Well saints, we have made it through the raggedy mess known as 2020. 2021 is sure to come with its own set of challenges, as new years do, but I am excited to have something to look forward to rather than wade through. Pulling together this top 50 most anticipated movies list was simpler than years past, given so many 2020 films got moved. Looking at them in the aggregate though, I think we’re in for a really fascinating year of cinema. What movies are you looking forward to watching?
Top 50 Most Anticipated Movies of 2021
Antlers
Director: Scott Cooper
Writer: C. Henry Chaisson, Nick Antosca, Scott Cooper
Starring: Keri Russell, Jesse Plemons, Jeremy T. Thomas, Graham Greene, Scott Haze, Rory Cochrane, and Amy Madigan
Synopsis: A small-town Oregon teacher, Julia Meadows (Keri Russell) and her sheriff brother Paul (Jesse Plemons), become entwined with a young student in her school who is harboring a dangerous secret with frightening consequences.
Release Date: TBD
The Asset
Director: Martin Campbell
Writer: Richard Wenk
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Maggie Q, Michael Keaton
Synopsis: A hacker and her partners in crime accidentally steal millions from a crime boss, forced into hiding to train for their inevitable confrontation.
Release Date: April 23
Annette
Director: Leos Carax
Writer: Ron Mael, Russell Mael
Cast: Adam Driver, Marion Cotillard
Synopsis: The peaceful life of a stand-up comedian and a world-famous soprano gets turned upside down with the birth of their daughter, Annette – who harbors a curious talent.
Release Date: TBD
The Bad Guys
Director: Pierre Perifel
Writer: Hilary Winston, Etan Cohen
Cast: Sam Rockwell, Awkwafina, Craig Robinson, Marc Maron
Synopsis: Mr. Wolf, Mr. Snake, Mr. Piranha, Mr. Shark and Ms. Tarantula hatch a plot to pull of the ultimate heist.
Release Date: Sept 21
Benedetta
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Writer: David Birke, Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Virginie Efira, Lambert Wilson, Daphne Patakia, Olivier Rabourdin, Clotilde Courau, Charlotte Rampling, Hervé Pierre
Synopsis: A novice nun in the 17th century joins an Italian convent and begins a love affair with another woman.
Release Date: TBD
BIOS
Director: Miguel Sapochnik
Writer: Ivor Powell
Starring: Tom Hanks, Skeet Ulrich, Caleb Landry Jones, Samira Wiley
Synopsis: An ailing inventor facing his own mortality, Finch builds a robot to keep his beloved dog safe. As the trio embarks upon an epic cross-country journey, the scientist must teach his creation to become “human” enough to take care of its charge – and the beloved pet to accept a new master.
Release Date: April 16
Blue Bayou
Director:Justin Chon
Writer: Justin Chon
Starring: Justin Chon, Alicia Vikander, Linh Dan Pham, Emory Cohen
Synopsis: A Korean adoptee who has planted roots in Louisiana and built a family but learns he is soon to be deported.
Release Date: June 25
Candyman
Director: Nia DaCosta
Writer: Jordan Peele, Win Rosenfeld, Nia DaCosta
Starring: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Teyonah Parris, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Colman Domingo, Tony Todd, Vanessa Estelle Williams
Synopsis: For as long as the residents can remember, the housing projects of Chicago’s Cabrini Green neighborhood were terrorized by a word-of-mouth ghost story about a supernatural killer with a hook for a hand, easily summoned by those daring to repeat his name five times into a mirror. In the present day, a decade after the last of the Cabrini towers were torn down, a visual artist named Anthony McCoy and his girlfriend, an art gallery director named Brianna Cartwright, moved into a luxurious loft condo in Cabrini, now gentrified beyond recognition and inhabited by the upwardly mobile millennials. With Anthony’s painting career on the brink of stalling, a chance encounter with a Cabrini Green old-timer exposes Anthony to the tragically horrific nature of the true story behind the Candyman. Anxious to maintain his status in the Chicago art world, Anthony begins to explore these macabre details in his studio as fresh grist for paintings, unknowingly opening a door to a complex past that unravels his own sanity and unleashes a terrifyingly viral wave of violence that puts him on a collision course with destiny.
