2024 has been a good year for movies with several huge releases already out, including Inside Out 2, Deadpool & Wolverine, Dune: Part 2, and many more, but there are more exciting films still to come before the year is out. In general, any given year will deliver a list of great new films, which see the box office reach soaring new heights, and compete for awards following their release. However, the impact of the global pandemic on cinema has been a tough moment to recover from, with many movies delayed, canceled, and completely reimagined.
The box office has steadily recovered, with the list of billion dollar box office films steadily on the rise once again, but there are also exciting new projects on the horizon. While many of these titles exist as part of a much larger IP, building out their current movie universes, there are some exciting projects that are expected to bring the crowds in at theaters everywhere. With major holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas on the way, plenty of big releases are hoping to capitilize on the upcoming holiday season.
10 Transformers One
Transformers has been a popular IP since 1984, when the toys and cartoons came out close together. The incredible transforming robots captured the minds and imaginations of kids everywhere, and over the years, the stories in the shows and films associated with it have gotten bigger and more exciting. After several explosive Michael Bay live-action feature films, the franchise is now returning to its animated roots with the upcoming Transformers One.
Related Is Chris Hemsworth a good choice for Optimus Prime?
Peter Cullen has been the voice of Optimus Prime for many, many years. He is iconic, so it is a bit jarring for some fans that Chris Hemsworth will be taking on the role in Transformers One. Of course, there is a reason behind it. While this is the character Optimus Prime, it is actually Orion Pax, the character who will become Optimus Prime. It makes sense that another voice would be used. Chris Hemsworth is a fantastic actor and a great choice to step into these (very big) shoes. From the trailers, it is clear that this was a good call. We can expect his voice to evolve over the course of the movie, as the character himself evolves into Optimus Prime.
Starring Chris Hemsworth as the voice of Orion Pax, the film will reveal the humble origins of Pax before he became the robot that is so universally well-loved, Optimus Prime. The movie is an exciting new chapter in the story as the origins of these robots on Cybertron is seen, and the events that see Orion and his best friend, D-16, on an incredible adventure that will change them both forever. It is also expected to be the first of three animated features which look back at the early days of the Autobots and Decepticons.
9 Joker: Folie à Deux
In 2019, Joaquin Phoenix starred as Arthur Fleck, an eerily familiar character from the DC Universe who transformed to become the Joker. The story was an attempt to provide insight into how the Joker became the Joker, and it was hugely successful, becoming the highest grossing R-rated movie of all time until Deadpool & Wolverine passed it in 2024. Now, director Todd Phillips and the team have a chance to reclaim the title in the highly anticipated sequel.
Joker: Folie à Deux is set to revisit Arthur Fleck after the events of the first movie, and see him join forces with the aloof Harley Quinn. Quinn is being played by Lady Gaga, and the film is set to be a musical, which will likely add to the mysterious and eerie tones that were set up in the original. The film now resides in the DCU Elseworlds, a separate branch from James Gunn’s DCU, but the excitement for the film remains high.
8 Smile 2
Ahead of Halloween, a long list of horror titles tend to be released to add to the spooky season. In 2024, a global smash hit gets its first sequel, with Smile 2. Smile was released in 2022, and it struck a nerve for horror fans as the creepy force that caused people to break into a wide unsettling grin before attacking others and getting killed made the movie an interesting new story in a bloated landscape of horror titles.
Related Smile 2 Quietly Confirmed A Major Character Death That Changes What To Expect From The Sequel
Smile 2’s trailer has proven that Smile’s main survivor is dead after all, making the sequel’s potential plot tougher for viewers to predict.
Now, the sequel will bring back the mysterious force that passes from person to person, as it stalks a global pop sensation on tour. While trying to deliver her best for her adoring fans, young Skye Riley, played by Naomi Scott, finds herself surrounded by people with unsettling smiles, and terrible accidents that end in death. Smile 2 is expected to be a big Halloween hit for the 2024 season.
7 Venom: The Last Dance
While Sony Entertainment’s efforts to launch an adjacent Spider-Man universe revolving around the villains have struggled, the Venom movies have enjoyed relative success. Tom Hardy stars as Eddie Brock in the trilogy, which follows a down-on-his-luck Brock teaming up with a man-eating alien from space. The movies have been funny and gritty enough to develop a dedicated following, despite a lack of success for other films in its universe.
Venom: The Last Dance will mark the final film in the trilogy as it says goodbye to the biggest title in their franchise. However, the second Venom film received mixed to negative reviews, which places a large burden on the back of this final entry. If the trailers are anything to go by, it does appear that the spark of fun and excitement is back in this entry, as Brock and Venom get into a flow and make their last adventure one to remember.
6 Gladiator II
When Top Gun dropped a sequel after 36 years in 2022, Top Gun: Maverick shattered expectations and earned huge numbers at the box office with nearly $1.5 billion worldwide (via Box Office Mojo). Now Paramount Pictures hopes to do the same with the 2000 hit Gladiator getting a long-awaited sequel in 2024. Gladiator II appears to be following in the footsteps of the original movie as it follows a young man being imprisoned and given the opportunity to fight for his freedom in the Colosseum.
