New movies 2023: the biggest upcoming releases heading to theaters soon
Compared to the 2022 equivalent, the list of new movies making headlines in 2023 is almost lackluster, but that’s not to say there aren’t feature film adventures to get excited about in the months to come.
In reality, the past few years of post-pandemic cinema have been so good that we probably need a break from the big screen. 2021 got the ball rolling with hysteria-inducing releases like No Time to Die, Dune, and Spider-Man: No Way Home, before 2022 brought its own string of equally noisy hits (including so far The Batman, Top Gun: Maverick, Jurassic World: Dominion, Nope, Don’t Worry Darling and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever).
Avatar: The Way of Water and Babylon are still due out this year – and we’ve included both films below as a reminder of their imminent release – but this page is mainly devoted to the upcoming movies that hit theaters in 2023.
Avatar: the way of the water
Release date: December 16, 2022
James Cameron is anything but prolific these days – Avatar: The Way of Water (aka Avatar 2) will only be his third film in 25 years – but when he steps behind the camera, you know you’re about to see something groundbreaking. He tends to spend those long breaks between releases waiting for moviemaking technology to catch up with his vision, so his return to Pandora’s spectacular alien ecosystem will feature the world’s first underwater shooting sequences.
Kate Winslet (who held her breath for seven minutes during filming), Jermaine Clement and Cliff Curtis join the cast alongside Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana. Sigourney Weaver and Stephen Lang also return, despite their characters being presumed dead. While this sequel was delayed by a year as part of Disney’s massive pandemic-induced release date shake-up, you don’t have to wait another decade for more Avatar – Part 3 is due out December 2024, with a fourth and fifth film in the pipeline as well. to work. Check out our roundup of the highly anticipated first Avatar 2 trailer and also the second Avatar 2 trailer for more info.
Babylon
Release date: December 25, 2022
Babylon is set in the 1920s, in a transitional Hollywood era when silent movies gave way to “talkies.” . A tale of “outrageous ambition and outrageous excess,” the film follows the rise and fall of multiple characters during an era of rampant decadence and depravity, according to studio Paramount.
Babylon – starring Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and Tobey Maguire, among others – will have a limited theatrical release on December 25, 2022, before opening on January 6, 2023 in the US and January 20, 2023 in the UK. Paramount movies, it will likely appear on Paramount Plus in the future as well.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
Release date: February 17, 2023
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will kick off Marvel’s Phase 5 slate (and, by extension, extend the task of watching Marvel movies in order), and it will also represent the first Marvel-based project arriving in 2023 , period of time.
The film’s official plot synopsis reads as follows: “Superhero partners Scott Lang and Hope Van Dyne return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. Along with Hope’s parents Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne, the family finds themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought was possible.
Granted, that’s not much to do in an official capacity, but Marvel would never give at way off, especially since this superhero flick kicks off the studio’s complex Multiverse Saga well.
Shazam! Anger of the Gods
Release date: March 17, 2023
Shazam, Zachary Levi’s super-powered schmuck, is forced back into action in Shazam! Fury of the Gods when the villainous sisters Hespera (Helen Mirren) and Kalypso (Lucy Liu) – who also happen to be the daughters of the formidable Greek titan Atlas – emerge as threats with a potentially world-destroying weapon.
Jack Dylan Grazer, Asher Angel and Grace Caroline Currey all reprise their roles from the first Shazam! film alongside Levi, while West Side Story escape Rachel Zegler joins the cast as Atlas’ third (but altogether less violent) daughter, Anthea. To the surprise of many, Shazam! was a critical and commercial hit upon its release in 2019, so DC executives hope the sequel can repeat the trick. And if you missed the first one, learn how to watch DC Extended Universe movies in order before you try.
John Wick: Chapter 4
Release date: March 24, 2023
Everyone’s favorite puppy-loving assassin is back for more gun action in 2023. According to the official Lionsgate synopsis, John Wick: Chapter 4 will see the titular assassin “go head-to-head against his most deadly adversaries yet. With the price on his head ever higher, Wick fights the High Table global as he searches for the most powerful players in the underworld, from New York to Paris and from Osaka to Berlin.
