New year, new movies! With 2020 just around the corner, there's quite the slate of highly anticipated movies on the way.
In 2020, expect more big action comic book movies as Marvel and DC premiere out a “Black Widow” movie and Margot Robbie’s “Birds of Prey.” Disney’s got another live action remake of an animated classic, with "Mulan." And some of the original “Ghostbusters” gang will be back as part of a movie sequel.
A few hit musicals will also be adapted for the big screen in 2020. Lin Manuel Miranda's "in the Heights" is set to premiere in June. Martin Scorsese will be adapting "West Side Story" into film in December.
Here are 25 movies we’re most excited for in 2020.
1. "The Grudge"
Release Date: January 3, 2020
"The Grudge" is a familiar name in horror. The original 2002 Japanese film was directed by Takashi Shimizu and took place in Japan. Shimizu and Sarah Michelle Gellar later directed an American version, also set in Japan. The 2020 remake will be set in rural America, but will still center around the idea of a house haunted by a vengeful spirit who infects all who enter.
The film is produced by Sam Raimi and once again directed by Shimizu. John Cho, Demián Bichir, Betty Gilpin, Lin Shaye and Jacki Weaver star.
2. "Dolittle"
Release Date: January 17, 2020
"Dolittle" marks Robert Downey Jr's first film since his exit from the Marvel Cinematic Universe in "Avengers: Endgame." The family-friendly film sees the actor as Dr. John Dolittle, a famed doctor and veterinarian in Victorian England. After his wife dies, he turns to the life of a hermit, staying in Dolittle Manor with only his animals for company. When the queen falls ill, the doctor must go on an adventure in search of a cure.
Downey Jr. sports a Welsh accent in the trailer as Dr. Dolittle. A star-studded cast is joining him as the voices of his animal friends. Rami Malek is tapped as an anxious gorilla, Octavia Spencer will be playing a duck, Kumail Nanjiani will voice a cynical ostrich, John Cena will play a polar bear and Emma Thompson will play a parrot.
3. "The Turning"
Release Date: January 24, 2020
"Stranger Things" star Finn Wolfhard hits the big screen in the upcoming horror flick from the writers of "The Conjuring." The film is an adaptation of the 1898 Henry James novella, "The Turn of the Screw."
Wolfhard plays one of two orphans. Mackenzie Davis will play a nanny who is hired to take care of them at their Maine estate. Soon, she discovers the two children have dark secrets.
"The Turning" won't be the only adaptation of James' novel to hit our screens in 2020. Netflix has also renewed "The Haunting of Hill House" for a second season titled "The Haunting of Bly Manor," also based on the novella.
4. "Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn"
Release Date: February 7, 2020
Margot Robbie reprises her roll as Harley Quinn in "Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn." In the latest installment of the DC extended universe, Harley Quinn and the Joker have broken up. She then joins the Birds of Prey, an all-ladies team of heroes including Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) , Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez) and Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead).
The girl gang teams up to protect Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco) from a Gotham City crime lord named Black Mask, played by Ewan McGregor. Robbie is producing the film and Cathy Yan will direct. The film makes Yan the first Asian-American woman to direct a superhero film.
5. "The Invisible Man"
Release Date: February 28, 2020
Elizabeth Moss stars in the newest adaptation of the H.G. Wells story. Moss plays Cecilia Kass, a young woman who escaped an abusive relationship with a man named Adrian, who later kills himself.
Gradually, Kass suspects Adrian may not be dead, and that he's been following her this whole time after figuring out how to make himself invisible.
Jason Blum ("Get Out"/"Halloween) is producing the film, written and directed by Leigh Whannell ("Upgrade").
6. "A Quiet Place Part 2"
John Krasinski returns to direct and Emily Blunt stars in the second installment of the hit horror film. After the deadly events of the first film, the Abbott family must now face the outside world as they continue to fight for their survival. The film also teases new foes aside from the monsters seen in the first film.
Release Date: March 20, 2020
7. "Mulan"
Release Date: March 27, 2020
"Mulan" is Disney's next highly anticipated live-action remake of one of its original animated films. The film follows the story of a young Chinese woman who, while disguised as a man, takes the place of her father to fend off an invasion into China.
The live-action version of the film will have significant differences from the 1998 animated film. Most notably, Mulan's love interest from the animated film, Li Shang, is subbed out for a new character and love interest, Chen Honghui.
The film is directed by Niki Caro and stars Liu Yifei, Yoson An and Jet Li.
