This fall the film gods come to us bearing a cornucopia overflowing with big-name directors, A-list stars and eye-popping plots. From hilarious comedies to prestige dramas and all the guilty pleasures in between, here are 20 movies we’re most looking forward to in the upcoming season.
‘Spinal Tap II: The End Continues’
Time to turn it up to 11 again: the bad boys of British metal are back 41 years after their first film, as they reunite for one last concert. (Sept. 10)
‘The History of Sound’
Men of the moment Josh O’Connor and Paul Mescal team up as wool-clad historians whose post-WWI road trip to capture Maine folk music turns into a poignant love affair. (Sept. 12)
‘The Long Walk’
We’re suckers for a high-concept premise, and this one — courtesy of a Stephen King short story — is a doozy: 100 dudes enter a walking contest; if their speed dips below four miles an hour, they’ll be killed. Winner is the last man standing. Philip Seymour Hoffman’s son, Cooper, stars. (Sept. 12)
‘Waltzing with Brando’
This one seems more of a trifle, but potentially worth a watch just for the jaw-dropping transformation of Billy Zane (yes, that Billy Zane) into an exact replica of ’70s Marlon Brando. Uncanny! (Sept. 19)
‘One Battle After Another’
A Paul Thomas Anderson and Leonardo DiCaprio collaboration? We’re frantic with excitement about PTA’s first foray into the action genre as well as scuzzy-looking Leo’s return to comedy. (Sept. 26)
‘The Smashing Machine’
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is nearly unrecognizable in a wrestling-adjacent role as troubled UFC fighter Mark Kerr battling a tough industry and addiction. Safdie brother Benny directs solo, while Emily Blunt reunites with her “Jungle Cruise” co-star, playing Kerr’s steely wife. (Oct. 3)
‘After the Hunt’
“Challengers” and “Call Me by Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino is back with yet another film about forbidden passions. This time, a professor (Julia Roberts) and student (Ayo Edebiri) are wrapped up in a #MeToo scandal swirling around another prof (Andrew Garfield). (Oct. 10)
‘Anemone’
The only thing that could lure legend Daniel Day-Lewis out of retirement, it seems, is a picture directed by … his son. Ronan Day-Lewis helms this drama about father-son bonds — and co-wrote it with his dad. (Oct. 10)
‘Roofman’
File this under “truth is stranger than fiction”: Channing Tatum plays a real-life prison escapee who hid out in the walls of a toy store. A welcome return for Derek Cianfrance of “Blue Valentine” and “The Place Beyond the Pines” fame. (Oct. 10)
‘The Mastermind’
More Josh O’Connor content! Kelly Reichardt (“Certain Women,” “First Cow”) directs this heist thriller about a ’70s-era art thief who leads a double life as a cuddly family man. (Oct. 17)
‘Hedda’
Director Nia DaCosta (“Candyman,” “The Marvels”) mounts the classic Ibsen play, albeit with a setting switcheroo to mid-century England. Tessa Thompson brings her mega-charm to the lead role. (Oct. 22)
‘Blue Moon’
Frequent collaborators director Richard Linklater and star Ethan Hawke delve into the dark headspace of famed musical writer Lorenz Hart on the opening night of his former partner Richard Rodgers’ “Oklahoma!” (Oct. 24)
‘Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere’
The trailer caused quite the stir online, given just how hard star Jeremy Allen White nails The Boss’s signature rasp. (Oct. 24)
‘Bugonia’
Yorgos Lanthimos (“The Favourite,” “Poor Things”) directs this black comedy about a man (Jesse Plemons) who kidnaps a CEO (Emma Stone), convinced that she is an alien. We’re excited for Gen X queen Alicia Silverstone’s re-entry into prestige fare. (Oct. 31)
‘Die, My Love’
If it’s Lynne Ramsay, you know it’s going to be creepy. The Scottish filmmaker recruited Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattison to portray a new mother and husband enduring early parenthood and becoming slightly unhinged in the process. (Nov. 7)
‘Nuremberg’
Is Hitler henchman Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe) fit to stand trial? Psychiatrist Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) is on the case, making a call that will alter history forever. (Nov. 7)
‘Predator: Badlands’
After the dizzying highs (“Predators,” “Prey”) and hideous lows (“The Predator”) of the recent Predator movies, we’re holding out hope that this new one will be more great than groan-worthy. We’re optimistic, given that it stars Elle Fanning as a synthetic human (made by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation of “Alien” fame) who aids a runt predator in his quest. (Nov. 7)
‘The Running Man’
Double the Stephen King high-concept fun. Glen Powell takes on the iconic Arnold Schwarzenegger role as an everyman forced to fight for his life (and a grand prize of a billion bucks) in a televised murder extravaganza. (Keep an eye out for rizz master Colman Domingo as the show’s sassy host.) (Nov. 7)
‘Jay Kelly’
Adam Sandler is a talented dramatic actor, which makes his rare foray into noncomedic roles a real treat. Here, he does a two-hander for director Noah Baumbach about a star (George Clooney) and his manager (Sandler) who spend a European trip reminiscing. (Nov. 14)
‘Now You See Me: Now You Don’t’
For the third instalment in the “Now You See Me” franchise, Jesse Eisenberg, Dave Franco, Woody Harrelson and Isla Fisher are back, along with newbies Dominic Sessa and Justice Smith. The heist this time? Steal the world’s biggest diamond from a crime syndicate headed by Rosamund Pike. (Nov. 14)