Release Date: August 27
Cherry
Director: Anthony and Joe Russo
Writer: Angela Russo-Otstot, Jessica Goldberg
Starring: Tom Holland, Ciara Bravo, Jack Reynor, Michael Rispoli, Jeff Wahlberg, Forrest Goodluck, and Michael Gandolfini
Synopsis: An Army medic with PTSD becomes addicted to opioids and starts robbing banks to pay for the addiction.
Release Date: February 26
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It
Dir. Michael Chaves
Written by: David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick
Starring: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Sterling Jerins, Julian Hilliard, Sarah Catherine Hook, Charlene Amoia and Ruairi O’Connor
Synopsis: “The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It” reveals a chilling story of terror, murder and unknown evil that shocked even experienced real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren. One of the most sensational cases from their files, it starts with a fight for the soul of a young boy, then takes them beyond anything they’d ever seen before, to mark the first time in U.S. history that a murder suspect would claim demonic possession as a defense.
Release Date: June 4
Dark Harvest
Dir. David Slade
Written by: Michael Gilio
Starring: TBA
Synopsis: Set on Halloween in 1963 and centers around the October Boy aka Ol’ Hacksaw Face aka Sawtooth Jack. Whatever the name, everybody in this small Midwestern town knows who he is. He rises from the cornfields every Halloween, a butcher knife in his hand, and makes his way toward town, where gangs of teenage boys eagerly await their chance to confront the legendary nightmare. Both the hunter and the hunted, the October Boy is the prize in an annual rite of life and death. Pete McCormick knows that killing the October Boy is his one chance to escape a dead-end future in this one-horse town. He’s willing to risk everything, including his life, to be a winner for once. But before the night is over, Pete will look into the saw-toothed face of horror–and discover the terrifying true secret of the October Boy.
Release Date: September 24
Deep Water
Dir. Adrian Lyne
Written by: Zach Helm and Sam Levinson
Starring: Ben Affleck, Ana de Armas, Tracy Letts, Lil Rel Howery, and Rachel Blanchard
Synopsis: A married couple who’ve fallen out of love with each other begin playing deadly mind games against one another that begins seeing those around them dying.
Release Date: August 13
Die in a Gunfight
Dir. Collin Schiffli
Written by: Andrew Barrer, Gabriel Ferrari
Starring: Diego Boneta, Alexandra Daddario, Travis Fimmel
Synopsis: In New York City, a young guy falls for the daughter of his father’s nemesis.
Release Date: February 12
Dog
Dir. Channing Tatum, Reid Carolin
Written by: Reid Carolin, Brett Rodriguez
Starring: Channing Tatum, Q’orianka Kilcher
Synopsis: Army Ranger Briggs and his Belgian Malinois companion Lulu, haul ass down the Pacific Coast in time to catch their best friend’s – and handler’s – funeral.
Release Date: February 12
Encanto
Dir. Byron Howard, Jared Bush
Written by: Jared Bush, Charise Castro Smith
Starring: TBA
Synopsis: A Colombian girl named Mariana grows up as the only non-magical member in her family.
Release Date: November 24
Eternals
Dir. Chloe Zhao
Written by: Matthew and Ryan Firpo
Starring: Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Lauren Ridloff, Brian Tyree Henry, Salma Hayek, Lia McHugh, Don Lee, Barry Keoghan, Gemma Chan and Kit Harington
Synopsis: In a story spanning over 7000 years, the Eternals, an immortal alien race created by the Celestials, protect humanity from their evil counterparts, the Deviants.
Release Date: November 5
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
Dir: Jonathan Butterell
Writer: Tom MacRae and Dan Gillespie Sells
Starring: Max Harwood, Richard E. Grant, Sharon Horgan, Sarah Lancashire and Shobna Gulati
Synopsis: The musical is inspired by the 2011 television documentary Jamie: Drag Queen at 16, directed by Jenny Popplewell. The musical follows a 16-year-old teenager as he overcomes prejudice, beats the bullies and steps out of the darkness to become a drag queen.
