Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a lovely night doing whatever it is you do to celebrate. It is a time honored tradition of my site to craft a list of movies that I am anticipating in the new year, even as I finish watching 2018 movies. So here is the list of the top 50 most anticipated films of 2019.

2018 holdouts: Serenity, Where’d You Go, Bernadette?, Underwater, New Mutants, Red Sea, Little Monsters

Just Missed: Light from Light, The Third Wife, Bad Hair, Bergman Island, Rocketman, Shazam, The Mustang, Eli

Top 50 Most Anticipated Films of 2019

Ad Astra
Dir. James Grey
Written By: James Gray, Ethan Gross
Cast: Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland, Kimberly Elise, Ruth Negga
Logline: Astronaut Roy McBride travels to the outer edges of the solar system to find his missing father and unravel a mystery that threatens the survival of our planet.
Why: We’re in a golden age of existential scifi and this film has been rumored to be a powerhouse
Release Date: May 24

The Addams Family
Dir. Greg Tiernan, Conrad Vernon
Written By: Matt Lieberman, Pamela Pettler
Cast: Chloë Grace Moretz, Charlize Theron, Oscar Isaac, Allison Janney, Nick Kroll, Elsie Fisher
Logline: An animated version of Charles Addams’ series of cartoons about a peculiar, ghoulish family.
Why: It’s been a minute since we saw the creepy, kooky, and spooky family on the big screen
Release Date: October 18

The Aftermath
Dir. James Kent
Written By: Joe Shrapnel, Anna Waterhouse
Cast: Keira Knightley, Alexander Skarsgård, Jason Clarke
Logline: Post World War II, a British colonel and his wife are assigned to live in Hamburg during the post-war reconstruction, but tensions arise with the German who previously owned the house.
Why: Kiera Knightley was made to be in period pieces + I love a juicy drama
Release Date: TBD

Always Be My Maybe
Dir. Nahnatchka Khan
Written By: Michael Golamco, Randall Park, Ali Wong
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Randall Park, Daniel Dae Kim, Ali Wong, Charlyne Yi
Logline: A pair of childhood friends end up falling for each other when they grow up.
Why: A romcom filled with talented Asian actors dominated 2018, repeat time?
Release Date: TBD

Antlers
Dir. Scott Cooper
Written By: Henry Chaisson, Nick Antosca
Cast: Keri Russell, Jesse Plemons, Jeremy T. Thomas
Logline: A small-town Oregon teacher and her brother, the local sheriff, become entwined with a young student harboring a dangerous secret with frightening consequences.
Why: Scott Cooper is a vicious filmmaker + Keri Russell post The Americans + have you seen the instagram? Super creepy
Release Date: TBD

Apollo 11
Dir. Todd Douglas Miller
Logline: A look at the Apollo 11 mission to land on the moon led by commander Neil Armstrong and pilot Buzz Aldrin.
Why: My nerd heart is jumping up and down at the thought of seeing the first moon trip colorized
Release Date: TBD

Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Dir. D.J. Caruso
Written By: Gary Dauberman, Ben David Grabinski
Cast: Not Announced
Logline: Plot unknown. Feature film based on the Nickelodeon series, ‘Are You Afraid of the Dark?’
Why: One my favorite childhood shows comes to the big screen.
Release Date: October 11

Ask Dr. Ruth
Dir. Ryan White
Logline: A documentary portrait chronicling the incredible life of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a Holocaust survivor who became America’s most famous sex therapist. As her 90th birthday approaches, Dr. Ruth revisits her painful past and her career at the forefront of the sexual revolution.
Why: I hadn’t thought about Dr. Ruth in forever but she is a fascinating character and worth a good doc
Release Date: TBD

Avengers: Endgame
Dir. The Russo Brothers
Written By: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely
Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Don Cheadle, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Letitia Wright, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Josh Brolin, Chris Pratt, Jeremy Renner, Evangeline Lilly, Jon Favreau, Paul Rudd, Brie Larson
Logline: Adrift in space with no food or water, Tony Stark sends a message to Pepper Potts as his oxygen supply starts to dwindle. Meanwhile, the remaining Avengers — Thor, Black Widow, Captain America and Bruce Banner — must figure out a way to bring back their vanquished allies for an epic showdown with Thanos — the evil demigod who decimated the planet and the universe.
Why: You know why
Release Date: April 26

