The past year was a rough one in many ways, but it did give us some great movies. From the cerebral sci-fi of Arrival to the raunchy, genre-busting action of Deadpool, 2016 was a good year for imaginative, groundbreaking films — and the coming year promises a similar cornucopia of reasons to head to your theater of choice.
Whether your tastes trend more toward action-heavy adventures, eccentric humor, thought-provoking sci-fi, or even nightmare-inducing horror, 2017 should offer plenty of thrills on the big screen. There’s something for everyone, really, but here are the 12 movies we’re most excited about heading into the new year. (We’ve listed them in order of their release date, so it’s easier to mark your calendars.)
John Wick: Chapter 2 (February 10)
The first John Wick was one of 2014’s biggest surprises, seemingly coming out of nowhere to offer up a fresh spin on the action genre and re-establish its star, Keanu Reeves, as a bona fide action hero. The follow-up to that film appears to be doubling down on everything that worked for John Wick and brings back some of the first installment’s most memorable characters, as well as bringing back writer Derek Kolstad and co-director Chad Stahelski, who will fly solo behind the camera this time around. If any movie is capable of kicking off 2017 in explosive fashion, it’s John Wick: Chapter 2, and we can’t wait to see whether the sequel can capture the magic of all that bullet-riddled, fast-paced action a second time.
Logan (March 3)
New installments of the X-Men franchise haven’t exactly inspired a lot of excitement in past years — particularly when it comes to Hugh Jackman’s solo adventures as Wolverine. Logan is an entirely different matter, however, for several reasons. Not only is it Jackman’s final film as the popular Marvel Comics mutant, but it’s also the first R-rated installment to feature the bladed hero. The success of Deadpool clearly gave 20th Century Fox the courage to take one of Marvel’s most feral superheroes off the leash he’s been on for the last 16 years or so, and you can bet that Jackman and director James Mangold are going to bid farewell to Wolverine in bloody style with Logan. The fact that the film is clearly inspired by one of the most popular Wolverine stories of all time, Mark Millar and Steve McNiven’s 2008 miniseries Wolverine: Old Man Logan, also looks primed to raise the levels of both emotion and comic-book nerdery. At the risk of setting ourselves up for disappointment, Logan looks like the Wolverine movie we’ve been waiting for since the character first unsheathed his claws in 2000’s X-Men.
Alien: Covenant (May 19)
One of the most common complaints about 2012’s Alien prequel, Prometheus, is that the film created more questions than it answered when it comes to the mythology behind the sci-fi horror franchise’s deadly xenomorphs. Director Ridley Scott appears to have heard that criticism loud and clear, as Alien: Covenant is being framed — by Scott and the film’s screenwriters — as a significant part of the bridge between the events of Prometheus and 1979’s franchise-spawning film. The first trailer for Covenant certainly seems to support that theory, as it channels much of the same tone of the 1979 film while drawing on some visual elements from the 2012 prequel and at least one of its characters, the android David, played by Michael Fassbender. If Covenant can pull off that union between Prometheus and Alien, we’re in for a real treat (and some sleepless nights).
Wonder Woman (June 2)
We’re not sure whether our excitement about Wonder Woman says more about how good the previews for the film have been so far or how bad the other films in Warner Bros. Pictures’ superhero universe — past and future — have looked, but Gal Gadot’s upcoming solo debut as the DC Comics superheroine looks like it could very well be the critical home run that WB’s big-screen superhero universe desperately desires. Sure, we got burned by the polarizing and under-performing Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad (both of which made heaps of money, but got savaged by critics) but knowing how much potential there is in DC Comics’ stable of characters keeps us hoping that the studio will eventually figure out the best way to handle both the characters, and their cinematic universe. Gadot’s Wonder Woman was the best part of Batman V. Superman, so if we get more of that in her solo feature, it will go a long way toward getting us more excited about Justice League later in the year.
War For The Planet of the Apes (July 14)
Movie franchises typically don’t get better with each sequel (especially the third installment), but everything about the rebooted Planet of the Apes franchise seems to go against conventional wisdom. The surprising recipient of a cerebral, compelling, and yes, award-winning modern makeover, the Planet of the Apes movies have combined exceptional storytelling with ground-breaking visual effects that make us question everything we knew about CGI characters. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes proved that the digitally created ape Caesar (performed by Andy Serkis) and his clan could carry a franchise from one film to the next without the company of recurring human characters, and War for the Planet of the Apes looks to up the ante by pitting the series’ ape characters against an even more ambitious cast of human characters, led by Woody Harrelson. The film is being described as a Heart of Darkness-esque story that sends Caesar into the midst of the remaining human survivors, and we’re eager to find out whether this story will be the one that finally tips the balance of power toward the apes.
