Ah, San Diego Comic-Con, a time for nerds, geeks and cool kids to all bond over their shared love of big deal entertainment. SDCC has long served as a pep rally for Hollywood’s most hotly anticipated projects, and this year proved no different as the famed Hall H featured the juiciest of movie trailers. Now we know you all have families and jobs and lives that prevent you from staying glued to Twitter so you can track every little thing that’s happening with your favorite superheroes. Lucky for you, we don’t have any personal lives to speak of and are here to house all of the must-see trailers in one convenient location.
You’re welcome.
Justice League (November 17)
It’s as if Warner Bros. is saying, “Hey, you know all those Marvel movies you love? Well, check out Justice League. We’re fun too! Please like us.”
It’s no secret that outside of Wonder Woman, Warner Bros.’ DC Extended Universe is getting its superhero butt handed to it by the MCU. Can Justice League be a money-making crowd-pleaser like The Avengers that helps inspire audience interest for future DCEU projects? Based on this trailer, it’s doubtful.
Thor: Ragnarok (November 3)
The Thor franchise is easily the weak link of the greater MCU, so what better way to reinvigorate the series than by getting one of the most original directors out there in Taika Waititi (Hunt for the Wilderpeople, What We Do in the Shadows)?
Behold, Thor: Ragnarok, one of the weirdest and most vibrant looking superhero films in recent memory. Much like the film’s supporting star, Jeff Goldblum, this trailer oozes with charm, humor and intrigue.
Ready Player One (March 30, 2018)
Based on the Ernest Cline novel of the same name, Ready Player One is a bit of an unknown. On one hand, the source material is great fun and it’s based in that sci-fi adventure pop culture lane that usually performs well at the box office. I mean, there’s the Iron Giant and the DeLorean from Back to the Future…What else do you want?
On the other hand, the legendary Steve Spielberg is in a bit of a slump right now. Four of his last five films have failed to cross $100 million domestically. Will this be Spielberg’s “comeback” or a sign that he may not be connecting with audiences like he once was?
Kingsman: The Golden Circle (September 22)
Kingsman: The Secret Service proved to be a sleeper hit back in 2014 when its anti-James Bond schtick unexpectedly legged it to $414.3 million worldwide. While many accurately pointed out that the original is just two halves of a bad movie sandwiched around the best action sequence of the last decade, we can’t blame Fox for laying claim to the untapped market of adult-skewing R-rated action franchises. Consider Kingsman: The Secret Service as counter programming to all of the PG-13 fluff saturating the market right now.
Pacific Rim: Uprising (February 23, 2018)
It may not be our thing, but we understand the appeal of Guillermo del Toro’s 2013 giant robots vs monsters movie Pacific Rim. While light on story, the film was inventive and BIG. Despite an underwhelming domestic performance, its nearly $310 million overseas was enough to convince WB to move forward with a sequel. Throw in the rising star power of Star Wars’ John Boyega and Uprising could become another modest hit.
The LEGO Ninjango Movie (September 22)
The LEGO Movies just print money. Expect strong opening week numbers (both previous LEGO movies claimed the No. 1 spot in their opening frames) that play well with families looking to get out of the house over the weekend.
Bright (December)
There are a lot of different factors to consider when projecting a movie’s success or failure. But consider this one little factoid: screenwriter Max Landis’ previous two movies, American Ultra and Victor Frankenstein, were both rumored to have failed to recoup their production budgets.
Obviously, Netflix doesn’t operate the same way a traditional movie studio does. But this gritty fantasy drama doesn’t seem like the best use of the cinematic goodwill June’s Okja drummed up.
