A new summer is upon us and that means a whole new shmorgishborg of big screen entertainment. This year is bringing us long-awaited sequels, a new phase beginning in the still growing Marvel Cinematic Universe, new horrors and even a couple of original ideas. Ryan Reynolds is returning to the action genre under the direction of Taika Waititi, Universal Studios is making another go at their Dark Universe and Disney is taking their live action remakes in a new direction. Will they be good? One thing is for sure that it will be interesting, so be sure to mark these dates on your calendar!
A Quiet Place Part II
March 20
Get ready for the theatres to be so quiet again that you can hear others munching on their popcorn five rows down. John Krasinski, trying to move away from his persona from The Office, directed, co-wrote and starred in a surprise horror experience. The sequel will pick right where the previous film left off, the Abbott family escaping their home and trying to survive out in the open world. While all the original actors are returning to their original roles, Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy joined the cast as a lone survivor who befriends the family; obviously taking a lot of inspiration from his 28 Days Later role. Will the family survive another bout in the alien apocalypse? Just remember to stay quiet.
Mulan
March 27
The reactions to Disney’s latest craze of remaking their animated classics into live-action films have certainly been less than enthusiastic. Movies like Maleficent, Alice in Wonderland, Beauty and the Beast and the more recent Lion King may have brought in high box office but failed to connect with audience’s nostalgia. However, it would seem as though the studio has noticed this criticism as well and have decided attempt Mulan at a different angle. This time round, Disney seems to be going for a gritty, epic war drama, which might be a welcomed change of pace. With veteran actors Donnie Yen and Jet Li in the supporting cast, this is definitely a movie that audiences are cautiously anticipated for.
Black Widow
May 1
After a truly tear-jerking finale to the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s third phase, Black Widow is set to kick phase four. Little is known about the plot except it will take place between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War and she will be joined by her “family.” Rising star Florence Pugh (Midsommar, Little Women) will be joining Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff’s sister Yelena Belova, as well as Rachel Weisz and Stranger Things star David Harbour. It’s also rumoured that Robert Downey Jr. and Jeremy Renner are slated to make an appearance but nothing’s in stone yet.
Scoob
May 15
There have been many different incarnations of Hanna-Barbera’s arguably most famous creation, but this is a full feature animated adaptation detailing how Shaggy, Scooby Doo and the rest of the Mystery Inc. gang met during their childhoods. Another interesting path this movie is exploring is the rest of the Hannah-Barbera universe. Ken Jeong will provide the voice for Dynomutt: Dog Wonder, Tracy Morgan will portray Captain Caveman, Jason Isaacs as Dick Dastardly and Mark Whalberg as the Blue Falcon. With the already all-star cast of Zac Efron, Amanda Seyfried, Gina Rodriguez, Will Forte and legendary voice actor Frank Welker providing the voice for Scoob himself, this is bound to be fun ride for the kids.
Soul
June 19
When the trailer dropped for Disney/Pixar’s latest animated feature, when Jamie Fox began that inspiring monologue about being remembered for doing what you love, people were immediately hyped… for the first half. Halfway through the trailer, after the main character falls through an exposed sewer hole, audiences were a little disappointed to see familiar territory when the main character turned into an Inside Out-esque caricature. Despite this, the message of following your dreams will most definitely connect with a lot of audiences, young and old.
Free Guy
July 3
Taika Waititi’s latest motion picture asks the question, what if a video game NPC gained freewill. Ryan Reynolds plays Guy, a nondescript bank teller in an open world video game; think if GTA Online was in real life. After becoming tired of his routine life, he decides to finally fight back and become his own protagonist. With Reynolds and Waititi teaming up for a film, we can only expect some ironic, self-referential humor and over-the-top action.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife
July 10
The year of 2016 was a dark time for the Ghostbusters franchise. When the new all-female Ghostbusters were announced, there was no winning this fight. If you didn’t see it, you were sexist and if you did see it, you were helping in the destruction of Ghostbusters. This kind of backlash inevitably helped in the film’s downfall, which forced Sony Pictures to attempt a different direction. Bringing on director Jason Reitman, son of Ivan Reitman who directed the original movies, Ghostbusters: Afterlife is set to continue the story from the classic ’80s films. Starring Finn Wolfhard and Paul Rudd, there is still no word if Sigourney Weaver and the original Ghostbusters will make an appearance, but we can still have our fingers crossed.
@billandted3
Bill and Ted Face the Music
August 21
You’re two favourite slackers, Bill S. Preston, Esq. and Ted “Theodore” Logan, are returning to the big screen and, well, they got old. Finding their middle-aged lives a bit of a drag, they are craving for adventure much like their adolescent years. So, when a mysterious stranger from the future warns them an impending danger that could destroy, not only life on Earth, but life in the entire galaxy. What’s the solution? Create a most radical song that can save the universe. Can they do it? With the help of friends, musicians and family, including their teenaged daughters Billie and Thea, they may be able to pull off another tubular time-travelling adventure.
@halloweenmovie
Halloween Kills
October 16
Can anything stop pure evil incarnate? Well, as it turns out, fire is merely inconvenience to Michael Myers because he’s coming back. Despite getting less than enthusiastic responses from fans and critic, 2018’s Halloween reboot was successful enough to earn a sequel. This will be the second film in a new trilogy pitting Laurie Strode and her daughter against the classic movie slasher. Will they prevail and survive another Halloween season and, more importantly, will this film actually have some good atmosphere? Guess only time will tell.
denofgeek.com
Coming 2 America
December 18
After nearly four decades of finally finding true love and taking over the title of King of Zamunda, the Eddie Murphy comedy classic is getting a sequel. Not only is Murphy returning to his signature role but so are Arsenio Hall, John Amos, Shari Headley and the legendary James Earl Jones. This time round, King Akeem discovers that he has a long-lost son located in the United States. Seeing how he may be the only heir to the throne, Akeem spearheads another mission to the promised land to find his son and hopefully keep the lineage going.
By Kory Glover
