2023 Movie Preview

Lights, camera and a cocaine bear, oh my!

Cocaine Bear (Universal Pictures)

The Na’vi have barely resurfaced and Benoit Blanc is probably still waiting on his flight home from Greece. But it’s time to leave the holiday hits behind and consider the movie year ahead with optimism for great filmmakers’ next outings and franchises looking to peak.

There are dozens of enticing movies expected in 2023, from Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon to Megan Thee Stallion’s acting debut in the musical comedy F*cking Identical Twins. But for the purposes of not disappointing anyone, we’ve limited our selections to films officially slated for release this year.

Infinity Pool (Jan. 27)

Brandon Cronenberg would happily ruin your new year when it’s barely begun. The Possessor director (and David’s son) plants Mia Goth and Alexander Skarsgård in a punitive realm where accused criminals can die or pay to watch themselves die.

Knock at the Cabin (Feb. 3)

Among major auteurs returning this year, M. Night Shyamalan is back with a vintage horror setup. Hulking, mysterious Dave Bautista intrudes on an unsuspecting family’s cabin weekend. Everything should be straightforward from there.

Magic Mike’s Last Dance (Feb. 10)

Mike could finally be ready to settle down and make furniture, but not before gyrating through London alongside Salma Hayek, with Steven Soderbergh back at the helm.

Cocaine Bear (Feb. 24)

Honestly, this entire preview could be about Cocaine Bear. Somehow inspired by a true story, this is a movie about (*checks notes*) a bear in rural Georgia that ingests cocaine and subsequently rampages. If only Bart the Bear were still alive.

Creed III (Mar. 3)

Jonathan Majors comes aboard as the new foe, channeling early Mike Tyson to pummel Adonis Creed. Star Michael B. Jordan takes over directing duties.

John Wick: Chapter 4 (March 24)

John Wick has faced insurmountable odds before, but going mano a mano with Donnie Yen could be the gun fu savant’s toughest test to date.

Renfield (April 14)

If you’ve seen Vampire’s Kiss or read how much inspiration Nic Cage draws from Nosferatu, you know his entire career has been building toward playing Dracula. Cage finally slaps on the gaunt makeup in this new horror comedy alongside Nicholas Hoult.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (June 2)

The animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the most-acclaimed superhero film of the past five years, finally gets a sequel. Miles Morales must again rally multiversal spider-folks (the voice cast includes Oscar Isaac, Issa Rae and Daniel Kaluuya).

Elemental (June 16)

Director Peter Sohn (The Good Dinosaur) will play in the highest-concept corner of the Pixar sandbox, as two elemental embodiments—Ember the fire entity and Wade the water entity—navigate their friendship against the backdrop of Element City.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (June 30)

For those who thought the problem with Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was Harrison Ford being too young, here’s Indy 5. James Mangold directs, as Indy faces a Wernher von Braun-esque villain (Mads Mikkelsen). Can you whip in zero gravity?

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (July 14)

Google “Tom Cruise motorcycle cliff jump.” That pretty much spells it out.

Oppenheimer (July 21)

For all the story gymnastics Christopher Nolan has pulled off these past 25 years, it’s anyone’s guess how he’ll attempt a semi-crowd-pleasing blockbuster that depicts J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy) inventing the preeminent extinction device.

Barbie (July 21)

Now I am become Barbie, the destroyer of Nolan. Greta Gerwig’s third directorial turn will go head to head with Oppenheimer in a potential double feature for the ages. You’ve seen the brain-meltingly colorful on-set photos of Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling; now we’ll see how satirical a tone Gerwig strikes.

Challengers (Aug. 11)

Luca Guadagnino follows up Bones and All with a romantic tennis drama starring Zendaya and West Side Story breakout Mike Faist. Could be the best footwork of the year not from Magic Mike.

Next Goal Wins (Sept. 22)

More sports from an unsporty director? Taika Waititi tells the underdog story of the early 2000s American Samoa soccer team—who appear hapless until they hire coach Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender) and attempt to qualify for the 2014 World Cup.

Dune: Part Two (Nov. 3)

Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Léa Seydoux and Christopher Walken have joined the cast of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune sequel, bringing the list of famous actors in the franchise up to approximately 2,000. Whether Timothée Chalamet’s inscrutable Paul Atreides will have any discernible feelings about this remains to be seen.

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