Release Date: TBD
False Positive
Director: John Lee
Writer: Ilana Glazer, John Lee
Cast: Justin Theroux, Ilana Glazer, Pierce Brosnan, Josh Hamilton
Synopsis: A couple seeks the help of a fertility doctor. Lucy gets pregnant, but as the pregnancy progresses, something appears increasingly off about the charming doc, and Lucy sets out to uncover the full story.
Release Date: TBD
F9
Director: Justin Lin
Writer: Justin Lin, Daniel Casey
Starring: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, John Cena, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, Helen Mirren, and Charlize Theron
Synopsis: Dominic Toretto and his family must face Dominic’s younger brother Jakob, a deadly assassin, who is working with their old enemy Cipher, and who holds a personal vendetta against Dominic.
Release Date: May 28
The French Dispatch
Director: Wes Anderson
Writer: Wes Anderson
Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Frances McDormand, Jeffrey Wright, Adrien Brody, Timothée Chalamet, Léa Seydoux, Tilda Swinton, Mathieu Amalric, Lyna Khoudri, Stephen Park, Owen Wilson and Bill Murray
Synopsis: The film has been described as “a love letter to journalists set at an outpost of an American newspaper in a fictional 20th-century French city”, centering on three storylines.
Release Date: May 2021
The Green Knight
Director: David Lowery
Writer: David Lowery
Starring: Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury, Sean Harris, Kate Dickie, Barry Keoghan and Ralph Ineson
Synopsis: The Green Knight tells the story of Sir Gawain, King Arthur’s headstrong nephew, who embarks on a quest to confront the eponymous Green Knight, a gigantic green-skinned stranger.
Release Date: July 30
The Harder They Fall
Director: Jeymes Samuel
Writer: Jeymes Samuel, Boaz Yakin
Cast: Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, Lakeith Stanfield, Regina King, Jonathan Majors, Delroy Lindo, RJ Cyler, Danielle Deadwyler
Synopsis: A man discovers that the cold-blooded killer who murdered his parents is being released from prison, and brings his old gang back together to track him down.
Releaste Date: TBD
In the Heights
Dir: Jon M. Chu
Writer: Quiara Alegría Hudes
Starring: Anthony Ramos, Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera, Olga Merediz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Gregory Diaz IV, Stephanie Beatriz, Dascha Polanco, and Jimmy Smits
Synopsis: Lights up on Washington Heights…The scent of a cafecito caliente hangs in the air just outside of the 181st Street subway stop, where a kaleidoscope of dreams rallies this vibrant and tight-knit community. At the intersection of it all is the likeable, magnetic bodega owner Usnavi (Anthony Ramos), who saves every penny from his daily grind as he hopes, imagines and sings about a better life.
Release Date: June 18
Judas and the Black Messiah
Dir: Shaka King
Writer: Will Berson, Shaka King, The Lucas Bros
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons, Dominique Fishback, Ashton Sanders, and Algee Smith
Synopsis: The life story of Black Panther Party member Fred Hampton.
Release Date: February 12
The Killing of Two Lovers
Dir: Robert Machoian
Writer: Robert Machoian
Starring: Chris Coy, Clayne Crawford, Arri Graham
Synopsis: David desperately tries to keep his family of six together during a separation from his wife. They both agree to see other people but David struggles to grapple with his wife’s new relationship.
Release Date: February 23
The Last Duel
Dir: Ridley Scott
Writer: Ben Affleck, Matt Damon Nicole Holofcener
Starring: Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer, Ben Affleck
Synopsis: In 14th-century France, best friends Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris are ordered to fight to the death after Carrouges accuses Le Gris of raping his wife.
Release Date: October 15
Last Night in Soho
Dir: Edgar Wright
Writer: Edgar Wright, Krysty Wilson-Cairns
Starring: Thomasin McKenzie, Anya Taylor-Joy, Matt Smith, Diana Rigg, Terence Stamp
Synopsis: A London set psychological horror film said to be inspired by other British horror films Nicolas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now, and Roman Polanski’s Repulsion.
Release Date: April 23
The Little Things
Dir: John Lee Hancock
Writer: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto, and Natalie Morales
Synopsis: Clashes between a Kern County deputy and a Los Angeles detective occur during the investigation of a serial killer.
