This year has several titles that are listed for release, but haven't even begun filming yet (Kingsman 3, Masters of the Universe). Some are not even close to being in post production which will have some producers racing to the finish line for many of these movies. A couple of movies listed here were also scheduled to be released last year, but got bumped for whatever reason and some may yet not make it. Either way, here are the most anticipated films coming out this year!
GLASS (January 18, 2019)
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, James McAvoy, Sarah Paulson, Anya Taylor-Joy
Composer: West Dylan Thordson
| Night always said that Unbreakable was the first part of a trilogy that he never intended to make. With an apparent change of heart, we now have a third movie in the “Unbreakable” universe (after Split). For budgetary reasons or otherwise, James Newton Howard isn’t returning to compose the score for this one. |
The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part (February 8, 2019)
Director: Mike Mitchell, Trisha Gum
Starring: Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Channing Tatum, Will Arnett, Tiffany Haddish
Composer: Mark Mothersbaugh
| Although the LEGO franchise has been plugging along with several films since the original was released in 2014, this is the first proper sequel. Let’s hope everything is awesome with this one too. |
Alita: Battle Angel (February 14, 2019)
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Rosa Salazar, Jennifer Connelly, Christoph Waltz, Ed Skrein, Michelle Rodriguez
Composer: Junkie XL
| This was on our list last year. Originally slated to release last July, it was bumped multiple times for better “timing.” Having that many delays is never a good sign, but with Robert Rodriguez directing and James Cameron producing, you can’t help but think it’ll be a success. |
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (February 22, 2019)
Director: Dean DeBlois
Starring: Jay Baruchel, America Fererra, Cate Blanchett, Kit Harington, Kristen Wiig
Composer: John Powell
Captain Marvel (March 8, 2019)
Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Starring: Brie Larson, Lee Pace, Samuel L. Jackson
Composer: Pinar Toprak
| There has been a lot of anticipation surrounding this one. After the huge success of Wonder Woman in the DC universe, Marvel is getting into the game with its first female-led superhero movie. It is co-directed by a woman, written primarily by women and has a female composer. Taking place before the first Iron Man movie, it will be interesting how this ties into the Avengers series. |
Us (March 15, 2019)
Director: Jordan Peele
Starring: Lupita Nyong’o, Elizabeth Moss, Winston Duke, Tim Heidecker, Shahadi Wright Joseph, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
Composer: Michael Abels
| Comedian turned director, Jordan Peele, is the new “it guy” for independent horror. He’s following up the huge success of Get Out with another creepy thriller. Should definitely be worth checking out. |
Dumbo (March 29, 2019)
Director: Tim Burton
Starring: Colin Farrell, Eva Green, Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito
Composer: Danny Elfman
| The Disney live-action reboot machine is full steam ahead with three titles releasing this year. I’ll admit I was rather dismissive when I first heard about the Tim Burton/Dumbo project. But after seeing the trailers, he looks to be getting back into his wheelhouse, aided by long-time collaborator Danny Elfman providing the score. |
Pet Sematary (April 5, 2019)
Director: Kevin Kölsch, Dennis Widmyer
Starring: Amy Seimetz, Jason Clarke, John Lithgow
Composer: Christopher Young
| Stephen King film adaptations can be hit and miss, but this one is tough to go wrong with. King initially wasn’t going to publish the book after he wrote it, feeling it was too dark. It’s also the only one of his stories that genuinely scared him. Take a great horror story like that, bring thriller/suspense master Christopher Young to compose the score and you’ve got a recipe for success. |
Hellboy (April 12, 2019)
Director: Neil Marshall
Starring: David Harbour, Milla Jovovich, Ian McShane
Composer: Benjamin Wallfisch
| It kinda seems like a money grab to go for a reboot so soon…but then again, they did that with Spiderman multiple times. The filmmakers are looking to follow in the footsteps of Deadpool in terms of tone, so that should be interesting. Stranger Things David Harbour stars as Hellboy. |
Avengers: Endgame (April 26, 2019)
Director: Joe Russo, Anthony Russo
Starring: Brie Larson, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen, Evangeline Lilly, Robert Downey Jr., Pom Klementieff, Tom Holland, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Dave Bautista
Composer: Alan Silvestri
| The ending of Infinity War rocked the fanbase of the franchise. So we’ll have to see how the writers weave their way out of this one. The addition of Captain Marvel and Ant-Man will surely play a pivotal role in their escape plan. |
Pokémon Detective Pikachu (May 10, 2019)
Director: Rob Letterman
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Justice Smith, Suki Waterhouse
Composer: Henry Jackman