Benedetta
Dir. Paul Verhoeven
Written By: David Birke, Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Charlotte Rampling, Lambert Wilson, Virginie Efira
Logline: A 17th-century nun in Italy suffers from disturbing religious and erotic visions. She is assisted by a companion, and the relationship between the two women develops into a romantic love affair.
Why: Lesbian nuns! + a Verhoven Rampling team up
Release Date: TBD

Brightburn
Dir. David Yarovesky
Written By: Brian Gunn, Mark Gunn
Cast: Elizabeth Banks, Meredith Hagner, David Denman
Logline: What if a child from another world crash-landed on Earth, but instead of becoming a hero to mankind, he proved to be something far more sinister?
Why: I am intrigued by the premise of “what if Superman was an evil child?”
Release Date: Memorial Day

Captain Marvel
Dir. Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Written By: Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Jac Schaeffer, Nicole Perlman, Joe Shrapnel, Anna Waterhouse
Cast: Brie Larson, Mckenna Grace, Gemma Chan, Samuel L. Jackson, Djimon Hounsou
Logline: Carol Danvers becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races.
Why: First female superhero film from Marvel + we gotta find out why it was so important that Nick Fury paged her
Release Date: March 8

Dolor y Gloria
Dir. Pedro Almodóvar
Written By: Pedro Almodóvar
Cast: Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas, Leonardo Sbaraglia
Logline: A film director reflects on the choices he’s made in life as past and present come crashing down around him.
Why: One of the best directors ever is directing both of his most significant muses in one film.
Release Date: TBD

Ema
Dir. Pablo Larraín
Written By: Guillermo Calderón, Alejandro Moreno
Cast: Gael García Bernal, Santiago Cabrera, Mariana Loyola
Logline: A couple deals with the aftermath of an adoption that goes awry as their household falls apart.
Why: Larrain and Bernal haven’t made a bad film together
Release Date: TBD

Frankie
Dir. Ira Sachs
Written By: Ira Sachs, Mauricio Zacharias
Cast: Marisa Tomei, Brendan Gleeson, Isabelle Huppert
Logline: Three generations grappling with a life-changing experience during one day of a vacation in Sintra, Portugal, a historic town known for its dense gardens and fairy-tale villas and palaces.
Why: Ira Sachs makes bruising movies + Tomei and Huppert
Release Date: TBD

Gemini Man
Dir. Ang Lee
Written By: Billy Ray, Jonathan Hensleigh, Darren Lemke, Andrew Niccol, Stephen J. Rivele, Christopher Wilkinson, David Benioff
Cast: Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen, Benedict Wong
Logline: An over-the-hill hitman faces off against a younger clone of himself.
Why: Will Smith working with a great director + this is giving me Looper vibes
Release Date: October 4

High Flying Bird
Dir. Steven Soderbergh
Written By: Tarell Alvin McCraney
Cast: Zazie Beetz, Kyle MacLachlan, Zachary Quinto, André Holland, Caleb McLaughlin
Logline: A sports agent pitches a rookie basketball client on an intriguing and controversial business opportunity during a lockout.
Why: Oscar winning director and writer tackling…a sports drama? How fun.
Release Date: February 8

Hobbs and Shaw
Dir. David Leitch
Written By: Chris Morgan
Cast: Eiza González, Vanessa Kirby, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham
Logline: A spinoff of The Fate of the Furious, focusing on Johnson’s US Diplomatic Security Agent Luke Hobbs forming an unlikely alliance with Statham’s Deckard Shaw.
Why: The two most foolish and best characters in the Fast and Furious franchise are getting a spinoff.
Release Date: August 2

Imaginary Order
Dir. Debra Eisenstadt
Written By: Debra Eisenstadt
Cast: Wendi McLendon-Covey, Christine Woods, Max Burkholder
Logline: The sexual, psychological, and moral unraveling of an obsessive-compulsive suburban mom.
Why: I love stories about suburban moms acting like morally loose women + Wendi in a drama!
Release Date: premeiring at Sundance

