Upcoming Movies You Won't Want To Miss In 2025
In the modern era of sprawling cinematic franchises, fans often have years to look forward to upcoming entries in their favorite stories. Even now, the movie lineup for 2024 is set to blow everyone away with potential blockbusters of all kinds. Comic book movies like "Blade," "Joker: Folie à Deux," and "Deadpool 3" are all currently set to release in 2024, alongside films like the as-yet-unnamed "Godzilla vs. Kong" sequel, "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes," the "Mad Max" spin-off "Furiosa," and James Cameron's "Avatar 3."
Even though 2024 is certainly stacked, the following year could be even bigger at the box office. While 2025 is still a ways off, that hasn't stopped studios from teasing some big releases. From the long-awaited next installment in series such as "The Avengers" to big-screen adaptations of beloved cartoons, there's a lot to look forward to in 2025. The year may even bring an end to one of the most financially successful film franchises of all time.
Obviously, 2025 is still a long way off, so any announced release dates are certainly subject to change. Still, it's fun to look ahead at some of the great films that could be coming our way. Here are some exciting upcoming movies you won't want to miss in 2025, as well as a few that have yet to be confirmed but are likely to be released in the same year.
Fantastic Four
Though it was initially meant to be released in November of 2024, Marvel Studios' long-awaited "Fantastic Four" reboot has been pushed to a further premiere date of February 14, 2025 (via CNET). The film is set to be one of the first films of the MCU's Phase 6, which will also include two "The Avengers" films — but more on that later. In September of 2022, Deadline reported that Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer had been brought on to write the screenplay for the film, with Matt Shakman directing.
While Springer and Kaplan haven't had a ton of high-profile work go up in Hollywood yet, Shakman is an experienced director, having helmed episodes of major TV series like "Fargo," "Game of Thrones," and "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." He's also a veteran of the MCU, having directed and executive produced the acclaimed Disney+ series "WandaVision" in 2021.
Few story details have been released about the new "Fantastic Four," but there are some clues as to what fans can expect. For one, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has suggested that he wants to avoid a traditional origin story, given how many times "The Fantastic Four" has been adapted for the big screen lately (via The Hollywood Reporter). Popular fancast John Krasinski has already played a version of Reed Richards in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," so he could return, but that's yet to be confirmed.
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty
There was a time when the whole point of an MCU movie was to help build up to a new entry in "The Avengers" series. However, in the wake of the Infinity Saga and the defeat of Thanos, that hasn't been the case. By the time "Avengers: The Kang Dynasty" is released in 2025 (currently scheduled for May 2, per Variety), the MCU will have gone two entire phases without an entry in "The Avengers" saga. That should be enough to build excitement for the series' fifth entry, but there are plenty of other reasons to look forward to it.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" director Destin Daniel Cretton is set to direct "The Kang Dynasty." Deadline notes that Jeff Loveness will be writing the script. Loveness comes from a background writing for comedy shows like "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and "Rick and Morty," also penned the screenplay for "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania," which will bring Kang the Conqueror to the MCU for the first time. As such, he seems like a perfect choice to write "Avengers 5," and it's likely that the Phase 5 film will set up a lot.
As of now, all we now about the story of "The Kang Dynasty" is that it will star the titular time-traveling villain, who seems to be set to usurp Thanos' throne as the MCU's main antagonist. The comic run from which the film takes its title may offer some clues. In it, Kang successfully takes over the entire world, bringing unparalleled destruction and harm along the way. The Avengers may have their hands full in Phase 6.
M3GAN 2.0
The all-star horror movie team of James Wan, Jason Blum, and Akela Cooper united in 2022 to release "M3GAN," a surprise hit about a young girl's robotic companion who turns murderous. Directed by Gerard Johnstone, the film grossed over $125 million at the global box office on a budget of just $12 million, sparking rumors of a sequel that has since been confirmed. Per Deadline, "M3GAN 2.0" is planned for release on January 17, 2025. Original stars Allison Williams and Violet McGraw are both set to return, with Williams stepping into a full producer role as well. In an interview with New Zealand's 1 News, Johnstone said he's in talks to return as director.