Release Date: January 29
Luca
Dir: Enrico Casarosa
Writer: Jesse Andrews, Mike Jones
Starring: John Ratzenberger, Drake Bell,
Synopsis: On the Italian Riviera, an unlikely but strong friendship grows between a human being and a sea monster disguised as a human.
Release Date: June 18
Malcolm & Marie
Director: Sam Levinson
Writer: Sam Levinson
Cast: John David Washington, Zendaya
Synopsis: A filmmaker and his girlfriend engage in a tense discussion about past affairs that takes them down an unexpected road together.
Release Date: January 22
Malignant
Dir: James Wan
Writer: James Wan, Ingrid Bisu, Akela Cooper, J. T. Petty
Starring: Annabelle Wallis, Jake Abel, George Young, Maddie Hasson, Michole Briana White, Jacqueline McKenzie
Synopsis: It is based on Wan’s 2011 graphic novel Malignant Man. Alan Gates, a cancer patient with a terminal diagnosis, is resigned to his fate… until he discovers that his tumor is actually a mysterious parasite!
Release Date: TBD
Mission: Impossible 7
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Writer: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Ving Rhames, Henry Czerny, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Angela Bassett, Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff, Shea Whigham, and Esai Morales
Synopsis: TBD
Release Date: November 19
Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon
Director: Ana Lily Amirpour
Writer: Ana Lily Amirpour
Cast: Kate Hudson, Ed Skrein, Craig Robinson
Synopsis: A girl with unusual powers escapes from a mental asylum and tries to make it on her own in New Orleans.
Release Date: TBD
Nightmare Alley
Director: Guillermo Del Toro
Writer: Kim Morgan, Guillermo Del Toro
Cast: Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Rooney Mara, Willem Dafoe, David Strathairn
Synopsis: A remake of the 1947 noir where a corrupt con-man teams up with a female psychiatrist to trick people into giving them money.
Release Date: December
No Time to Die
Dir: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Writer: Cary Joji Fukunaga, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Starring: Daniel Craig, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Rory Kinnear, Jeffrey Wright, Léa Seydoux, Christoph Waltz, Rami Malek, Ana de Armas, and Lashana Lynch
Synopsis: Five years after the capture of Ernst Stavro Blofeld,James Bond has left active service. He is approached by Felix Leiter, his friend and a CIA officer, who enlists his help in the search for a missing scientist. When it becomes apparent that the scientist was abducted, Bond must confront a danger the likes of which the world has never seen before.
Release Date: April 2
Old
Dir: M. Night Shyamalan
Writer: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Gael García Bernal, Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie, Aaron Pierre, Alex Wolff, Vicky Krieps, Abbey Lee, Ken Leung, Embeth Davidtz, and Rufus Sewell
Synopsis: The film is inspired by the graphic novel Sandcastle of Pierre Oscar Levy and Frederik Peeters.
Release Date: July 23
Passing
Dir: Rebecca Hall
Writer: Rebecca Hall
Starring: Tessa Thompson, Ruth Negga, André Holland, Alexander Skarsgård, Bill Camp
Synopsis: Mixed race childhood friends reunite in adulthood and become obsessed with one another’s lives.
Release Date: January 30 (Sundance)
The Power of the Dog
Dir: Jane Campion
Writer: Jane Campion
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Thomasin McKenzie and Kodi Smit-McPhee
Synopsis: A man wages war against his brother’s new wife.
Release Date: TBD
Raya and the Last Dragon
Dir: Paul Briggs, Dean Wellins
Writer: Adele Lim
Starring: Cassie Steele and Awkwafina
Synopsis: In a mysterious realm called Kumandra, a warrior named Raya searches for the last dragon in the world.
Release Date: March 5
Reminiscence
Dir: Lisa Joy
Writer: Lisa Joy
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson, Thandie Newton, Daniel Wu, and Cliff Curtis
Synopsis: Nicolas Bannister, a rugged and solitary veteran living in a near-future Miami flooded by rising seas, is an expert in a dangerous occupation: he offers clients the chance to relive any memory they desire. His life changes when he meets Mae. What begins as a simple matter of lost and found becomes a passionate love affair. But when a different client’s memories implicate Mae in a series of violent crimes, Bannister must delve through the dark world of the past to uncover the truth about the woman he fell for.