| I’m definitely not the target audience for this, but my sources tell me it will be huge. Apparently, Pokémon is the highest grossing media franchise ever. Can’t go wrong with Ryan Reynolds on this one. |
John Wick: Chapter 3 (May 17, 2019)
Director: Chad Stahelski
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Halle Berry, Ian McShane, Laurence Fishburne, Anjelica Huston
Composer: Tyler Bates, Joel J. Richard
| The John Wick series has proven itself to be a formidable asset for home theater owners. This movie picks up where Chapter 2 left off and John has to survive on his own. The story is stale, but will no doubt have killer sound (pun intended). |
Aladdin (May 24, 2019)
Director: Guy Ritchie
Starring: Will Smith, Naomi Scott, Nasim Pedrad, Mena Massoud
Composer: Alan Menken
| Will Smith stars as the genie in this live-action version, with Guy Ritchie at the helm. We’ll see how “family friendly” he can keep it. Expect this to be similar to the Beauty and the Beast reboot in terms of its similarity to the original. Alan Menken returns to handle the musical duties. |
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (May 31, 2019)
Directed by: Michael Dougherty
Starring: Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobby Brown, Kyle Chandler, Sally Hawkins, Ken Watanabe
Composer: Bear McCreary
| Millie Bobby Brown can’t seem to stay away from super natural entities these days. Godzilla will be joined by Mothra, Rodan and the 500ft tall King Ghidorah in this sequel to the 2014 movie. Bringing on composer Bear McCreary to score the film is a refreshing choice. |
X-Men: Dark Phoenix (June 7, 2019)
Directed by: Simon Kinberg
Starring: Sophie Turner, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence
Composer: Hans Zimmer
| The last X-Men movie was in 2016, so they are catching up this year by releasing two of them. Dark Phoenix puts the team between Jean Grey’s incredible powers and the rest of the population on planet earth. Hans Zimmer stated he was “retiring” from superhero movies after working on Batman v Superman, but director Simon Kinberg was able to convince him otherwise. |
Men in Black International (June 14, 2019)
Directed by: F. Gary Gray
Starring: Tessa Thompson, Chris Hemsworth, Liam Neeson
Composer: N/A
| Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson reunite after starring Thor: Ragnarok together. Judging by their chemistry and comedic timing in that, this should be pretty good. In fact, that’s what gave Sony Pictures the idea to cast them both and relaunch this franchise. Liam Neeson also stars as they search for a mole in their organization. |
Child's Play (June 21, 2019)
Directed by: Lars Klevberg
Starring: Aubrey Plaza, Brian Tyree Henry, Gabriel Bateman
Composer: N/A
| More than 30 years and 7 films since the original, we now have a new “updated” Chucky! It appears he now has wifi, so he’ll presumably be able to take over all your smart devices to bend to his nefarious whims. You can check out the official fake website here. |
Toy Story 4 (June 21, 2019)
Directed by: Josh Cooley
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Annie Potts, Laurie Metcalf
Composer: Randy Newman
| The franchise had a nice trilogy wrapped up with the last one and there were no plans to continue, but you can never count out something that successful. They allegedly weren’t going to make another unless they had a story that equaled or surpassed the previous installments. The whole crew is back, so all should be in for a good time. |
Spider-Man: Far From Home (July 5, 2019)
Directed by: Jon Watts
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jake Gyllenhaal, Marisa Tomei, Michael Keaton
Composer: Michael Giacchino
| The simple fact that this movie is coming out would indicate that Thanos’ infamous “snap” may not have much longevity – which we’ll find out in Endgame. But there’s also a theory that an alternate universe Spider-Man might take over. This is the first movie of “Phase 4” of the MCU. Michael Giacchino returns to provide the score. |
The Lion King (July 19, 2019)
Directed by: Jon Favreau
Starring: Donald Glover, Beyoncé Knowles, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, James Earl Jones, Alfre Woodard
Composer: Hans Zimmer
| This live-action remake (although all the animals are CGI, so that’s kinda blurred) is directed by Jon Favreau who handled The Jungle Book. A proven director with a proven story and modern technology equals a sure thing. Early buzz is very positive. |
Fast & Furious presents: Hobbs & Shaw (August 2, 2019)
Director: David Leitch
Starring: Idris Elba, Dwayne Johnson, Vanessa Kirby
Composer: N/A
| Considering the fallout between The Rock and Vin Diesel, it’s not surprising the former’s star power won out with this spin-off. This one is supposed to have a different feel than the other F&F films with Jason Statham and The Rock doing more of a buddy-cop thing. |
X-Men: The New Mutants (August 2, 2019)
Directed by: Josh Boone
Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Maisie Williams, Charlie Heaton, Alice Braga
Composer: Mike Mogis, Nate Walcott