While we don't have any leads on story details yet, it's not hard to imagine where "M3GAN 2.0" might go. The first film ends on a triumphant but ominous note that ensures viewers know that the titular M3GAN is far from dead. Given the sci-fi trappings of the franchise, there is any number of ways she could return — bigger, scarier, and deadlier.
Cooper returns to pen the script while both Blum and Wan are set to act as producers, which means that it's safe to assume that the sequel will have the same overall feel as the original. In an interview with Collider, Wan said he already has ideas for a "bigger world" for the series. Could this be the start of the next hit horror franchise? Time will tell.
Untitled Avatar: The Last Airbender movie
In early 2021, fans of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" rejoiced at the announcement of Avatar Studios, a new division of Paramount+ and Nickelodeon fully focused on developing the franchise. Original series creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino will serve as chief creative officers, and it was revealed that the studio's first project would be an animated film intended for theatrical release. Over a year later, Nickelodeon revealed (through Avatar Korra voice actor Janet Varney) that the film would follow "Avatar Aang and his friends." In November of 2022, a release date of October 10, 2025, was announced (via Deadline).
No other story details have been confirmed, but given the recent history of the "Avatar" franchise, we can assume a few things. The official comics from Dark Horse take place in the immediate aftermath of the original show, and it seems unlikely that the movie — the franchise's triumphant return to animation — would simply recycle those stories. Plus, the original "Avatar: The Last Airbender" voice cast is grown up now, and Zach Tyler Eisen, the actor behind Aang, doesn't really do voice-over work anymore at all. For these reasons, it might make more sense for the film to follow adult versions of the "Avatar: The Last Airbender" characters with either new voice actors or the ones used for flashbacks in "The Legend of Korra."
Regardless, the film sounds promising. In addition to Konietzko and DiMartino, longtime franchise director Lauren Montgomery is helming the project, and the versatile Australian animation studio Flying Bark Productions will produce (via IF Magazine).
Untitled Star Wars film
The past few years have been rough for "Star Wars" on the big screen. After the lackluster responses to "Solo: A Star Wars Story" and "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker," Disney officially declared a "hiatus" on its planned slate of future films, deciding to focus instead on building out the franchise on Disney+ (via Polygon). For a time, "Star Wars" was set to return to theaters in 2023 (per Collider), with Patty Jenkins' "Rogue Squadron" movie looking like the likely choice. However, Jenkins' film has been temporarily derailed, with Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy telling Vanity Fair in 2022 that it had been "pushed off to the side" while Jenkins is "developing the script further."
As of now, a "Star Wars" movie is still slated for release in December of 2025, but it's hard to predict what it will be. Numerous projects have been rumors over the past few years, including potential films from Taika Waititi, "Stranger Things" producer Shawn Levy, and "Star Trek Into Darkness" writer Damon Lindelof. A story from The Hollywood Reporter in October of 2022 claimed that Lindelof's film may be the next one up in 2025 and that a writer's room had already assembled at Lucasfilm to work on ideas. It's clear that Disney is experimenting with many different ideas, which makes it hard to predict what we'll get next.
At the very least, Lucasfilm doesn't seem to be lacking ideas. Kennedy told Total Film in 2022 that she wants to create "a whole new saga," and there have been reports of both a "Knights of the Old Republic" project and more movies set in the sequel era. Whatever happens, the return of "Star Wars" to the big screen is an exciting prospect.
A Quiet Place: Part III
"A Quiet Place" has become one of the biggest surprises in recent movie history, growing from a one-off horror movie made on a $17 million budget to a blockbuster franchise all its own (via The Numbers). The creative collaboration between real-life couple John Krasinski and Emily Blunt has been a hit, and a spin-off film set before the event of the original is set for release in 2024 (per Deadline). Those who want the proper conclusion to the story of the Abbott family, however, will have to wait until 2025.
