10 Anticipated Movies for 2023

Will we see the new Martin Scorsese movie this year?

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Disney

It’s time to look ahead to the 2023 movies coming this year. As usual, there promises to be plenty of movies based on existing IP, sequels, and the like. Some movies should be on your radar even if they don’t have the marketing push some of these other mega movies have. They can be found behind the paywall if you’d like to learn more about the movies of 2023.

Some things have changed since last year in regard to movie releases. There weren’t any more COVID-19 delays, but HBO Max ended its day-and-date releases so Warner Bros. titles have been taking a little longer to hit streaming (specific stuff like Elvis and Black Adam). On the other side, more prestigious titles like Tár and The Fabelmans debuted on streaming quickly after their theatrical runs. I expect some of that to continue in 2023, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see studios mix things up further so titles don’t get lost in the dust of the bigger blockbusters.

So many movies were released in 2022 (I bet you didn’t know there was a new Will Smith movie released on Apple TV+ for instance!), but hopefully I’ll list some below that you’ll keep on your radar throughout 2023. We’ll hope for more hits than misses in the quality of these movies.

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Anticipated Movies of 2023

John Wick 4 (3/24/23 Theaters)

Directed by Chad Stahelski and starring Keanu Reeves, Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgard, Ian McShane, Laurence Fishburne, and more.

I’m a huge fan of the John Wick movies. They have incredible choreography and despite (or because of) the extreme violence these movies can be hilarious in their absurdity. Chapter 4 continues John’s saga as he tries to take down the High Table. Expect director Stahelski and Reeves to up the ante on crazy stunts once again. Also notable is the addition of Donnie Yen who played the martial arts legend IP Man in multiple movies.

Super Mario Bros. (4/7/23 Theaters)

Directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic (collaborators on Teen Titans Go!, Teen Titans Go! To the Movies) from a screenplay by Matthew Fogel (The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part, Minions: The Rise of Gru). The film stars Chris Pratt as Mario, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Charlie Day as Luigi, Jack Black as Bowser, and many more.

While I’m not entirely sold on the voice-acting cast, I do admit to being excited to see an animated Mario movie on the big screen. Nintendo did try to bring the Plummer to the big screen once before in 1993, but that movie is probably better forgotten. The studio behind The Minions movies (Illumination) is in charge of bringing this to the big screen and their non-Minions movies have been pretty solid. If nothing else this will be a big nostalgia fest for those who grew up with Mario (like me) and I’ll have to see that.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 (5/5/23 Theaters)

Directed by James Gunn and starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan, and more.

After being fired and then hired back, Director James Gunn can wrap up his Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy before he works for DC Comics. The cast is all here, including some other new characters like the previously hinted-at Adam Warlock (Will Poulter). I like these movies and even the Christmas special that was released on Disney+ was entertaining if not a bit minor. I think it’s the chemistry of this cast that’s really special and I’ll be to see their adventure finish.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One) (6/2/23 Theaters)

Directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson.

(This was delayed a year so that the animation team could get it right. Considering how fantastic the first Spider-Verse movie was, I’m happy they were given more time.)

The first sequel to the Academy Award-winning animated film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is due in October and I can’t wait for this one. The first one is easily the best Spider-Man film ever made, and influenced so many different artists in the animation medium.

Elemental (6/16/23 Theaters)

Directed by Peter Sohn

I’m a sucker for original Pixar movies and this one could fall into the category of great like Inside Out or forgettable like Onward. Here’s hoping it’s more Inside Out.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (6/30/23 Theaters)

Directed by James Mangold (Logan, Ford V Ferrari) and starring Harrison Ford, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Antonio Banderas, John Rhys-Davies, and Mads Mikkelsen.