Related Gladiator 2 Is Changing The Reason Maximus Rubbed His Hands With Dirt In The Original Movie
Gladiator 2 changes the reason that Maximus rubs his hands with dirt in Gladiator as Paul Mescal’s Lucius does it in tribute to the fallen gladiator.
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The sequel stars Paul Mescal as Lucius, the grandson of the former emperor. The film looks to resemble the original in many ways, with a story that takes place decades after the original, just as Top Gun: Maverick did. However, the dramatic difference will be the fact that the central figure in Gladiator was Russell Crowe’s character, Maximus, who died in the original film. Therefore, he will not return to reprise his role as Tom Cruise did in Maverick.
5 Wicked
While Wicked is technically part of a larger franchise, and a film adaptation of the popular stage play, it’s the closest thing to an original standalone story on this list. However, it is also being set up to be the first of a two-part story, with Part 2 expected to be released in 2025. Wicked is a story based on the Oz novels by L. Frank Baum. The story focuses on the wicked witch of the West before she falls into her role as the menacing scourge of Oz.
The film will follow the stage show in being a musical, with pop star Ariana Grande appearing as Glinda, the Good Witch, and Cynthia Erivo starring as Elphaba. The film is set in the magical land of Oz, and it is sure to be a spectacle to behold with fantastical sets and incredible creatures throughout. However, where Part 1 will end remains to be seen.
4 Moana 2
Moana is one of the latest hit films by Disney which highlights a Disney Princess on her adventures to save her home and explore the world. The first movie came out in 2016, with Dwayne Johnson as the voice of Maui, a Polynesian god. The sequel will reunite Maui and the titular lead, Moana, as she seeks to help her people realize their destiny and embrace the world of magic and mystery that exists beyond their island.
Related Which 2024 movie will break $1 Billion next?
So far, Inside Out 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine are the only movies in 2024 to cross $1 billion at the box office. However, there are a few more releasing this year that have potential. If Inside Out 2 has proven anything, Moana 2 could be the next animated film to hit that milestone. Wicked the musical has a large following, so it’s possible it will also reach it. Joker: Folie A Deux is highly anticipated, and while I used to think the R-rating could hurt its chances, Deadpool & Wolverine did it, so I think that it has potential.
The sequel has been a long time in the making, and interestingly, a live-action adaptation of the first film, with Johnson reprising his role in the live-action version, is expected to be released in 2026. Moana is a great example of representation in film and the strides Disney has made in order to try and create stories where kids from around the world, of every heritage, can enjoy and celebrate stories that they resonate with and feel represented in.
3 Kraven The Hunter
Another Sony Entertainment entry featuring a very different villain, Kraven the Hunter, follows Kraven, who has an extraordinary talent for tracking down and killing his prey, no matter what size or species. The movie will be the latest in the series of Villian-centric titles from Sony, though it is expected to fare better than Morbius. It will also star Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who previously played Quicksilver in the MCU, and the lead character from the Kick-Ass movies.
This experience in superhero movies will be put to the test as he embraces the challenge of playing the bad guy for once. The movie is expected to be action packed, violent, and intense throughout. Unusually, Kraven was expected to release years earlier, but delays and other production struggles meant the feature was in standby for an extended period. Hopefully, that will not impact the quality of the finished product, but only time will tell.
2 The Lion King: Mufasa
Custom Image by Nick Bythrow
In 1994, The Lion King became an instant classic which helped to continue Disney’s long-standing tradition of dominating the family film space. In recent years, Disney has had stiff competition from studios like Dreamworks and Illumination. However, with their extensive backlog, Disney attempted to bring back some classics with live-action remakes, and in 2019, The Lion King was adapted with realistic computer-generated characters leading the story.
Related The Lion King’s Mufasa & Scar Retcon Fixes An Uncomfortable Romance From 26 Years Ago
Mufasa: The Lion King is making some major changes to Simba’s family tree, but this is actually a good thing for the old sequel from the 1990s.
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While the remake was not a perfect success, it did help to inform the studio that people still passionately cared about the story and characters in the original film. As a result, The Lion King: Mufasa is due to hit theaters later this year. The movie will follow a brand new original story with Mufasa as the central figure during his earlier years. It will also feature the same hyper-realistic graphics as the 2019 remake.
1 Sonic the Hedgehog 3
For decades, video game adaptations struggled to capture the heart and soul of the games they adapted, and they generally flopped. However, in 2020, Sonic the Hedgehog broke the curse when the film brought the world’s favorite speeding hedgehog to the big screen. Starring Ben Schwartz as the voice of Sonic, James Marsden as his best friend, and Jim Carrey as the villainous Dr. Robotnik, the movie, was an outstanding success. Then in 2022, the film released a sequel that was equally adored, and it set up the story for a third entry.
2024 will see the release of the third installment with all three of the actors mentioned above returning, and the incredibly talented Keanu Reeves joining the cast as Shadow the Hedgehog. The story, cast, and graphics are all incredibly exciting, and the third entry is expected to be just as popular as the first two, if not even more so. The film will also be one of the last releases in 2024, as it will be released in theaters December 20, 2024.