Summer Box Office 2024 Predictions

Will this summer see a repeat of the Barbie and Oppenheimer smash?

Deadpool & Wolverine, Disney

Last year I picked up the Summer Movie Contest again here on the It’s the Pictures newsletter. I had Barbie pretty low on my list. Well, we all know how that turned out! There was simply no comp for it and frankly no comp after it—I’m not sure what the next sensation will be and if I did I probably wouldn’t be writing this newsletter! But with another summer comes more movies trying to earn our cold hard cash.

Sequels continue to be the heavy hitters with eight of my selections falling into that bracket. Studios continue to rely on predictable brands and faces to sell their blockbuster product. That means a smaller chance of something truly unique breaking out. This is also the first year in a long time that Disney will release only one Marvel movie in a calendar year. Whether it was due to diminishing returns on Superhero movies or too much of a time crunch with the strikes from 2023, this summer’s big superhero smash has something to prove.

According to Fandango, these are the top anticipated movies of summer 2024:

1. Deadpool & Wolverine

2. Bad Boys: Ride or Die

3. Despicable Me 4

4. A Quiet Place: Day One

5. Inside Out 2

6. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

7. The Watchers

8. The Fall Guy

9. The Garfield Movie

10. Borderlands

While I’m surprised at a few of these (I’m still not sure what The Watchers is), this list is a dependable guide as to what should do good business this summer. My bet is this summer will be a bit lighter in terms of box office smashes.

Scroll down for the full list, trailers, and other recommendations.