2025 was a great year for movies, but could 2026 be even better? It’s time to take a look at the movies people are most excited for this upcoming year, which includes some big-time directors and actors. The factor that arouses the most excitement for movie fans is the director behind the films. Many notable directors such as Paul-Thomas Anderson, Ryan Coogler, Yorgos Lanthimos, Josh Safdie, Bong-Joon Ho, Park Chan-Wook, and more worked on projects with 2025 release dates. Many of them garnered wide critical acclaim, furthering their legacy. For 2026, the same is expected of the well-known directors. Something that arguably drives even more casual movie fans are movie stars, the actors that have won awards and become popular in the public eye.
The Odyssey, directed by Christopher Nolan, is certainly up there for most anticipated movies because of the director behind it and the star-studded cast it has, containing Matt Damon, Zendaya, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Anne Hathaway, and more. “I mean The Odyssey, you know, Christopher Nolan doesn’t miss so I’m definitely excited for that,” says Nolan Woodard (11) when asked which movies he was excited for. His previous film (Oppenheimer) won best picture at the 2022 Oscar’s with Cillian Murphy winning best actor for his role. Nolan is known for Interstellar, Inception, The Dark Knight, and many other phenomenal films. His calling card is non-linear and creative storytelling that creates mystery.
Dune: Part Three is the latest movie in the acclaimed trilogy to be released in December 2026. Denis Villeneuve, who has also directed popular movies like Arrival, Blade Runner 2049, Incendies, and Prisoners, is once again directing this entry.
Other movies to note are A24’s The Drama, The Bride!, Project Hail Mary, Disclosure Day, Spider-Man Brand New Day, The Hunger Games, and Avengers: Doomsday. The last one is expected to be a major crossover event in the MCU. Whether that will be quality or fan service slop is to be determined.
