It’s time for my list of the most anticipated theatrical releases of 2023. A few things to note:
1) I’m looking forward to all the major animated releases, from “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and “Trolls 3”, to “Wish”, “Migration”, “Elemental”, “Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie”, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” and more.
2) There are going to be “surprise” movies, especially awards season contenders, that are announced at some point during the year that will immediately be high up on my list.
3) This also goes for streaming releases.
As for theatrical releases:
“Knock at the Cabin” — It’s always fun to figure out what M. Night Shyamalan has up his sleeves.
“John Wick: Chapter 4” — It will be nearly four years since “Ch. 3 – Parabellum” when this fourth installment in the slick Keanu Reeves action franchise is finally released in March.
“Paint” — Owen Wilson’s take on a Bob Ross-type personality is on this list because it was filmed near me (in Saratoga, NY) in 2021.
“Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” — It’s DGA Awards nominee Kelly Fremon Craig’s follow-up to “The Edge of Seventeen”.
“Book Club 2: The Next Chapter” — I was a fan of the 2018 star-studded rom-com. Looking forward to seeing where this sequel takes the characters.
“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” — Harrison Ford’s fifth and final outing will be one of the highest-grossing movies of the year.
“Barbie” & “Oppenheimer” — July 21st will be the big box office battle day with Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie’s take on the iconic Mattel character facing-off against Christopher Nolan’s latest all-star true story drama.
“The Equalizer 3” — Denzel Washington returns to his one and only career franchise, reuniting with his “Man on Fire” co-star Dakota Fanning.
“A Haunting in Venice” — Kenneth Branagh’s third Detective Poirot chapter arrives just a year and a half after the long-delayed (and much better than I expected) “Death on the Nile”.
“The Expendables 4” — It’s been nine years since we last saw Stallone & Co. Let’s see what they’re up to!
“Next Goal Wins” — One of the most delayed movies due to the pandemic is *finally* expected to be released in September. It’s Taika Waititi’s new true story sports comedy starring Michael Fassbender.
“Dune: Part Two” — Denis Villeneuve’s follow-up to his six-time Oscar winner will probably double the original’s $108M domestic box office total.
“Wonka” — Timothee Chalamet headlines another Warner Bros. release in this musical prequel to “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”.