The Croods 2: A New Age
OUT: Feb 5
Much-belated animated sequel to Dreamworks’ 2013 original. This time the modern stone-age family find themselves in need of a new home, and temporary house guests of the tree-dwelling Bettermans. Inter-family shenanigans ensue before forces are joined to face an external threat. The voice cast includes Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, Catherine Keener, Cloris Leachman, Clark Duke, Leslie Mann, Peter Dinklage and Kelly Marie Tran.
The Forever Purge
OUT: July 9
Blumhouse’s satirical horror-thriller franchise – about a night of legal criminality that allows Americans to ‘purge’ their inner demons – comes a close (for now, at least) with this fifth instalment. “When I came up with the idea and pitched it to everybody, they seemed psyched,” franchise writer and creator James DeMonaco has said. “I think it will be a really cool ending, how we take this one home.”
The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard
OUT: August 20
Sequel to 2017 action-comedy The Hitman’s Bodyguard, reuniting the original director and cast, and adding Antonio Banderas and Richard E. Grant to the mix. Reynolds plays protection specialist Michael Bryce, here pulled into another mad mission with assassin Darius Kincaid (Samuel L Jackson) and his equally lethal wife Sonia (Salma Hayek). The trio is this time on the side of the good guys as they battle to save Europe from a vengeful and powerful zealot with a dangerously over-developed sense of national pride.
Dune
For his third sci-fi in succession following Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, Villeneuve takes on the apparently impossible: Frank Herbert’s ’60s space opera behemoth Dune. The results promise to be extraordinary. And the fact that this is actually only adapting half of Herbert’s first Dune novel means the sprawling narrative should have space to stretch.
Cinderella
OUT: Feb 5
With Disney’s hugely successful Kenneth Branagh-directed version still a relatively recent memory, this is Sony’s own live-action take on the slipper-y fairytale. James Corden is the driving force behind this modern musical update, with producing and story credits, and a role in front of the camera as a footman. Camila Cabello is Cinders. Minnie Driver is the queen and Kay Cannon (Blockers) is the screenwriter and director.
