12 Most Exciting Movies Still To Come In 2026, Ranked By Hype Level

Published Oct 10, 2026, 5:30 PM EDT Simon Gallagher has worked in movie and TV journalism for more than 17 years. He has written more than 6000 articles and reviews, and edited thousands more. He is an expert in the entertainment industry, particularly in the golden age of screen superheroes. Simon is also a Rotten Tomatoes approved critic. The 2026 movie landscape has been a fascinating ride so far, with massive successes, huge surprises, and some unexpected misfires. Audiences have rallied behind both original stories and huge IP sequels, and as filmmaking faces an identity crisis and moral challenge in the increasing temptation of AI for “efficiency” and cost-cutting, the strength of the top 5 performers has been great to see. Behind the cameras, the age of Warner Bros is over, thanks to Skydance’s powerful and controversial acquisition, and some questions have arisen over major studio bets that simply didn’t pay off. It all feels very contradictory, as some audience trends suggest major franchises are struggling, and yet Spider-Man: Brand New Day took over $2 billion. Still, you can’t ignore the high-profile financial casualties of Supergirl, The Mandalorian & Grogu, Masters of the Universe, and Disney’s live-action Moana. Even taking those comparative failures as reason to be pessimistic, the end of 2026 could still be particularly strong, both for audiences and the Hollywood money men. There’s a great mix of original stories, huge franchise returns, and event movies, and there will be multiple weekends before December ends where ticket buyers will face some compelling dilemmas. The studios will hope we can all be convinced to take on some strange double-headers. The question now is whether anything will be able to topple the excellent Project Hail Mary, The Odyssey, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day as the best movies of 2026. It’s certainly possible, especially when you consider the fact that the following 12 top picks leave no space for still-exciting notable mentions like Focker-In-Law, Jumanji: Open World, Violent Night 2, and very different sports dramas, Madden and Mr Irrelevant. 12 Artificial - December 25 After The Social Reckoning’s disappointing critical performance, the next tech-bro movie sees Luca Guadagnino take on the high-stakes, definitely pro-human world of OpenAI and founder Sam Altman. Previously intended to be released by OpenAI collaborators Amazon, before the studio dropped it, Artificial sees Andrew Garfield step into the lead as the controversial figure. Early reviews suggests it’s great (it’s on 95% on RottenTomatoes from the festival circuit), and it’s a particularly important movie for anyone in the future who cares why the things that happen to their kids - good or bad - happened. Read more about Artificial here. 11 Werwulf - December 25 A new Robert Eggers horror joint is always reason for excitement, and Werwulf looks like another winning addition to his atmospheric catalog of claustrophobic dread. Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Willem Dafoe, it’s set in a medieval English village haunted by the titular monster and promises a grim and gritty werewolf movie stripped of Hollywood niceties. Eggers, who promises Werwulf is his darkest script yet, is easily one of the most visually impressive and challenging directors of the modern era, and the Werwulf trailer looks both stylish and terrifying, as well as promising period accuracy. Expect gore, body horror, and two hours of deep discomfort: or, in other words, everything you’d ever want from this sort of movie. Read more about Werwulf here. 10 Street Fighter - October 16 It may not be particularly fashionable to admit that movies like Street Fighter are exciting, but the marketing campaign has been so great that it’s impossible not to be sucked in. Live-action video game adaptations have typically been classed as a cursed genre, but times are changing with the likes of Resident Evil, Exit 8, and the Sonic movies have proved audiences have get what they need out of these adaptations. The best thing about Kitao Sakurai’s take on Street Fighter is that it looks like a faithful adaptation, with a great cast, and no intention of toning down the inherent silliness of the franchise. Street Fighter tells the story of estranged friends Ken (Noah Centineo) and Ryu (Andrew Koji), who are recruited by Chun Li (Callina Liang) to fight in the next World Warrior Tournament. Simple but effective. It might not be for everyone, but high-energy action sequences, and actual fighting (including some animated flashbacks) should keep fans happy. Read more about Street Fighter here. 9 Paper Tiger - November 13 Director James Gray seems destined to always make underrated and overlooked gems, but his next movie - the gritty 1980s-set crime thriller, Paper Tiger - looks the real