The first Indiana Jones movie to be directed by someone other than Steven Spielberg. I’m not worried, in fact, I’m probably more interested than I should be. Composer John Williams will be back to score the movie (supposedly his last film score ever). Do you know who else is back? Harrison Ford! Given the advancements in technology, the stunts the franchise has always been known for will likely be there, even as Ford celebrates his 81st birthday by the time the movie launches. After what some people consider to be the weakest Indiana Jones movie, hopefully, this one can give the send-off to this iconic character that fans crave.

Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One (7/14/23 Theaters)

Directed by Christoper McQuarrie and starring Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, and more.

Tom Cruise loves the movies. Check out his commitment to outrageous stunts with this new nine-minute featurette that was released at Christmas time. After his most successful film ever Top Gun: Maverick, Cruise is going to be releasing the first of a two-part Mission: Impossible movie, Dead Reckoning. Not much is known about the plot of this one, but expect double agents, beautiful locations, and big-time stunts. The last Mission: Impossible movie is probably my favorite in the lengthy franchise, so I’m not afraid that this team has run out of steam yet.

How Do You Live? (7/14/23 Theaters, Japan)

Directed by Hayao Miyazaki

(I’ve added this to the web version of the newsletter.)

There isn’t too much known about Miyazaki’s newest and potentially last movie. The world-famous animation director has brought some of the best-animated features ever to life with movies like Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, and The Wind Rises. Many thought he was done making movies, but now a decade later he’ll add one more to his resume and cannot wait to see it. Not sure when we’ll see it stateside, but I’d be shocked if it didn’t come out by the end of the year.

Barbie (7/21/23 Theaters)

Directed by Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Little Women) and starring Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Helen Mirren, Ncuti Gatwa, and more.

Over the holiday a teaser trailer was released for Barbie and it’s a hilarious sendup on the classic 2001: A Space Odyssey. It took a long time to get a Barbie movie off the ground (Comedian Amy Schumer was once considered for the title role), but this iteration has a great cast and crew behind it.

Oppenheimer (7/21/23 Theaters)

Directed by Christopher Nolan (Inception, Tenet) and starring Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Rami Malek, Emily Blunt, and more.

After Nolan publicly disagrees with how his movie Tenet was released and HBO’s plans to release movies day-and-date on HBO Max, he pitched his new movie to studios. Universal won the bid and release the movie this summer where it promises to be one of most star-studded casts of the entire year. The movie will follow the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer whose contributions to science led to the creation of the atomic bomb. Right now it’s set to open on the same day as Barbie, and I think that might still work. Either that or Warner Bros. is still mad that Nolan left.

Dune: Part Two (11/03/23 Theaters)

Directed by Denis Villeneuve and starring Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Austin Butler, and more.

Villeneuve and Warner Bros. took a risk by splitting Dune into two movies. It’s a big enough story to support it, but when the movie launched there was no guarantee that it would make enough money to support adapting the second half of the book. Thankfully, it was a success and now we’ll see part two in theaters this November. Joining the already terrific cast is Florence Pugh as Princess Irulan and 2022 breakout star Austin Butler (Elvis) in the role that Sting played in the 1980s adaptation.

Paramount and Apple TV+

Killers of the Flower Moon (2023, Theaters and Apple TV+)

(This one was also pushed to 2023, but Scorsese movies have a habit of coming out when they’re done, no matter how long. There are rumors that the movie is eyeing a Cannes 2023 release in May, but no matter what this one is going to be an awards contender.)

Directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jesse Plemons, Robert De Niro, Brendan Fraser, John Lithgow, Lily Gladstone, and more.

Based on a 2017 novel of the same name by David Grann, Killers of the Flower Moon is about a series of murders of wealthy Osage people that took place in Osage County, OK during the 1920s. These murders were mostly done to rob big oil deposits found under their land. A Scorsese movie is always worth getting excited about and with a cast like this—expect to hear a lot more about this one in the months to come.

If you’d like to take a look at more anticipated movies for 2023, you can visit the It’s the Pictures Letterboxd page. Stay tuned for the podcast episode later in January that will discuss even more movies!