Have you ever seen that Facebook post with all of the movie posters for upcoming movies? Doesn’t it get you excited (even though most of them are photoshopped and a third of them haven’t even been written yet let alone started filming). Well with a new year upon us, it’s time to look forward to all of those big budget sequels and adaptations that will either be amazing, or big giant letdowns (*cough DC Extended Universe *cough*). Here are the 17 movies I’m most looking forward to in 2017.
17. GHOST IN THE SHELL (March 31st)
Based on a popular Japanese anime and manga, Ghost in the Shell will star Scarlett Johansson as an android police officer. The anime was gritty, dark and inspired by film noir. If the first trailer is any indication, this live action version will carry the same tone with awesome CGI to bring the futuristic world to life. Let’s just hope the story is captivating.
16. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES (May 26th)
The last Pirates of the Caribbean felt like one of those old straight to VHS Disney sequels from the 90’s. But my hopes are high that they can get the series back on track. That’s mainly because this time around they’ll be getting the old band back together. Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightly are slated to appear alongside Johnny Depp for this newest adventure which will also feature Javier Bardem as a new villain.
15. BAYWATCH (May 26th)
We all know of the show, even if you never actually watched anything past the opening credits. Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron will star in the lead roles to help bring to life this action comedy that is essentially a tongue and cheek spoof of the original TV series. Both actors have proven they can nail comedic roles, so I’m anticipating this being one of the few movies that will be as funny as its trailer.
14. KONG: SKULL ISLAND (March 10th)
For me, Peter King’s 2005 King Kong film fell flat. It had its moments, but it was way too long and had a ton of plot holes. This new Kong film is set to do away with the “giant monkey captures woman and fights planes atop a building” narrative to give us more of what we liked in the last film. Which is: monster on monster violence. Packed with an all-star cast that includes Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, John C. Reilly, and Tom Hiddleston, this movie has the potential to be a lot of fun.
13. SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING (July 7th)
This movie may be a bit low on the list, as Spider-Man is one of the most popular superheroes. But the teenage webslinger has been done to death (This will make 6 movies in the last 15 years with 2 different reboots). Still, the Marvel Cinematic Universe rarely disappoints, and Tom Holland seemed perfect for the role in his cameo appearance in last summer’s Captain America: Civil War. So although I’m tired of Spider-Man movies, I can’t help but expect this one to be at least better than the last one.
12. BLADE RUNNER 2049 (October 6th)
The original Blade Runner was a film about futuristic police officers tracking down Replicants (human androids). Back in 1982 it revitalized the film noir genre. Now three and a half decades later, Harrison Ford is slated to return for a long awaited sequel. Ryan Gosling will play the lead as the new blade runner in a film that will hopefully impress even without original Director Ridley Scott.
11. KINGSMAN: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE (October 6th)
Kingsman: The Secret Service was one of my favorite movies of 2015. It was suave, action packed, and didn’t take itself too seriously. Taron Egerton and Mark Strong return for this sequel that will add Halle Berry, Channing Tatum, Jeff Bridges, and Julianne Moore. If it’s anything like the first film, it is sure to be another outrageously wild ride.
10. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2 (MAY 5th)
The first film was a breakout hit and launched Chris Pratt’s career into super stardom. The follow up is sure to be a box office success. The star studded cast will reunite, with Kurt Russell joining on as Star Lord (Pratt)’s mysterious father while Baby Groot is sure to be a hit with wide audiences. I personally am most excited for the soundtrack.
9. VALERIAN and the CITY OF A THOUSAND PLANETS (July 21st)
This film is an adaptation of a science fiction graphic novel and is sure to bring all sorts of weird alien worlds and awesome special effects. The talented Dane DeHaan and the tolerable Cara Delevingne will play the lead roles as a pair of traveling space police. The film will be directed by Luc Besson who directed 2 films I love (Leon: The Professional, The Fifth Element) and 2 films I didn’t (The Family, Lucy), so we’ll see which end of the spectrum this one falls under.
8. WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES (July 14th)
The revitalized Planet of the Apes movies following Andy Serkis’ Caesar character have all been sensational so my expectations are high for part three. Woody Harrelson joins the cast as the villain which should make for some intense moments to go along with exciting ape on human action sequences.