8. Onward
Release Date: March 6, 2020
Marvel stars Tom Holland and Chris Pratt are lending their voices to the latest film from Pixar studios. In "Onward," Holland and Pratt play elf brothers who bring their late father back to life for a day using his wizard staff. Unfortunately the spell goes awry, and they only bring back their dad from the waist down. The brothers must go on an adventure to finish the spell to bring back the rest of their father before time runs out.
Director Dan Scanlon has said the film is deeply personal for him. "When I was a year old my father passed away — and my brother was three. We have no memory of him," he explained to Deadline.
9. "The New Mutants"
Release Date: April 3, 2020
The next X-Men film will be the last one produced by Fox, after Disney acquired the studio in 2019. The star-studded cast includes "Game of Thrones'" Maisie Williams, "Stranger Things'" Charlie Heaton and Antonio Banderas.
The film is a stand-alone project and not connected to the previous X-Men films. The film will feature some of Marvel's most powerful characters, including Magik, Wolfsbane, Moonstar and Sunspot.
"New Mutants" has faced a series of delays and while it is currently still set for a typical theatrical release, Variety reported in August that Disney was unimpressed with the film and didn't think it has major box-office potential.
10. "No Time to Die"
Release Date: April 8, 2020
James Bond's retirement has been cut short and he's thrust back into action in the next Bond outing, "No Time To Die."
After leaving active service, Bond's "peace is short-lived when his old friend Felix Leiter from the CIA turns up asking for help." Leiter's appearance leads Bond onto a mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist.
The film features the exciting addition of Lashana Lynch, who is widely reported to take over the 007 secret agent code, since Bond is "retired" when the film begins.
The first trailer for the film confirmed Lynch's character is a 00 agent, but doesn't specify which one.
11. "Black Widow"
Release Date: May 1, 2020
Scarlett Johansson is finally starring in her own standalone Marvel film. "Black Widow" is not a sequel or a prequel, but a filler. Marvel execs said last summer that the story takes place sometime in the two years while she is in exile between 2016's "Captain America: Civil War" and 2018's "Avengers: Infinity War," according to Digital Spy.
The recently released trailer features Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, a former foe turned ally of Natasha Romanoff. In the comics, Belova became the second Black Widow. The film is rumored to serve as a way of setting up Belova to join the Avengers in future movies following Johansson's exit from the franchise.
12. "Wonder Woman 1984"
Release Date: June 5, 2020
It’s been three years since DC Comics’ Wonder Woman crushed the box office and next summer, a new era of wonder begins.
The recently released trailer sets the upcoming story in the 1980s. Fans see her love interest, Steve Trevor, return in the trailer, but there hasn't been an explanation as to how that's possible - given the events of the first movie.
The new movie is said to feature two villains. Pedro Pascal will play Max Lord, a sleazy businessman who promises to grant consumers' every wish -- at a cost. Diana is also seen chatting with Kristin Wiig, who plays Barbara Minerva a.k.a Cheetah. It seems the two are friends in the trailer, but comic book fans know that Minerva ends up as a villain when the power-hungry archaeologist makes a bargain to become a demigod just like Wonder Woman.
13. "Soul"
Release Date: June 19, 2020
Pixar's second film of the year features Jamie Foxx as a jazz-loving middle school teacher whose soul is separated from his body during an accident. He is then transported to the "You Seminar," a training center where souls are readied to join human bodies. He meets 22, a soul trapped in the "You Seminar," voiced by Tina Fey.
“We only have a short time on this planet,” Foxx’s character, Joe Gardner, says in the trailer. “You want to become the person you were born to be. Don’t waste your time on all the junk of life. Spend your precious hours doing what will bring out the real you, the brilliant passionate you that’s willing to contribute something meaningful to this world.”
Pete Docter, a Pixar veteran known for "Monsters Inc.," "Up" and "Inside Out" is directing the film.
14. "In the Heights"
Release Date: June 26, 2020
Lin-Manuel Miranda's Tony award-winning musical is getting a film adaptation.
The story of "In the Heights" is about "a block that was disappearing," star Anthony Ramos explains to a group of children in the movie's trailer. "A barrio called Washington Heights, the streets they were made of music."
The movie is directed by John Chu, who also directed "Crazy Rich Asians." He describes the musical as "a beautiful story about change," according to VARIETY.
The original musical was nominated for 13 Tony Awards and was a precursor to Miranda's mega-hit "Hamilton" musical.