| This new branch of the X-Men tree is more in the horror vein than the other superhero movies. It’s also is a chance to introduce some younger blood into the franchise so they don’t have to keep rebooting with new actors. Combining the forces from Game of Thrones (Maisie Williams), Stranger Things (Charlie Heaton) and Split (Anya Taylor-Joy) is a pretty good recipe. |
It: Chapter Two (September 6, 2019)
Directed by: Andy Muschietti
Starring: Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Bill Hader, Bill Skarsgård
Composer: N/A
| The original book is 1138 pages long, so splitting it into separate movies accomplishes two things. It allows for greater depth into the storytelling and provides more money for the studio. In 2017 we saw the kids being terrorized by this evil incarnate. Now we get those kids 27 years later all grown up having to deal with “IT” again. |
Zombieland 2 (October 11, 2019)
Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
Starring: Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Abigail Breslin
Composer: N/A
| Exactly a decade after the first film was released, the original director and cast are back to fight some “super zombies.” All four of the leads have been nominated for Academy Awards in other films, so it’s a safe bet for this one to win Best Picture. |
Joker (October 4, 2019)
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Zazie Beetz, Robert De Niro
Composer: Hildur Guðnadóttir
| Joaquin Phoenix seems a natural choice to play the Joker – a crazy person playing a crazy person! This origin story is the first in a separate series of DC films that will feature stand-alone films unconnected the other DCEU franchise. With Robert De Niro on board, this one definitely looks promising. |
Charlie's Angels (November 1, 2019)
Directed by: Elizabeth Banks
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott, Ella Balinska, Elizabeth Banks
Composer: N/A
| Actress-turned-director Elizabeth Banks is in command for this reboot. There’s not much out there as far as plot details for the 4 decade old franchise, so I guess we’ll just have to wait for the first trailer to see what kind of twists Elizabeth banks and her crew have in mind. |
Untitled Terminator Project (November 1, 2019)
Directed by: Tim Miller
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mackenzie Davis, Linda Hamilton, Gabriel Luna
Composer: N/A
| The only hint we’ve attained so far is that this is a sequel to the original Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day. It’s always amusing how storylines intertwine. Between the multiple movies history, two seasons of Sarah Connor Chronicles, the veteran experience of Arnold and Linda, and Tim Miller (Deadpool), this latest film should prove to be entertaining. |
Kingsman 3 (November 8, 2019)
Directed by: Matthew Vaughn
Starring: N/A
Composer: N/A
| Well the last two movies were certainly full of action with a nice blend of comedy, so I expect nothing less from this one. There is no plot disclosure yet, but Taron Egerton confirmed he would not be returning as Eggsy. It’s rumored that director Matthew Vaughn is making this as a prequel and taking the series in a different direction. |
Frozen 2 (November 27, 2019)
Directed by: Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee
Starring: Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Josh Gad
Composer: N/A
| The original movie was quite the hit, so I’m sure fans are thrilled that this second movie is being released. This film looks to dive deeper into the plotline of the history of their kingdom and the mysterious powers it may contain. Songwriters Bobby Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez are returning as well to add a least four more songs for the film. Co-director Jennifer Lee said that this film will be “bigger, more epic” than the first and that the characters are “going to go far out of Arendelle.” |
Jumanji 2 (December 13, 2019)
Directed by: Scott Rosenberg
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Kevin Hart
Composer: N/A
| It looks like we’ll be seeing the return of the previous movies cast – and then some. The nearly 1 billion dollars the first movie made was a surprise to everyone. Now we have the addition of seasoned actors Danny DeVito and Danny Glover, so this should result in an even more captivating movie than the previous. |
Masters Of The Universe (December 18, 2019)
Directed by: Aaron Nee, Adam Nee
Starring: N/A
Composer: N/A
| He-Man and the rest of his muscle-bound friends in a new movie in 2019, what could go wrong? This film hasn’t even begun filming yet, so it’ll have to be a fast turnaround to hit this schedule. And there is literally no info on this other than the directors and the release date. Good luck! |
Star Wars: Episode IX (December 20, 2019)
Directed by: J. J. Abrams
Starring: Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, John Boyega, Lupita Nyong’o
Composer: John Williams
| Listed as “The monumental finale of the Skywalker Saga,” this is the final episode in the final trilogy of the original film series. It will also presumably be the final John Williams score for a Star Wars movie, so enjoy it. J.J. Abrams takes this one back after fans were mixed on Rian Johnson effort on The Last Jedi. Can you say highest grossing film of all-time? |