Blunt has been open for some time about the original story being intended as a trilogy, which suggests that "A Quiet Place: Part III" will wrap up the major character arcs begun in 2018 (via Collider). In early 2022, Deadline reported that Krasinski declared a 2025 release for the threequel. Presumably, he will direct once again. With a full-on prequel set to release before "A Quiet Place: Part III" comes out, there could be a lot of new pieces added to the hit horror saga. That should make the conclusion even more exciting, but for now details are being kept under wraps.
SpongeBob 4
It may be weird to accept if you grew up watching "SpongeBob SquarePants" on Nickelodeon, but the animated undersea comedy franchise is now nearly as prolific on the big screen as the small. The series first made its way to theaters with 2004's "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie," which carried the same core animation style as the show. Over a decade passed before the next big-screen outing, 2015's "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water," which became a huge success. A sequel, "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run," followed in 2020, and another film in the modern style has been announced for May 23, 2025 (via Deadline).
Nickelodeon hasn't revealed any real details of what the story will entail, and with the franchise now more expansive than ever, the possibilities are endless. "SpongeBob SquarePants" has already become a major IP asset for Paramount in the company's modern hybrid release era, with the movies supplementing multiple series across both traditional television and streaming distribution on Paramount+.
It could even be said that the studio is overloaded with "SpongeBob SquarePants" content, but it shows no signs of slowing down. "Sponge Out of Water" was a box office hit and received strong reviews, but "Sponge on the Run" was met with a much more lukewarm reception. It remains to be seen if the third film of this modern series will continue a decline or return to the franchise's former peaks. With luck, it will be the latter.
Wicked Part 2
In the modern realm of musical theater, few shows have had the lasting success or cultural impact of "Wicked." "Hamilton" is perhaps the only other show to premiere in the 21st century that could compete, but even it has many years to go to prove its parity with Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman's 2003 hit. It makes sense, then, that the play is being adapted for the big screen. However, fans of the original might be more surprised to hear that the story will be split between two films. "Wicked Part 1" will premiere in December of 2024, while "Wicked Part 2" will premiere in December of 2025 (per Deadline).
Schwartz, the composer of the original musical, has said that the split is necessary to keep the story intact. "We found it very difficult to get past 'Defying Gravity' without a break," the composer wrote in his fan newsletter, referring to the musical's famous act one closer. "That song is written specifically to bring a curtain down, and whatever scene to follow it without a break just seemed hugely anti-climactic." That means that "Wicked Part II" will encompass the play's second act, following Elphaba's (Cynthia Erivo) resistance campaign against the Wizard of Oz's (Jeff Goldblum) regime.
In addition to Erivo's Wicked Witch and Goldblum's duplicitous Wizard, the "Wicked" films have assembled a stacked cast that includes Ariana Grande as Glinda, "Bridgerton" star Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, and Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible. Jon M. Chu is directing, bringing to bear the big-screen musical experience he gained from 2021's "In the Heights" adaptation. Given the extra run time of a double feature, the films could also pull in more material from Gregory Maguire's novels — the original inspiration for the play.
The Batman 2
After a somewhat confused period for the Caped Crusader's film career following Christopher Nolan's "The Dark Knight" trilogy, director Matt Reeves and star Robert Pattinson returned Bruce Wayne to his former glory in "The Batman." The 2022 film received excellent reviews and performed well at the box office, succeeding on the merits of its gritty, noir-inspired tone and stellar production design. It wasn't long before a proper sequel was announced, with Pattinson and Reeves both returning alongside "Project Power" writer Mattson Tomlin assisting with the script (via The Hollywood Reporter). According to a report from Variety, the film is likely to release in 2025.