In Fabric
Dir. Peter Strickland
Written By: Peter Strickland
Cast: Gwendoline Christie, Leo Bill, Julian Barratt
Logline: In Fabric is a haunting ghost story set against the backdrop of a busy winter sales period in a department store and follows the life of a cursed dress as it passes from person to person, with devastating consequences..
Why: Haunted clothes???…I’m in!
Release Date: TBD

It: Chapter Two
Dir. Andy Muschietti
Written By: Gary Dauberman
Cast: Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, Bill Skarsgård, Sophia Lillis, Bill Hader, Xavier Dolan, Jay Ryan, Finn Wolfhard, Jack Dylan Grazer, Jaeden Lieberher, James Ransone, Isaiah Mustafa, Chosen Jacobs
Logline: 27 years later, the Losers Club have grown up and moved away, until a devastating phone call brings them back.
Why: The original had no right to be that good + now we’ve Oscar nominated actors in the mix >:)
Release Date: September 6

Jojo Rabbit
Dir. Taika Waititi
Written By: Taika Waititi
Cast: Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, Taika Waititi
Logline: A young boy in Hitler’s army finds out his mother is hiding a Jewish boy in their home.
Why: A comedy (?) about Hitler and his army (??) with Taika as the man himself (!)
Release Date: TBD

Judy
Dir. Rupert Goold
Written By: Tom Edge
Cast: Renée Zellweger, Rufus Sewell, Michael Gambon, Finn Wittrock, Jessie Buckley
Logline: Legendary performer Judy Garland arrives in London in the winter of 1968 to perform a series of sold-out concerts.
Why: A biopic about an icon + the Zé + looks like it just about a specific time (the best biopics usually are)
Release Date: TBD

The Kitchen
Dir. Andrea Berloff
Written By: Andrea Berloff,
Cast: Melissa McCarthy, Domhnall Gleeson, Elisabeth Moss, Tiffany Haddish, Common, James Badge Dale, Margo Martindale
Logline: The wives of New York gangsters in Hell’s Kitchen in the 1970s continue to operate their husbands’ rackets after they’re locked up in prison.
Why: The cast, the plot, the thought of seeing two gifted comediennes in a drama…
Release Date: September 20

Knives Out
Dir. Rian Johnson
Written By: Rian Johnson
Cast: Christopher Plummer, Ana de Armas, Chris Evans, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Daniel Craig, Toni Collette, Lakeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Raul Castillo
Logline: Plot unknown. Described as a modern murder mystery in a classic whodunit style.
Why: Um excuse me how in the hell did Rian get all these actors to agree to this????
Release Date: November 27

Last Christmas
Dir. Paul Feig
Written By: Bryony Kimmings, Emma Thompson
Cast: Emilia Clarke, Emma Thompson, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh
Logline: Plot unknown. Described as a holiday romance set in London.
Why: Give me all the romcoms please! Especially ones co-written by Emma Thompson and directed by Paul Feig
Release Date: November 15

The Last Black Man in San Francisco
Dir. Joe Talbot
Written By: Jimmie Fails, Rob Richert, Joe Talbot
Cast: Thora Birch, Danny Glover, Finn Wittrock, Jonathan Majors
Logline: A young man searches for home in the changing city that seems to have left him behind.
Why: The Bay Area-aissance continues!
Release Date: premiering at Sundance

The Last Thing He Wanted
Dir. Dee Rees
Written By: Dee Rees, Marco Villalobos
Cast: Ben Affleck, Anne Hathaway, Willem Dafoe, Rosie Perez
Logline: A journalist quits her newspaper job and becomes an arms dealer for a covert government agency.
Why: the logline alone is a wild ride + Hathway under Rees direction is sure to be special
Release Date: TBD

The Lighthouse
Dir. Robert Eggers
Written By: Max Eggers, Robert Eggers
Cast: Willem Dafoe, Robert Pattinson
Logline: The story of an aging lighthouse keeper named Old who lives in early 20th-century Maine.
Why: I have been waiting with baited breath for Eggers to drag my spirit again
Release Date: TBD

