The year of 2025 sees the release of anticipated movies from esteemed Hollywood filmmakers including Steven Soderbergh, James Gunn, Danny Boyle, and James Cameron. This year will see plenty of sequels and remakes to already established franchises like Happy Gilmore 2, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, and Jurassic World: Rebirth.
However, superhero movies will likely dominate the cinema screen yet again with Superman, Thunderbolts*, The Fantastic Four, and Captain America: Brave New World. Also setting the action scene is Ballerina from the world of John Wick, a remake of Karate Kid and Cameron Diaz’s return to acting after a 10-year hiatus in the aptly named, Back in Action.
But perhaps the biggest releases in 2025 will be the live-action adaptations of Disney classics including Snow White, Wicked: For Good and Lilo & Stitch. Book-to-screen adaptations are also predicted to be popular releases this year with The Electric State, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, How to Train Your Dragon, and an adaptation of the classic 1945 George Orwell novella, Animal Farm.
Here’s a list of the most anticipated movies to look out for in 2025.
JANUARY:
Presence
Genre: Horror/Psychological Thriller
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Lucy Lui, Julia Fox, Calliana Liang and Chris Sullivan.
Presence is a Horror/Psychological Thriller which explores the intimate story of a family haunted by ghosts in their new suburban home. This anticipated ghost story is directed by the creative mind of Steven Soderbergh; and is written by David Koepp, the screenwriter behind such Hollywood box-office successes as Jurassic Park (1993), Spider-Man (2002), and Mission: Impossible (1996).
Release Date: 24 January 2025
FEBRUARY:
Captain America: Brave New World
Genre: Action/Sci-fi
Director: Julius Onah
Starring: Harrison Ford, Anthony Mackie, Rosa Salazar and Giancarlo Esposito.
Captain America: Brave New World follows Sam Wilson, the new version of Marvel’s popular Superhero, Captain America. After meeting with President Thaddeus Ross, Wilson finds himself embroiled in an evil plan to take over the world. He must find the mastermind and motive before it’s too late.
Release Date: 14 February 2025
MARCH:
Snow White
Genre: Fantasy/Musical
Director: Marc Webb
Starring: Rachel Zegler, Gal Gadot, Andrew Burnap and Martin Klebba.
This live-action movie adaptation of Disney’s Snow White is brought to the big screen by director of The Amazing Spider (2012-2017) trilogy, Marc Webb. The Disney movie musical is set to star West Side Story (2021) lead, Rachel Zegler as Snow White, and Wonder Woman’s Gal Galdot as the Evil Queen.
Release Date: 21 March 2025
APRIL:
Sinners
Genre: Horror
Director: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, Jack O’Connell and Wunmi Mosaku.
Ryan Coogler’s Sinners follows twin brothers, played by Creed (2015) star, Michael B. Jordan who try to escape their troubled past. But when they return to their hometown for a fresh new start something evil awaits them.
Release Date: 18 April 2025
MAY:
Lilo & Stitch
Genre: Comedy/Adventure
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Starring: Maia Kealoha, Sydney Agudong, Chris Sanders and Zach Galifianakis.
Beloved Disney animated characters, Lilo and Stitch finally get their live-action cinematic adventure. The movie tells the story of rebellious six-year-old Lilo and her friendship with the loveable koala-alien crossbreed ‘Experiment 626’ or more frequently known as ‘Stitch.’
Release Date: 23 May 2025
JUNE:
28 Years Later
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Aaron-Taylor Johnson, Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes and Jack O’Connell
Set around thirty years after the original 28 Days Later (2002) this third movie in the popular zombie franchise surrounds a group of survivors living in strict quarantine conditions on a small island. But when one of the survivors escapes into the mainland, he discovers a new deadly virus mutation that threatens the living.
Release Date: 20 June 2025
JULY:
Superman
Genre: Action/Adventure
Director: James Gunn
Starring: David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult and Nathan Fillion.
James Gunn brings a new Superman to the big screen with Hollywood leading man, David Corenswet donning the red cape. Superman explores the duality of Clark Kent and the Man of Steel as he fights to save the world from evil forces while exploring a steamy romance with fellow Daily Planet reporter, Lois Lane.
Release Date: 11 July 2025
AUGUST:
Freakier Friday
Genre: Comedy
Director: Nisha Ganatra
Starring: Lindsay Lohan, Jamie Lee Curtis, Chad Michael Murray and Mark Harmon.
It’s been more than 20 years on from original movie, Freaky Friday (2003) and now Anna and Tess are back. Lightning strikes twice for the mother-daughter duo who experience an identity-crisis… yet again. Anna now has a daughter and step-daughter, and she must face new challenges when two families merge.
Release Date: 08 August 2025
SEPTEMBER:
The Bride
Genre: Horror/Sci-fi
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Starring: Christian Bale, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jessie Buckley and Peter Sarsgaard.
Set in the 1930s era of Chicago, Frankenstein consults with Dr. Euphronius to create a new companion. In their experiment, they reanimate a murdered woman called ‘The Bride’. Her new life sparks a budding romance and brings radical social change.
Release Date: 26 September 2025
OCTOBER:
Michael
Genre: Musical/Drama
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Starring: Jaafar Jackson, Juliano Valdi, Kat Graham and Colman Domingo.
This first biopic for the ‘King of Pop’ explores the life of world-famous American singer and dancer, Michael Jackson. The musical drama documents Michael’s life from his upbringing to his time in the Jackson 5 and suffering at the hands of his father, Joe Jackson to dominating the music industry. Jaafar Jackson portrays Michael Jackson on-screen in this highly-anticipated biopic.
Release Date: 03 October 2025
NOVEMBER:
Wicked: For Good
Genre: Musical/Fantasy
Director: Jon M. Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey and Marissa Bode.
Premiering exactly one year after part one’s Wicked (2024), the second half of this spell-binding musical explores the aftermath of Elphaba’s escape from the Wizard of Oz and Madame Morrible. Following on from the events of part one, Elphaba is now in control of her powers, but Glinda has been left behind and captured by the evil forces of the Wizard and Madame Morrible.
This part two of the hit musical explores Elphaba and Glinda’s friendship, their magical powers and how they get their names: Elphaba: ‘The Wicked Witch of the West’ and Glinda: ‘The Good Witch of the North.’
Release Date: 21 November 2025
DECEMBER:
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Genre: Action/Sci-fi
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang.
The third movie in the Avatar franchise sees the return of many familiar faces from the original cast. Sam Worthington’s Jake Sully, Zoe Saldana’s Neytiri, Sigourney Weaver’s Dr. Grace Augustine and Stephen Lang’s Miles Quaritch all reprise their roles. Hollywood filmmaker, James Cameron plans big things for the franchise with movies, Avatars 4 and 5 set to be released in 2029 and 2031 respectively.
Release Date: 19 December 2025
Top Movies This Year:
This year will mark big Hollywood sequels such as Freakier Friday, 28 Years Later and Avatar: Fire and Ash. There will be returns from successful horror franchises, counting new additions to their string of movies with Scream 7, Final Destination: Bloodlines, The Strangers: Chapter 2, M3gan 2.0, and The Conjuring: Last Rites.
Also set to return is the ‘90s horror franchise, I Know What You Did Last Summer which will see its own revived reboot. But we’re also gifted with the release of original horror stories too such as, Presence, Vicious, and Sinners among many other movies. One thing’s for sure; it’s a good time to be a horror fan!
Look out for our follow-up blog post on The Most-Anticipated TV Shows to Watch in 2025.
Want to read more about cinema?
Check out our recent reviews for Gladiator 2 and Wicked.
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