Disney Has Your Movie Future Planned
A movie studio announcing its upcoming slate used to be the sort of thing that was only of interest to trade magazines. When the studio is Disney, however — which now owns Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm and 20th Century Fox — the situation is a little bit different. Disney has set out release dates for more than 60 movies in the next few years.
Whether you love animation, STAR WARS, Marvel, original science fiction or star-studded drama, there’s something for you in Disney’s new slate. Let’s break it all down.
First Up, 2019
There’s so much to process, frankly, that we’re going to break this up. First, a few key points about 2019. We know all about the release plans for films like ALADDIN (May 24), THE LION KING (July 19), MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL (October 18) and FROZEN 2 (November 22).
The biggest note is that AD ASTRA, the serious science fiction movie we’ve been eager to experience, with Brad Pitt as an astronaut journeying out into space to find his missing father, is still planned for this year. It will now open on September 20. James Mangold's FORD V. FERRARI — which really caught our attention when footage played at CinemaCon in April — is hitting the track on November 15. Trust us, this is one you’ll want to see.
And then of course, there’s STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER, which comes to theatres on December 20.
Pushing Into 2020
As we move into 2020, things get interesting. Two films originally set for 2019 have been bumped back: Disney’s ARTEMIS FOWL, which adapts the first of several YA novels about a young criminal who goes in search of the fairy realm, and NEW MUTANTS (above), the Fox movie which adapts an X-Men offshoot comic book series, with a horror twist. Those arrive on May 29 and April 3, respectively.
A third KINGSMAN movie will open on February 14, and an as-yet untitled Pixar movie is set for June 19, 2020. There’s also the live-action animation adaptation/remake CRUELLA on December 23. That might star Emma Stone as Cruella De Ville, but that casting is not confirmed. And Disney will release the BOB’S BURGERS movie on July 17.
Marvel’s Future
Marvel has typically been releasing three films per year, but 2020 will have only two. That’s likely because GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3 was pushed back. The catch is that we don’t know what next year’s movies are. May 1 and November 6, 2020, are set for untitled Marvel movies. Specifics will likely be released at Disney’s D23 convention in August, if not beforehand.
One movie is likely BLACK WIDOW and the other could be either DOCTOR STRANGE 2 or THE ETERNALS. Three Marvel movies will arrive in both 2021 (on February 12, May 7 and November 5) and 2022 (on February 18, May 6 and July 29), but those films are also untitled at this point. So, that’s eight new Marvel movies by the end of 2022, and we don’t know the specifics on any yet!
Star Wars and Avatar
Next year, Disney will break from big-ticket sci-fi releases in December. There’s no new STAR WARS movie for a couple of years, and Steven Spielberg’s WEST SIDE STORY remake will take the December 18 release date in 2020.
In 2021, Disney will release James Cameron’s long-in-development AVATAR sequel, on December 17. From 2022 to 2027, STAR WARS and AVATAR will alternate releases in December. There will be new STAR WARS films, likely written and produced by the “Game of Thrones” team of David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, on 12/16/22, 12/20/24 and 12/18/26, and then new AVATAR sequels on 12/22/23, 12/19/25 and 12/17/27.
We’re Not Done!
That’s not everything. Other highlights are hidden in the schedule. INDIANA JONES returns on July 9, 2021, and there are untitled Pixar films set for June 18, 2021; March 18, 2022; and June 17, 2022. A new Disney Animation film is set for release each November from 2020 to 2022, but at this point we don’t know what those movies might be.
And there are other live-action Disney films — typically set on the schedule with nothing more than “UNTITLED DISNEY LIVE-ACTION.” Some might be new remakes of animated classics, but others will likely be unrelated and/or new properties. And there are likely to be new surprises thrown in as Disney and all of the companies it owns acquire and develop new movies. Whew! Save some time for all of the other good movies that will be coming in between from other studios, too.
Check back in with the AMC Scene for more info on all of these films and more!