The Lion King
Dir. Jon Favreau
Written By: Jeff Nathanson, Brenda Chapman
Cast: Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Donald Glover, Beyonce, James Earl Jones
Logline: CGI re-imagining of the 1994 Disney classic.
Why: I didn’t want to include this but I am interested into how this is gonna translate. The other Disney live action remakes are a mess
Release Date: July 19

Little Joe
Dir. Jessica Hausner
Written By: Géraldine Bajard, Jessica Hausner
Cast: Ben Whishaw, Emily Beecham, Kerry Fox
Logline: A genetically engineered plant scatters its seeds and seems to cause uncanny changes on living creatures. The afflicted appear strange, as if they were replaced – especially for those, who are close to them. Or is it all just imagination?
Why: The synopsis is giving me Little Shop of Horrors meets Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Release Date: TBD

Lucy in the Sky
Dir. Noah Hawley
Written By: Brian C. Brown, John-Henry Butterworth, Elliott DiGuiseppi, Noah Hawley
Cast: Natalie Portman, Dan Stevens, Zazie Beetz, John Hamm, Ellen Burstyn, Colman Domingo
Logline: The story of a female astronaut who, upon returning to Earth from a life-changing mission in space, begins to slowly unravel and lose touch with reality.
Why: Portman in crazy obssessive mode is always a wonderful sight
Release Date: TBD

Midsommar
Dir. Ari Aster
Written By: Ari Aster
Cast: Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor, William Jackson Harper
Logline: A young woman reluctantly joins her boyfriend on a summer trip where things quickly go awry.
Why: Hereditary was a wonderful first step, how will Aster scare us next?
Release Date: August 9

Missing Link
Dir. Chris Butler
Written By: Chris Butler
Cast: Emma Thompson, Zoe Saldana, Hugh Jackman, Timothy Olyphant
Logline: Mr. Link recruits explorer Sir Lionel Frost to help find his long-lost relatives in the fabled valley of Shangri-La. Along with adventurer Adelina Fortnight, this trio of explorers travel the world to help their new friend.
Why: This is a Laika stan site so I’ll always be here for their movies
Release Date: April 12

Native Son
Dir. Rashid Johnson
Written By: Suzan-Lori Parks
Cast: Nick Robinson, Sanaa Lathan, Margaret Qualley, Ashton Sanders, KiKi Layne
Logline: A young African-American man comes of age in the South Side of Chicago during the 1930s.
Why: One of the best books of all time adapted by a Pulitzer winner and starring Ashton Sanders
Release Date: premiering at Sundance

The Nest
Dir. Sean Durkin
Written By: Sean Durkin
Cast: Jude Law, Carrie Coon, Anne Reid
Logline: Life for an entrepreneur and his American family begin to take a twisted turn after moving into a English country manor.
Why: I can’t wait to see Carrie and Jude terrorized on the English country side
Release Date: TBD

Parasite
Dir. Joon-ho Bong
Cast: Kang-ho Song, Sun-kyun Lee, Hyae Jin Chang
Logline: A peculiar tale about two families who are worlds apart yet somewhat alike portrays a striking reality of the world we live in.
Why: Joon-ho Bong loves to spin my my wig around so I am always ready for his films
Release Date: TBD

Queen & Slim
Dir. Melina Matsoukas
Written By: Lena Waithe
Cast: Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith
Logline: A couple’s first date takes an unexpected turn when a police officer pulls them over.
Why: This is like the modern Black version of Bonnie and Clyde
Release Date: November 27

Rafiki
Dir. Wanuri Kahiu
Written By: Wanuri Kahiu, Jenna Cato Bass
Cast: Samantha Mugatsia, Neville Misati, Nice Githinji
Logline: “Good Kenyan girls become good Kenyan wives,” but Kena and Ziki long for something more. When love blossoms between them, the two girls will be forced to choose between happiness and safety.
Why: LGBTQ film + female director + African movie
Release Date: April 19

