Movies We’re Dying to See in 2018

2018 may have just begun, but the year already looks like it’s going to be a big one for cinephiles. From comic book blockbusters, to Star Wars, to literary adaptions, the year looks like it will have movies for just about every taste possible.

These are some of the most anticipated 2018 movies we can’t wait to see.

The 15:17 to Paris
Scheduled for release on February 9, director Clint Eastwood’s latest film tells the story of the 2015 Thalys train attack, in which a trio of Americans (two of whom were military servicemen) along with several others were able to disarm a machine gun-wielding terrorist on a packed train. The film is notable for the fact that the three Americans, Spencer Stone, Anthony Sadler and Alek Skarlatos will be playing themselves in the film.

Fifty Shades Freed
Also scheduled for release on February 9, the final film in the Fifty Shades trilogy sees newly married protagonists Christian Grey and Ana Steele (Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson) dealing with ghosts from their respective pasts.

Black Panther
The year’s first superhero epic hits screens on February 16 with the release of Marvel Studios’ Black Panther. The film, starring Chadwick Boseman, picks up the story of Wakandan King T’Challa who was first introduced in Captain America: Civil War.

A Wrinkle in Time
Based on the famed 1962 novel by Madeleine L’Engle, Disney’s big budget, live action version of A Wrinkle in Time is scheduled for release in March. The mouse house is betting big on the Ava DuVernay-directed film, stocking it with an all-star cast that includes Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, Mindy Kaling, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Peña, Storm Reid, Zach Galifianakis, and Chris Pine.

Tomb Raider
Alicia Vikander takes over from Angelina Jolie in this reboot of the franchise. The film is based on a 2013 video game, which also served as a day one reboot of Tom Raider. The film is scheduled for release on March 16.

Pacific Rim Uprising
The long-awaited sequel to 2013’s original Pacific Rim, Uprising is set two decades after the original and picks up with a new cast headlined by Star Wars star John Boyega piloting giant robots against monsters bent on destroying the Earth. Steve K. DeKnight directed the film, which is due March 23.

Ready Player One
March 30 is scheduled to see the release of one of the year’s most anticipated potential blockbusters: Steven Spielberg’s film adaption of Ernest Cline’s novel Ready Player One. The film, which is set in a dystopian future where humanity spends a great deal of time playing classic video games and interacting with virtual reality, is filled with references to ’80s and ’90s pop culture that’s sure to hit the nostalgia nerves of any millennial in the audience.

The New Mutants
The first of two new X-Men films scheduled for 2018, The New Mutants seemingly takes the franchise down a different path. While it’s still based on a Marvel comic book, the film’s trailer and comments from director Josh Boone suggest the film will be much closer to a horror film than typical superhero faire. Starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Maisie Williams, Charlie Heaton, Henry Zaga, Blu Hunt, and Alice Braga, the film is scheduled for release on April 13.

Avengers: Infinity War
While the other films on this list are anticipated by many, none come close to Avengers: Infinity War. The trailer for the MCU epic – which features all of the Avengers, as well as Spider-Man, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and Doctor Strange teaming up against the mad titan, Thanos – was viewed 230 million times in the first 24 hours after its release in November, a record-shattering feat. The film comes out May 4, the sixth anniversary of the release of The Avengers.

Deadpool 2
Ryan Reynolds returns as Marvel’s acerbic “merc with a mouth” in the sequel to 2016’s smash hit Deadpool. While not much is known about the plot, the second film will introduce Cable (Josh Brolin), a cyborg soldier from the future who had long played Deadpool’s straight man in comic books. The film is due May 18.

Solo: A Star Wars Story
While the release of any Star Wars film is a huge deal, Solo seems to have even more riding on it than usual. The creative turmoil behind the scenes that saw directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller fired and replaced with Ron Howard combined with the divisive response to The Last Jedi means audiences may be wary of the Alden Ehrenreich-starring film when it opens on May 25.

Ocean’s 8
A spin-off/soft reboot of the Ocean’s Eleven trilogy, Ocean’s 8 revolves around a group of female thieves led by Sandra Bullock and featuring Mindy Kaling, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, Rihanna, and Helena Bonham Carter robbing the annual MET Gala in New York City. The June 8 film also features cameos from Anna Wintour, Alexander Wang, Kim Kardashian, Maria Sharapova, Derek Blasberg, Lauren Santo Domingo, Zayn Malik, Kendall Jenner, Katie Holmes, Olivia Munn, Adriana Lima, Hailey Baldwin, Serena Williams, Kylie Jenner and Zac Posen.

Incredibles 2
Writer/director Brad Bird returns to Pixar with the long-awaited sequel to his 2004 comic book pastiche. While plot details are still somewhat scarce, it’s been confirmed that the film begins shortly after The Incredibles ended. In addition to Bird, the voice cast of the first film, including Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, Sarah Vowell, Huck Milner, and Samuel L. Jackson are returning as well. The film hits theaters June 15.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
25 years after Jurassic Park roared into theaters – and three years after Jurassic World reinvigorated the franchise by taking in over $1 billion at the box office – June 22 see’s the next chapter of the saga unfold when Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom opens in theaters. The film unites Jurassic World stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard with franchise veteran Jeff Goldblum on a mission to save the former park’s dinosaurs from a volcano.