Release Date: TBD
Samaritan
Dir: Julius Avery
Writer: Bragi F. Schut
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Javon “Wanna” Walton
Synopsis: A young boy comes to the realization that a famed superhero, who was thought to have gone missing after an epic battle twenty years ago, may in fact still be around.
Release Date: June 4
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Dir: Destin Daniel Cretton
Writer: David Callaham
Starring: Simu Liu, Tony Leung, Awkwafina, Meng’er Zhang, Michelle Yeoh, Ronny Chieng, Fala Chen, and Florian Munteanu
Synopsis: When Shang-Chi is drawn into the clandestine Ten Rings organization, he is forced to confront the past he thought he left behind.
Release Date: July 9
Space Jam: A New Legacy
Dir: Malcolm D. Lee
Writer: Ryan Coogler, Sev Ohanian
Starring: LeBron James, Don Cheadle, Bob Bergen, Eric Bauza, Kath Soucie, Jeff Bergman
Synopsis: When basketball champion and global icon LeBron James and his young son Dom – who dreams of being a video game developer – are trapped in a digital space by a rogue Al, LeBron must get them home safe by leading Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Lola Bunny and the whole gang of notoriously undisciplined Looney Tunes to victory over the Al’s digitized champions on the court.
Release Date: July 16
The Tragedy of Macbeth
Director: Joel Coen
Writer: Joel Coen
Cast: Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand, Brendan Gleeson, Ralph Ineson, Corey Hawkins
Synopsis: An adaptation of Shakespeare’s revered ‘Scottish Play.’
Release Date: TBD
Triangle of Sadness
Director: Ruben Östlund
Writer: Ruben Östlund
Cast: Woody Harrelson, Harris Dickinson, Charlbi Dean, Hanna Oldenburg, Henrik Dorsin, Vicki Berlin
Synopsis: A pair of models find themselves at a crossroads in their careers.
Release Date: TBD
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
Dir: Tom Gormican
Writer: Tom Gormican, Kevin Etten
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Pedro Pascal, Sharon Horgan, Tiffany Haddish, Neil Patrick Harris
Synopsis: Nicolas Cage begrudgingly accepts a $1 million offer to attend the birthday of a Mexican billionaire super fan. When things take a wild turn, Nic is forced to become a version of some of his most iconic and beloved characters in order to extricate his wife and daughter from the fan who is a notorious drug lord.
Release Date: March 19
The United States Vs. Billie Holiday
Director: Lee Daniels
Writer: Suzan-Lori Parks
Cast: Andra Day, Trevante Rhodes, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Garrett Hedlund, Natasha Lyonne, Rob Morgan
Synopsis: Follows jazz legend Billie Holiday during her career as the Federal Department of Narcotics targets her with an undercover sting operation led by black Federal Agent Jimmy Fletcher, with whom she had a tumultuous affair.
Release Date: February 26
Untitled Spider-Man: Far From Home sequel
Dir: Jon Watts
Writer: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, Jamie Foxx, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Alfred Molina
Synopsis: TBA
Release Date: December 21
Vivo
Dir: Kirk DeMicco
Writer: Quiara Alegría Hudes, Kirk DeMicco
Starring: TBA
Synopsis: A Kinkajou with a thirst for adventure – and a passion for music – makes a treacherous passage from Havana, Cuba to Miami, Florida in pursuit of his dreams to fulfill his destiny.
Release Date: June 4
The World to Come
Dir: Mona Fastvold
Writer: Ron Hansen, Jim Shepard
Starring: Katherine Waterston, Vanessa Kirby, Karina Ziana Gherasim, Christopher Abbott
Synopsis: Somewhere along the mid-19th century American East Coast frontier, two neighboring couples battle hardship and isolation, witnessed by a splendid yet testing landscape, challenging them both physically and psychologically.
Release Date: February 12
What movies are you excited for?