deal. Starring Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, and Miles Teller, it follows brothers who find themselves tangled in a Russian mafia scheme that threatens to tear their family apart. It gathered positive reviews out of Cannes, where critics praised its pressure-cooker story of betrayal and desperation. We know Gray does character work incredibly well, and the cast is an excellent one for delivering on exactly that. Read more about Paper Tiger here. 8 Ray Gunn - December 4 Brad Bird’s return to animation, 8 years after he made The Incredibles 2 is exciting enough, but Ray Gunn is also the dream project he’s been trying to make since The Iron Giant. He’s an incredibly gifted storyteller, and his eye for imaginative world-building is second to none, so the idea of him getting to deliver his vision of a retro-futuristic metropolis populated by humans and aliens is also delightful. Add in a Neo-Noir detective element, with Sam Rockwell’s last ever private dick, plus an excellent cast, including Scarlett Johansson, Tom Waits, Alan Tudyk, and Patton Oswalt and you have a strong recipe. Early Ray Gunn reviews out of London Film Festival have inevitably praised the visuals and the world-building, and call it another top-tier animation from Bird. Read more about Ray Gunn here. 7 I Play Rocky - November 6 Sylvester Stallone may not be entirely delighted about the idea of his story being told while he’s still alive, but everyone else has been very excited about I Play Rocky since the first footage arrived. Early reviews of I Play Rocky, which tells the story of how Stallone broke into Hollywood with the iconic boxing movie, have been very positive, and Anthony Ippolito’s performance as Stallone has picked up almost universal acclaim. Directed by Peter Farrelly, the behind-the-scenes tale is compelling for the same reason Rocky itself is: it’s an underdog story of unexpected, stubborn success, and audiences should fall for its heart. Read more about I Play Rocky here. 6 Whalefall - October 16 High-concept movies live or die on the strength of their idea, and when they’re as simple as Whalefall, you really have to admire the bravery. Flying in the face of huge-scale blockbusters, Rich Peppiatt’s claustrophobic thriller tells the story of a scuba diver (Austin Abrams), who finds himself swallowed alive by a monstrous sperm whale, and left with an hour of oxygen to find a way out. It’s a simple, terrifyingly unthinkable concept, and is massively appealing because it’s absolutely nothing like anything you’ll see this year. Or possibly ever, actually. Read more about Whalefall here. 5 Wildwood - October 23 Image via Laika As advocates push AI from all angles, studios like LAIKA continuing to commit to human artistry in stop-motion feels even more important than ever. Wildwood marks the iconic studio return to dark fantasy to take on Colin Meloy’s acclaimed fantasy novel, and looks like their most visually ambitious project yet. Set in an enchanted, dangerous wilderness near Portland, Oregon, Wildwood follows a young girl (Peyton Elizabeth Lee’s Prue McKeel), who enters an unseen magical realm of talking animals and dark magic to rescue her kidnapped brother. If you need more to get excited about, it’s directed by Travis Knight, who is one of the most acclaimed storytellers working today. Read more about Wildwood here. 4 The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth - November 25 It would be a shame that Quentin Tarantino chose not to return for Netflix’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood sequel, but the return of Brad Pitt’s titular stuntman is in good hands with David Fincher stepping in. This time, the iconic, laid-back sidekick to Leonardo DiCaprio’s unhinged Hollywood star is now in the lead and has become a Hollywood fixer in the 1970s. Fincher making anything is exciting, but the opportunity to step back into this world and see Pitt have more fun as Booth is a huge draw that should be seen in the cinema before it comes to steaming in December. Read more about The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth here. 3 Clayface - October 23 Say what you want about DC Studios’ slightly odd approach to launching the new DCU, but when it gives us projects like Clayface, you can’t complain too loudly. Unlinked to Robert Pattinson’s The Batman universe, the villain spinoff is a hard swerve into full-blown body-horror from director James Watkins and written by Mike Flanagan. This version of the iconic Batman villain - who has someone never appeared in a live-action movie - presents Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries) as a tragic figure transformed into a monster in an unthinkable nightmare. Flanagan’s eye for horror should deliver something very different to what DC fans might typically expect, but that’s good news if you’re looking for something fresh in the comic book sphere. Read more about Clayface​​​​​​​ here.