Ant-Man and the Wasp
The year’s third(!) entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe features Paul Rudd’s Ant-Man teaming up with Evangeline Lilly as the Wasp on a “new mission” from Hank Pym (Michael Douglas). The film is heavily rumored to introduce the concept of a multiverse to the MCU. The film opens July 6.

Mama Mia: Here We Go Again
Coming 10 years after the release of Mama Mia, this sequel reunites most of the original cast (including Amanda Seyfried, Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, and Dominic Cooper. The July 20 sequel adds Lilly James as the younger version of Streep’s character Donna, and in the biggest addition of all: the legendary Cher as Streep’s character’s mother.

Mission Impossible 6
Tom Cruise returns for a sixth turn as super-spy Ethan Hunt in July 27th’s Mission: Impossible 6. Joining him are franchise veterans Rebecca Ferguson, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Michelle Monaghan, Alec Baldwin and Sean Harris, and newcomers Henry Cavill, Vanessa Kirby, Sian Brooke and Angela Bassett. The film will be the first in the series released in 3D.

The Predator
August 3 brings another franchise sequel with The Predator. The film, set between 1990’s Predator 2 and 2010’s Predators, see’s director Shane Black return to the franchise after playing a small part in the 1987 original film. The film stars Boyd Holbrook, Olivia Munn, Trevante Rhodes, Keegan-Michael Key, Sterling K. Brown, Jacob Tremblay, Yvonne Strahovski, Alfie Allen, and Thomas Jane.

Christopher Robin
Disney continues to revisit their animated catalogue in live action form, this time focusing on Winnie the Pooh. Ewan McGregor portrays an older version of Christopher Robin who has “lost all sense of imagination,” leading to Pooh and his friends reentering his life. The film comes out August 8.

A Star is Born
Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper  star (the latter also directs and cowrote) in the upcoming remake of A Star is Born. Along with the leads, the October 5 film features Sam Elliott, Andrew Dice Clay and Dave Chappelle.

X-Men: Dark Phoenix 
The lone X-Men film of the year tackles one of the comic’s most famous storylines: “The Dark Phoenix Saga.” Though the story was previously quasi-adapted in 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand, the upcoming film from writer/director Simon Kinberg promises to stay closer to the source material. The film, out November 2, stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Sophie Turner, Alexandra Shipp, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Evan Peters, and Jessica Chastain.

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindenwald
One would think Harry Potter fans would be brimming with excitement over the Fantastic Beasts sequel’s November 16th release, however the lead-up to the film has been more about the appropriateness of alleged domestic abuser Johnny Depp playing the titular villain. Only time will tell if the film, headlined by franchise vet Eddie Redmayne and newcomer Jude Law can overcome the bad publicity.

Wreck-It Ralph 2: Ralph Breaks the Internet
Set six years after the events of 2012’s Wreck-It-Ralph, the new sequel finds the titular hero (voiced by John C. Reilly) and his companion Vanellope von Schweetz exploring the worlds of console and online gaming. The film will also tape into Disney’s intellectual property library, featuring cameos from Star Wars and Marvel characters, as well as the Disney princesses.

Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse
With the live-action Spider-Man films now part of the MCU, Sony is releasing the animated Into the Spiderverse on December 14. The film focuses on the popular character Miles Morales, as he tries to balance being Spider-Man with his high school life following the death of his universe’s Peter Parker. The film features the voice talents of Shameik Moore, Liev Schreiber, Mahershala Ali, and Brian Tyree Henry.

Aquaman
The next installment in DC’s troubled cinematic universe, Aquaman hits theaters December 21. The film, which stars Jason Momoa, will attempt to resuscitate the franchise following the commercial disappointment of Justice League.

Bumblebee: The Movie
The first spin-off of the Transformers film franchise serves as a prequel to the earlier films, focusing on an adventure Bumblebee has in the 1980s. The film stars Hailee Steinfeld, John Cena, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Rachel Crow, and Pamela Adlon, and is scheduled for release on December 21.

Mary Poppins Returns
Even with the glut of sequels released by Hollywood, seeing one five decades after the first film is a rarity to say the least. Yet, Mary Poppins Returns is just that. The film, which stars Emily Blunt in the title role, is set two decades after the original film, and focuses on Mary Poppins returning to once again help the now-grown up children deal with a tragedy in their lives. The film is scheduled for release on Christmas.

Be sure to SHARE this list and check back often for new movies added to the list. Tell us know which movies you’re excited for in 2018.

Editor’s Note: This post original included 20th Century Fox’s The New Mutants, but on January 11, Fox announced a shakeup of its release schedule pushing the film from April 13, 2018 all the way back to February 22, 2019. The announcement also included the news that Deadpool 2 would be hitting theaters two weeks earlier on May 18 instead of the original release date of June 1.