7. THOR: RAGNAROK (November 3rd)
Sure, the Thor movies might be the weakest tandem in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but this one looks to be awesome. Oscar winning actress Cate Blanchett will be playing the villain and the movie is also set to feature Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk in a major role. They’re also taking the focus away from Natalie Portman and Kat Dennings and keeping the film out in space where Creed’s Tessa Thompson will be playing a warrior female lead.
6. JOHN WICK 2 (February 10th)
If you haven’t seen the first John Wick, then you ma’am or sir are missing out. John Wick was a stylistically unique, bad ass action flick that felt like something straight out of a graphic novel. All of the cast (that survived the first film) are back and Laurence Fishburne and Common join the cast as fellow assassins. After watching the first trailer, this movie is sure to be another action packed thriller.
5. LOGAN (March 3rd)
The X-Men movies are great (most of them at least), and Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine is even greater. He is set to sport the claws one last time in this loose adaptation of the Old Man Logan graphic novel. From the looks of the awesome trailer, this film has the potential to be a masterpiece. It will also be the first non-Deadpool X-Men film to be rated ‘R’ so there will be nothing stopping the Wolverine from getting as gruesome as we all want him to be.
4. JUSTICE LEAGUE (November 17th)
Yes, the DC Extended Universe hasn’t lived up to the hype just yet. And yes, Zack Snyder is once again bringing his overindulgent style of filmmaking back. But c’mon this is the Justice League. The original mashup of elite superheroes. It’ll unite Gal Gadot’s scene stealing Wonder Woman and Ben Affleck’s bulky, bad ass Batman with the first cinematic appearance of the Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman. Henry Cavill’s Superman will also be resurrected, so even if the movie flops plot wise, it’ll at least be fun to watch for the action sequences and visuals. Plus the early footage looks like the tone will be much lighter than the overly depressing Batman v Superman.
3. WONDER WOMAN (June 2nd)
Speaking of the DCEU and the scene stealing Wonder Woman, this film will finally bring the iconic female hero to the forefront. Patty Jenkins is on tap to direct and the film will be keeping the character to her Amazonian roots while teaming her with Chris Pine. There’s never been a good female led superhero movie (thanks to Catwoman and Elektra), but the early trailers have been impressive so my hopes are high that this film will finally give the DC movies a film worth being proud of.
2. POWER RANGERS (March 24th)
Newsflash, I loved the original Power Rangers show. I even made a post about my expectations for the movie. Sure the original show was cheesy, but the concept was every kid’s dream. This reboot will reimagine the original heroes with a young cast of newcomers. And while many have panned the new designs for the film, I am thoroughly intrigued by what I’ve seen. If the movie can keep the core elements that made the original series a hit while also scaling back the cheesiness and making things feel more believable, than this movie could be a fun, nostalgic setup to a brand new film saga.
STAR WARS: EPISODE 8 (December 15th)
I don’t care if The Force Awakens rehashed too many things from the original Star Wars film, the new characters were all great and the cinematography was even greater. They’re all set to return, and with so many questions unanswered by the last film and the folks at Lucasfilm keeping things tight lipped, this movie is already loaded with intrigue even before a trailer drops. The rehashed death star has been destroyed and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) will be returning to the fold, so there are a ton of directions that these new exciting characters could go in. Plus, this will be our last time to see the late, great Carrie Fisher on the big screen.
So there’s my list. Where’s Fate of the Furious you may ask? Well… I basically despise those movies, so there’s that. And as much as we all want to see Bad Boys 3, it isn’t slated until 2018. Hopefully all of these movies live up to the hype (of course they won’t).
HONORABLE MENTION:
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (MAR 17th): I loved the original, but this one is basically going to be the exact same movie.
DESPICABLE ME 3 (JUNE 30th): The first 2 were good, but Minions was awful.
THE MUMMY (June 9th): Tom Cruise > Brendan Frasier
TRANSFORMERS: THE LAST KNIGHT (June 23rd): The trailers always look great. But I’ve lost faith in these movies.