20. “Project Hail Mary”
Phil Lord andChristopher Miller’s “Project Hail Mary” starsRyan Gosling and SandraHüller, with Lionel Boyce, Ken Leung, and Milana Vayntrub, in a sci-fi adventure adapted by Drew Goddard from Andy Weir’s novel. Seemingly similar in tone to Weir’s “The Martian,” which starred Matt Damon, this one also centers on a lone astronaut, this time, one who awakens on an interstellar spacecraft with no memory of who he is or why he’s there, slowly reconstructing a mission to save Earth and realizing he may not be as alone as he thought. Oscar winner Greig Fraser (“Dune”), one of the greatest working DPs in the world right now, shot the film, and Oscar-nominee Daniel Pemberton (“Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse”) wrote the score.
Release Date: March 20, via Amazon MGM Studios.
19. “Fjord”
Following up his 2022 Cannes competition title “R.M.N.,” Cristian Mungiu makes his English-language debut with “Fjord,” a tense family drama led by Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve. The film follows a Romanian father and a Norwegian mother who move with their children to her remote coastal hometown, only to find themselves subjected to suspicion, investigation, and the harsh scrutiny of a small community’s judicial system. The supporting cast includes Alin Panc, Giulia Nahmany, Ingvild Lien, and Turid Rivertz Vatne. With Neon handling North American distribution and Mungiu openly eyeing a Cannes 2026 launch, this appears to be one of the year’s key international auteur events.
Release Date: TBD via Neon.
18. “The Social Reckoning”
Moving ahead without its “The Social Network” filmmaker, David Fincher, its author, Aaron Sorkin, steps in to direct (and write) the long-discussed sequel, “The Social Reckoning.” Jeremy Strong stars as Mark Zuckerberg, taking over fromJesse Eisenberg, joined by Mikey Madison as Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, Jeremy Allen White as journalist Jeff Horwitz, plus Wunmi Mosaku, and Bill Burr. The film examines the moral and social fallout of Facebook’s empire in the wake of the scandalous “Facebook Files” and its transformation into Meta. Where the original dissected ambition, this sequel turns inward—reckoning with moral responsibility and lack thereof, denial, and the machinery of influence in an age where platforms outlive their creators.
Release Date: October 9, via Sony Pictures.
17. “Teenage Sex And Death At Camp Miasma”
Jane Schoenbrun follows “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” and “I Saw the TV Glow” with “Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma,” a queer meta-horror that blurs art, obsession, and desire. Hannah Einbinder stars as a filmmaker hired to revive a long-dormant slasher franchise, only to become fixated on the reclusive actress—played by Gillian Anderson—who once portrayed its original final girl. As the two collaborate, their relationship spirals into psychosexual mania, turning the filmmaking process itself into a fever dream of projection and possession. Produced by Plan B and Mubi, with Mubi distributing, Schoenbrun has called the film their “best attempt at the sleepover classic: an insane yet cozy midnight odyssey that beckons from the horror section of your local video store.”
Release Date: TBD via Mubi.
16. “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple”
Nia DaCosta directs “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple,” the second entry in the new trilogy following Danny Boyle’s and Alex Garland’s 2025 belated horror sequel “28 Years Later.” Written by Garland, the film stars Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell, Alfie Williams, Erin Kellyman, and Chi Lewis-Parry. Produced by Sony Pictures, the story picks up after the last film, as Spike (Williams) is inducted into Jimmy Crystal’s (O’Connell) gang on the mainland, while Dr. Kelson (Fiennes)makes a discovery that could alter the world. Boyle serves as executive producer, and a third film has already been greenlit. DaCosta’s addition marks the first time the series has been helmed by a new director, promising a fresh perspective on moral decay and renewal in a ravaged world. Early word reviews are already raving, too.
Release Date: June 20, via Sony Pictures Releasing.
15. “Wild Horse Nine”
Still glowing from the multi-Oscar-nominated “The Banshees of Inisherin,” Martin McDonagh turns to political paranoia and shifting alliances with “Wild Horse Nine,” a 1973-set drama-thriller reportedly unfolding in Santiago during Chile’s infamous military coup. Starring Sam Rockwell, John Malkovich, Parker Posey, Steve Buscemi, Mariana di Girolamo, Tom Waits, Ailín Salas, Paola Giannini, and Samuel Wayt, the film is rumored to follow a team of CIA operatives whose trust fractures during a tense mission that drags them from a destabilized capital to the isolation of Easter Island. Shot on Rapa Nui and in Santiago, and crafted with Ben Davis behind the camera and Carter Burwell on score, it marks McDonagh’s most expansive and potentially politically volatile canvas yet.
Release Date: TBD via Searchlight Pictures.
14. “Jack of Spades”
Joel Coen returns to solo directing with “Jack of Spades,” a 19th-century Scottish gothic mystery starring Josh O’Connor, Frances McDormand, Lesley Manville, and Damian Lewis. Shot in Scotland and central Glasgow, the project is steeped in fog-drenched period atmosphere. Still, almost everything else remains tightly sealed — plot, characters, and themes have all been kept under wraps, with only its genre and historical setting confirmed. The secrecy has only deepened curiosity: Coen, a master of tone and moral ambiguity, tackling a Victorian-era mystery with this cast, suggests one of 2026’s most intriguing unknowns.
Release Date: TBD.
13. “Artificial”
Having directed four films in four years — “Bones and All,” “Challengers,” “Queer,” and “After the Hunt” — Italian auteur Luca Guadagnino shows no sign of slowing down with “Artificial,” a tech-world pressure cooker dramatizing OpenAI’s 2023 leadership crisis. Andrew Garfield, Monica Barbaro, and Yura Borisov lead the ensemble, with Simon Rich scripting the internal meltdown surrounding Sam Altman’s ouster and chaotic reinstatement. The cast also includes Ike Barinholtz, Cooper Hoffman, Jason Schwartzman, Billie Lourd, and Mark Rylance, shaping a corporate thriller charged with paranoia, ambition, and accelerated innovation.
Release Date: TBA via Amazon MGM Studios, but presumably in the fall and at festivals.
12. “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew”
Greta Gerwig writes and directs “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew,” the first of two new Netflix adaptations of C.S. Lewis’ fantasy novels. Starring Emma Mackey as Jadis the White Witch, Daniel Craig as Uncle Andrew, Carey Mulligan as Mabel Kirke, David McKenna as Digory, and Beatrice Campbell as Polly, the film explores the creation of Narnia and the origins of its great lion, voiced by Meryl Streep. With Denise Gough, Ava Jager, and Tom Bonington in supporting roles, Gerwig’s take aims to “re-enchant the world” with awe and mythic grandeur. Netflix will debut the film globally after a two-week theatrical run in IMAX.
Release Date: IMAX Thanksgiving 2026; Netflix Christmas Day 2026.
11. “Wuthering Heights”
Emerald Fennell writes, directs, and produces “Wuthering Heights,” a bold, gothic-psychological reimagining of Emily Brontë’s 1847 novel. Margot Robbie stars as Catherine Earnshaw opposite Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff, with Hong Chau, Alison Oliver, and Shazad Latif rounding out the ensemble. Produced by LuckyChap Entertainment, the film reframes the doomed Yorkshire romance as an erotic fever dream about class, obsession, and self-destruction. The adaptation’s charged tone and unapologetic sensuality have already sparked debate following the teaser’s 2025 debut. Fennell, whose “Promising Young Woman” and “Saltburn” turned transgression into aesthetic spectacle, here merges period melodrama and provocation into a Valentine’s release designed to unsettle as much as seduce.
Release Date: February 13, via Warner Bros. Pictures.