Sauvage
Dir. Paul Verhoeven
Written By: David Birke, Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Charlotte Rampling, Lambert Wilson, Virginie Efira
Logline: Leo is 22 and sells his body on the street for a bit of cash. The men come and go, and he stays right here – longing for love. He doesn’t know what the future will bring. He hits the road. His heart is pounding.
Why: LGBTQ film + Cannes stamp of approval + messy messy subject matter
Release Date: April 10

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
Dir. André Øvredal
Written By: John August, Marcus Dunstan, Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman, Patrick Melton, Guillermo del Toro
Cast: Gil Bellows, Dean Norris, Javier Botet, Lorraine Toussant
Logline: A group of kids face their fears in order to save their town.
Why: This has the del Toro stamp of approval
Release Date: August 9

Spider-Man: Far from Home
Dir. John Watts
Written By: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers
Cast: Tom Holland, Jake Gyllenhaal, Zendaya, Samuel L. Jackson, Marisa Tomei
Logline: Peter Parker and his friends go on summer vacation to Europe and there Peter finds himself trying to save his friends against a villain known as Mysterio.
Why: New setting for the webslinger + how does this factor into the overall timeline?
Release Date: July 5

Star Wars: Episode 9
Dir. JJ Abrams
Written By: J.J. Abrams, Chris Terrio, Colin Trevorrow, Derek Connolly
Cast: Daisy Ridley, Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Mark Hamill
Logline: The conclusion of the ‘Star Wars’ sequel trilogy.
Why: I’m fully invested in this damn franchise now so the ending better be good
Release Date: December 20

The Turning
Dir. Floria Sigismondi
Written By: Carey W. Hayes (as Carey Hayes), Chad Hayes
Cast: Mackenzie Davis, Finn Wolfhard, Barbara Marten
Logline: A young governess is hired by a man who has become responsible for his young nephew and niece after the deaths of their parents. A modern take on Henry James’ novella “The Turn of the Screw”.
Why: Mackenzie Davis is super reliable as an actor + classic novel gone modern
Release Date: TBD

Troop Zero
Dir. Bert & Bertie
Written By: Lucy Alibar
Cast: Mckenna Grace, Allison Janney, Viola Davis
Logline: In rural 1977 Georgia, a misfit girl dreams of life in outer space. When a competition offers her a chance to be recorded on NASA’s Golden Record, she recruits a makeshift troop of Birdie Scouts, forging friendships that last a lifetime.
Why: Come on Viola in a comedy!
Release Date: February 1

Us
Dir. Jordan Peele
Written By: Jordan Peele
Cast: Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Elisabeth Moss, Anna Diop
Logline: A mother and father take their kids to their beach house, expecting to enjoy time with friends, but their serenity turns to tension and chaos when some visitors arrive uninvited.
Why: Alexa play “A movie made with me in mind”
Release Date: March 15

Velvet Buzzsaw
Dir. Dan Gilroy
Written By: Dan Gilroy
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Billy Magnussen, John Malkovich, Renee Russo, Toni Collette
Logline: Big money artists and mega-collectors pay a high price when art collides with commerce.
Why: This just sounds wierd + Nightcrawler reunion
Release Date: February 1

Waves
Dir. Trey Edward Shults
Written By: Trey Edward Shults
Cast: Lucas Hedges, Sterling K. Brown, Taylor Russell, Kelvin Harrison Jr.
Logline: Two young couples navigate through the emotional minefield of growing up and falling in love.
Why: A musical from the guy who made It Comes at Night??? Ok!
Release Date: TBD

Wild Rose
Dir. Tom Harper
Written By: Nicole Taylor
Cast: Julie Walters, Sophie Okonedo, Jessie Buckley
Logline: A musician from Glasgow dreams of becoming a Nashville star.
Why: This is giving me Nashville + Once teas
Release Date: May 10

The Woman in the Window
Dir. Joe Wright
Written By: Tracy Letts
Cast: Amy Adams, Gary Oldman, Julianne Moore
Logline: An agoraphobic woman living alone in New York begins spying on her new neighbors only to witness a disturbing act of violence.
Why: literally every level of this movie is filled with someone I like + modern Rear Window
Release Date: October 4

What movies are you all excited for?