"The Batman" has already done an excellent job of building out a distinct version of Gotham City, and it's easy to imagine all kinds of directions in which the sequel could go. Pattinson himself told Den of Geek in 2022 that he'd be interested in a version of the popular Court of Owls storyline, while Reeves has expressed interest in a "grounded version" of Mr. Freeze (via Collider). It's also likely that Barry Keoghan's Joker, who debuted at the end of "The Batman," could play a major role.
Gotham City has a near-endless trove of bad guys to pull from, and Reeves has proved himself a very competent filmmaker with both "The Batman" and other projects like the latter-day "Planet of the Apes" movies. Wherever his team decides to take the story, it should be exciting to watch.
The Smurfs Musical
The Smurfs haven't had the steadiest run at the modern box office, with Sony Pictures' 2010s film series receiving poor reviews throughout its run. In 2022, it was announced that Nickelodeon and Paramount would be putting their own spin on the classic franchise with an animated musical film scheduled for release in 2024. That date was later pushed to February 14, 2025 to make room for "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" (via ComicBook).
As you might expect, the upcoming reboot is intended to be a family film with plenty of cartoon whimsy and musical charm. Per The Hollywood Reporter, Chris Miller has been tapped to direct the picture. Miller is quite experienced in the genre, having previously helmed the DreamWorks Animation features "Shrek the Third" and "Puss in Boots."
There's been little in the way of official casting news, but it seems safe to assume that the new "Smurfs" film will follow the modern Hollywood trend of casting an ensemble of recognizable stars to play the various roles. Hopefully, Paramount can finally do the brand justice and properly relaunch "The Smurfs" for a new generation.
Tron 3
The "Tron" franchise is one of Disney's oddest. The original 1982 film wasn't exactly a box office smash, but it developed a cult appeal thanks to its groundbreaking CGI effects — a rare sight in film at the time. A sequel, "Tron: Legacy," followed in 2010, but momentum stalled on any further development of the franchise. Now, a third film, currently going by the name of "Tron: Ares," is finally back on the books with Jared Leto set to star and Joachim Rønning directing (per Deadline). Jesse Wigutow will write the script.
There is no official release date for "Tron 3" at this time, but reports indicate a 2025 release date is most likely. Under Rønning's direction, it could be quite a spectacle. The filmmaker is no stranger to the contemporary live-action Disney blockbuster machine, having previously helmed films like "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" in 2017 and "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil" in 2019. Leto may be less of a sure thing, as he's developed a reputation for box office bombs of late in addition to his questionable on-set behavior.
Regardless, a return to the digital grid of "Tron" with today's advancements in computer animation technology is an exciting idea. The series has always been more about a certain look and feel than a hard-hitting narrative, and it's likely that this trend will likely continue. Hopefully, Disney can get Daft Punk back together to do the soundtrack again.
Superman: Legacy
Under the leadership of James Gunn and Peter Safran, DC Studios has announced plans for a new, interconnected film and television universe to play out over the coming years. After the DCEU at times failed to compete with the titanic might of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this could be its very own redemption arc. Or it could also fizzle out — yet to be determined. Regardless, fans can look forward to at least one DCU film in 2025 in addition to "The Batman 2" (which does not share the same connected universe): The Man of Steel is coming back to the big screen on July 11, 2025.
Per The Hollywood Reporter, Gunn himself is writing a new live-action film entitled "Superman: Legacy." According to Safran, the film "focuses on Superman balancing his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing ... He is kindness in a world that thinks that kindness is old-fashioned." Gunn is also in the running to direct, though that hasn't yet been confirmed.
Perhaps the biggest bombshell regarding the film is that Henry Cavill, who announced in October of 2022 that he would be returning to the role, is out once again. As of now, his replacement has not been named. Ta-Nehisi Coates' Black Superman movie is reportedly still in development, however, at least according to a December 2022 report from The Guardian.
Other films in the DCU slate may also be coming in 2025, but there's no official word yet. Per Variety, the studio's plan is to release about two films and two series per year, but it's unclear if "The Batman 2" counts for one of those slots.