15. "Top Gun: Maverick"
Release Date: June 26, 2020
After more than three decades, a "Top Gun" sequel is finally taking off! Tom Cruise is returning as the film's lead, Peter "Maverick" Mitchell. Not much else is known about the plot of the film yet, but the production boasts some talented young actors, including Miles Teller as Goose's son.
16. "Free Guy"
Release Date: July 3, 2020
What would you do if you were trapped in a video game? In "Free Guy," Ryan Reynolds plays Guy, a man living a nondescript live as a non-player character in a video game. After realizing what kind of world he's living in, Guy claims his freedom and begins to fight the bad guys in the game.
17. "Tenet"
Release Date: July 17, 2020
Christopher Nolan is known for keeping the plot of his films under wraps while in production. All we know is that the film will have something to do with international espionage. Indiewire reports it will be one of Nolan's most expensive films to date. Despite the hush-hush, it's unlikely the famous director will disappoint with his latest film.
18. "Morbius"
Release Date: July 31, 2020
After the success of 2018's "Venom," Sony announced plans for more films based on characters connected to Spider-man. The first of those films, "Morbius" is set to premiere in July.
Jared Leto is tapped to play the titular blood-sucking antihero. There's been no word on the official plot of the film so far, but according to comic book canon, Morbius was a biochemist who acquires powerful abilities and a hunger for blood after efforts to cure his blood disorder go awry. The character has been both ally and foe to Spider-Man.
Leto posted a cryptic Tweet hinting at the film in April.
19. "Bill & Ted Face the Music"
Release Date: August 21, 2020
August 2020 is sure to be most excellent, dudes. After nearly three decades since the franchise's second film premiered, Bill and Ted are back again. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter will reprise their roles as America's favorite time-traveling slackers.
"Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey" showed a distant future where Bill and Ted's music eventually creates a utopia world. If the title of the new film is to be believed, the duo still have not completed that mission.
20. "The King's Man"
Release Date: September 18, 2020
Ralph Fiennes stars in a prequel to the hugely successful "Kingsman" series. Set a century before the original franchise begins, the spy film gives fans a taste of how a group of soldiers came to form the group known as the Kingsmen.
A third installment to the "Kingsman" franchise is also in the works, as well as a spin-off series about the American equivalent of the group of spies, the "Statesmen."
21. "Halloween Kills"
Release Date: October 16, 2020
Blumhouse Productions is coming back with two more films in the "Halloween" franchise following the 2018 film's massive success.
Jamie Lee Curtis is set to return as Laurie Strode, along with many more characters from the original 1978 "Halloween" film. Actor Robert Longstreet, who plays Lonnie Elam, said the second film in the new trilogy "might be the nastiest of all of them."
22. Marvel's "Eternals"
Release Date: November 6, 2020
"Eternals" will be the second film in Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film follows powerful immortal beings called "Eternals," who have shaped much of Earth's history.
The cast is stacked with big names, including Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Kumail Nanjiani, Richard Madden and Kit Harington.
23. "Godzilla v. Kong"
Release Date: November 20, 2020
The climactic film in Warner Bros.' MonsterVerse series is coming at the end of the year. The film follows this year's "Godzilla: King of Monsters," where Godzilla defeats Ghidora, becoming Alpha of all Titans on Earth.
Footage shown at Brazil's Comic Con shows that King Kong is now the same size as Godzilla, so fans are sure to see an epic battle between the two monsters.
24. "West Side Story"
Release Date: December 18, 2020
Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler star in the remake of the iconic stage musical and 1961 film. The two play teenage star-crossed lovers from rival gangs in 1950s New York.
Director Steven Spielberg paid tribute to the original creators of the musical when production wrapped in September.
“On every day of the past four years during which we’ve been preparing, casting, imagining West Side Story, I and my team, cast and crew have been walking in the footsteps of four giants: Leonard Bernstein, Arthur Laurents, Jerome Robbins and Stephen Sondheim," Spielberg wrote in a letter. "For the light they’ve shed on the world, for Stephen Sondheim’s insight, guidance and support, and for the openhearted support of the Bernstein, Laurents and Robbins estates, I owe more than I can possibly express.”
25. "Dune"
Release Date: December 18, 2020
The ambitious remake of Frank Herbert's 1965 science-fiction novel of the same name is sure to make waves at the end of 2020. The sprawling novel is considered extremely difficult to adapt. David Lynch brought it to the big screen in 1984, but many fans felt it fell short.
The new film will star Oscar Isaac, Timothee Chalamet and Rebecca Ferguson. Isaac praised the latest adaptation in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, calling it a "wholly, wholly different thing" from previous adaptations.