In other words, the Chad Stahelski-directed film dances to the same tune as its predecessors – which is certainly no bad thing, in our book. Series mainstays Ian McShane, Laurence Fishburne and Lance Reddick will reprise their roles as Winston, The Bowery King and Charon, respectively, while newcomers to John Wick 4 include martial arts legends Donnie Yen (Ip Man) and Hiroyuki Sanada (Mortal Kombat).
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Release date: May 5, 2023
The second Marvel Phase 5 project scheduled for release in 2023 (following Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) is the third and final installment in James Gunn’s beloved Guardians of the Galaxy series.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 picks up right after the events of the titular group’s Holiday Special, which was released on Disney Plus in November 2022 as part of MCU Phase 4, and the franchise’s biggest stars – including Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel – will return for some could prove their final appearance in the MCU. Gunn also has dual writing and directing duties as a Marvel contributor for the last time, with the Suicide Squad director recently installed as co-head of DC Studios. In other words, prepare for this to be an emotional rollercoaster.
Spider-Man: About the Spider-Verse
Release date: June 2, 2023
The first installment in a two-part sequel to 2018’s Into the Spider-Verse, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse follows Miles and Gwen as they encounter different worlds (and characters) on their journeys across the multiverse. The film’s producers have already revealed that each dimension in the second Miles Morales-led Spidey film will “have its own art style” and “feel like it’s been drawn by another artist’s hand,” so the chance is great this one will look like even better than the excellent original. Additionally, the same duo also revealed that Across the Spider-Verse may be linked to the MCU after all, meaning we could see Tom Holland’s Spidey in animated form for the first time. As with the Aquaman sequel (below), this one was initially slated to release in 2022, but is now slated for a 2023 release.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Fate
Release date: June 30, 2023
Cue the theme music: Indiana Jones is back. Set 12 years after Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull — which itself was the first Indiana Jones film in 19 years — the Dial of Destiny will see Harrison Ford return one last time as Hollywood’s most famous adventurer.
Plot details are sparse for now, but those of the movie glorious first trailer (opens in new tab) teased the involvement of Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag), Mads Mikkelsen (Doctor Strange), Antonio Banderas (The Mask of Zorro), Toby Jones (Captain America: The First Avenger), and Boyd Holbrook (The Sandman), as well as a wonderfully aged Harrison Ford. We can not wait.
Mission: Impossible – dead reckoning: part one
Release date: July 14, 2023
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning: Part One (or Mission: Impossible 7, if you’re in a hurry) has endured so many schedule delays that it previously made it onto our list of the biggest upcoming movies of 2022, but the movie seems to be finally done arriving in July next year.
Top Gun: Maverick hero Tom Cruise will have hit 60 by the time this seventh entry in the iconic franchise hits cinemas, and it will also mark the penultimate appearance of the actor’s famed action hero Ethan Hunt. Christopher McQuarrie has delivered the best installments of the long-running franchise with Rogue Nation and Fallout and is also back behind the camera for issue #7 and its sequel. Plot details are currently wrapped up tighter than a government vault, though the bombastic first Mission Impossible 7 trailer gave us our first glimpse of Hunt and company’s return. To best prepare for the chaos to come, check out our ranking of the Mission: Impossible movies released so far.
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
Release date: December 25, 2023
Despite Aquaman 2 originally slated to hit theaters on December 16, 2022, it should now wash up in December 2023. Under the less internet-friendly title Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, this superhero sequel will continue the underwater adventures of Jason Momoa’s DC superhero.
This highly anticipated sequel reunites the Game of Thrones actor with original co-stars Amber Heard, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Nicole Kidman, and Patrick Wilson — though Heard’s involvement remains up in the air — and will see the titular character forced to take an awkward alliance with an unlikely ally to protect Atlantis and the world from irreversible destruction.” Then expect more comic book carnage.