Dunkirk (July 21)
Christopher Nolan’s films are always testing the limits of what’s possible in the medium on both sides of the camera, and the upcoming war drama Dunkirk appears to be no exception. Shot on IMAX 65mm and 65mm large format film stock on location in many of the original regions and settings, the film tells the story of the 1940 evacuation of Dunkirk, France by Allied soldiers in the early stages of World War II. Nolan went so far as to recondition real-world warships for the production, and reportedly spent a significant portion of the film’s budget outfitting a WWII-era aircraft with IMAX cameras so as to accurately film it crashing during one sequence. With Nolan at the helm, sparing no expense on practical effects, Dunkirk could be one of the most realistic, jaw-dropping, and possibly stomach-churning war films ever made.
The Dark Tower (July 28)
Given the rocky road Stephen King’s saga has traveled on its way to the screen, it’s understandable if you refuse to be 100 percent certain The Dark Tower will appear in theaters until you’re actually sitting in the audience watching it. The last decade of on-again, off-again development on the film has been that wild. However, all signs point toward the movie landing in theaters in July, with an all-star cast that makes it a very real possibility that the wait has been worthwhile. Luther star Idris Elba headlines the film as the legendary gunslinger Roland, while Matthew McConaughey portrays the enigmatic villain known as “The Man in Black.” Early reports suggest the film will actually serve as a sequel of sorts to the series of novels penned by King, which only adds to the appeal.
Baby Driver (August 11)
When celebrated filmmaker Edgar Wright left Marvel’s Ant-Man several years ago, everyone wondered what project would prompt him to exit the high-profile superhero movie. The answer is Baby Driver, a heist film that follows a baby-faced getaway driver (hence the title) who gets in trouble when a robbery takes a bad turn. Wright has rarely disappointed his fans, and films like Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and even Scott Pilgrim vs. the World have all pushed the boundaries of their respective genres in fresh and exciting ways. His talents as a writer and director have attracted an impressive cast to Baby Driver that includes Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, and Jon Bernthal in featured roles along with Ansel Elgort as the title character. That gives the film quite a bit to offer audiences, whether you buy a ticket for Wright’s talents, or the sterling cast.
Stephen King’s It – Part One (September 8)
It’s shaping up to be a good year for Stephen King fans as It – Part One is the second of two major releases based on the acclaimed author’s work. Tim Curry’s portrayal of It antagonist Pennywise the Clown in the 1990 television miniseries remains one of the most iconic horror villains ever brought to the screen, so it will be interesting to see whether Bill Skarsgård can fill those oversized shoes in the two-part, big-screen adaptation of King’s novel. It will also be interesting to see how the change in medium — from television to a feature-length film — will affect the story and which new avenues (if any) it can explore when freed from the restrictions of network TV. The first film is expected to follow the young versions of the characters as they encounter Pennywise and are forced to overcome their fears to defeat it, and with the director of the under-appreciated horror film Mama at the helm, our excitement is only matched by our fear of what’s in store for audiences when Stephen King’s It finally hits theaters.
Blade Runner 2049 (October 6)
At this point, we’re willing to throw our money at anything with director Denis Villeneuve’s name on it, but a sequel to Blade Runner produced by Ridley Scott himself just seals the deal. After a string of critically acclaimed hits with Prisoners, Sicario, and Arrival (our pick for 2016’s best movie), Villeneuve turned his attention to Scott’s 1982 cyber-punk noir Blade Runner, and we like what we’ve seen so far. Ryan Gosling appears primed to inherit Harrison Ford’s mantle in the film, which is set 30 years after the events of its predecessor. Ford returns as the conflicted hunter of wayward androids, and everything that’s been revealed up to this point reeks of the same hazy, neon-fueled aesthetic that made the original film so memorable.
God Particle (October 27)
Persistent rumors suggest that this outer-space drama could be the third chapter in J.J. Abrams’ loosely connected Cloverfield series that began with 2008’s found-footage monster movie Cloverfield and continued with a surprise pseudo-sequel in 2016’s 10 Cloverfield Lane. Nothing has been confirmed at this point about the film’s connection to those two aforementioned movies, but expecting the unexpected is part of the fun when it comes to films from Abrams’ studio, Bad Robot Productions. Even if it’s not a Cloverfield sequel, God Particle promises to be a compelling sci-fi thriller, telling the story of a group of astronauts conducting an experiment in space that puts them — and possibly the entire planet of Earth — in mortal danger.
Star Wars: Episode VIII (December 15)
It almost goes without saying that we’re excited about the next chapter of the Star Wars franchise, but we’ll go ahead and make it official. Given the cliffhanger ending of Episode VII – The Force Awakens, we’re eager to see what’s next for Rey, Finn, and the rest of the galaxy’s new heroes. Heck, we want to know what’s going to happen to BB-8, too. The as-yet-untitled Episode VIII is co-written and directed by one of our favorite filmmakers in the industry right now, Rian Johnson (Looper, Brick), packaging a heap of our favorite things into one much-anticipated film. Sadly, the movie also promises to offer a bittersweet goodbye to the recently deceased Carrie Fisher, so here’s hoping it gives her the send-off she very much deserves.
