For as long as I can remember, I have always loved movies. The smell of artificially buttered popcorn and lukewarm nacho cheese has always filled me with joy and excitement. The feeling of sitting in those chairs and watching a world unfold in front of me is one of my absolute favorite feelings. 2024 so far seems to be a really jam-packed year for movies, and I am looking forward to so many movies throughout the year. So, here is my list of my most anticipated ones.
“Deadpool 3”
I LOVE Deadpool, and I am incredibly excited for the third installment of this movie franchise. Ryan Reynolds has done a fantastic job portraying this Rated R anti-hero, taking the Deadpool I loved on the page and putting that in movie format.
I’m not just excited because of my love for the character, but I am also excited to see how this movie is even going to be done, considering it’s the first Deadpool installment since Disney bought Fox. There is a lot of pressure on this movie because of this purchase since this means that Deadpool could start to be woven into the MCU. But could that even work? How will Deadpool’s very necessary vulgarness be translated into the MCU’s strictly PG-13 style? There is so much that Disney could do with Deadpool and trust me, I will be in the front row to see what they decide to use.
Then, on top of all of that, Hugh Jackman is reprising his role as Wolverine, and I cannot put into words how much I’ve missed this character. Some people have a slight concern about Jackman returning to this character, wondering if he is going to take over this film and make it more of a Wolverine film than a Deadpool one, but I do not have that concern at all. Bringing together two of the most unhinged Marvel characters by the actors who have played them sounds fantastic to me and I cannot wait to see the banter that will definitely occur between Jackman’s Wolverine and Reynolds’ Deadpool.
“Deadpool 3” is set to release on July 26, and you will definitely see me sitting ready to watch that day.
“Inside Out 2”
I promise not all of these are going to be sequels, but I could not make this list without adding “Inside Out 2.” Not only did the original movie have an insane grip on my life for a very long time, but I am also very excited to see what new things they are going to add, especially considering that this movie will follow Riley as a college student when the last time we saw her she was in middle school!
Another reason that I am so excited to see this film is because of the addition of Anxiety, played by Maya Hart. As someone who has struggled with anxiety for a really long time, I love seeing it represented by the media, especially in a film format. However, anxiety isn’t alone because “Inside Out 2” will include Ennui, Embarrassment, and Envy. I have seen a lot of backlash with these new emotions, many people saying that these new emotions add nothing due to Embarrassment being almost the same as Fear or Envy being too similar to Disgust, but in my opinion, taking basic umbrella emotions and adding new more specific ones, is exactly what’s needed to display what it’s like to grow up. Of course, I will acknowledge that there is a bit of a plot hole with that due to Riley’s parents only having the same basic emotions that Riley had in the first film, but I still think it will be very cool to see what these new emotions add to the story and to Riley herself.
Lastly, I’m just excited to see this film because I have genuinely enjoyed a lot of recent Disney/Pixar movies, which I know is a bit of a hot take. Nonetheless, I will definitely have my tickets ready when “Inside Out 2” hits theaters on June 14.
“Challengers”
If you haven’t heard about “Challengers” yet, trust me, you will be on the edge of your seat waiting to see this movie. Basically, it’s a tennis movie but a tennis movie with drama. The fabulous Zendaya portrays Tashi, a once tennis prodigy turned coach who has trained her husband, Art, to become a world-famous grand slam champion. However, he then endures a losing streak, so Tashi makes him play in a Challenger event, which is the lowest level tournament for professional tennis. At this Challenger event, Tashi and Art run into Patrick, a once very promising young tennis player, an ex-best friend of Art, and Tashi’s ex-boyfriend. Doesn’t that sound so interesting?
Look, I may just be a Zendaya lover and want to watch any film she’s in, which I am guilty of, but I am also a huge sucker for a drama film. I wanna see arguing, I wanna see fights, I wanna see heartbreak and betrayal, and that is exactly what this movie is promising. Not only that, but Zendaya trained for three months to learn how to play tennis as well as a prodigy, so best believe I’m gonna go support my girl for all of her hard work.
“Challengers” is set to hit the big screen on April 26, so there is plenty of time to do some research on this movie and watch the trailer to see if you wanna check it out once it’s released. I’ve already clearly made my decision and got my popcorn ready to watch Zendaya play some tennis.
“Arthur The King”
Another thing to know about me is that I love a good feel good, based on true events, animal story. I love them, absolutely adore them and you will always find me in the front row to watch them. “Arthur the King” is exactly that type of movie, a true story about a man, played by Mark Wahlberg, who befriends a loyal and helpful dog on his journey to win the Adventure Racing World Championship. The championship is a 435-mile endurance race throughout the Dominican Republic.
As I said, this is based on a true story in which the real Arthur found Mikael Lindnord during an adventure race in Ecuador, and the two bonded so strongly that after the race, Lindnord took Arthur home to Sweden, making him a new addition to the family. Lindnord then wrote his memoir titled “Arthur: The Dog Who Crossed the Jungle to Find a Home.” Unfortunately, the real Arthur was diagnosed with a malignant tumor and passed away in late 2020, only six weeks before the filming of the movie. That is another reason that I cannot wait to see this film. I think that dogs are so amazing, and they deserve recognition for their amazing stories, and Arthur really deserves this.
If you want to know where I will be on March 22, you can find me at the movies with a large tub of ice cream and a box of tissues ready to see Arthur’s story.
“Venom 3”
Another superhero film series installment about a lovable anti-hero makes the list because I cannot explain my excitement for “Venom 3.” To me, while the Venom movies might not be particularly great cinema, I still highly enjoy watching them, and I know I will also love the third installment.
On top of that, I love Tom Hardy, and I especially love how invested he is in this character and story. Tom Hardy actually wrote much of “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” himself in his iPhone notes app, and if that doesn’t make you laugh, I will just assume that you’re just unfunny. But seriously, I love when it is blatantly obvious that an actor feels really connected to a role, and Hardy does truly love Eddie and Venom.
However, my number one reason why I’m excited to watch “Venom 3” is to see how it is going to connect with the post-credit scene of Eddie and Venom at the end of “Spiderman: No Way Home.” This is obviously a huge make-it-or-break-it moment because they could completely ignore it and leave a plot hole or use it to show the difference in multiverses or as a way to create a new problem for Eddie, knowing that the multiverse is real. If you couldn’t tell, I’m a huge Marvel fan, and this year is looking to be a bit dry for the MCU, so I’m grasping at any crumbs I can get.
In all seriousness, though, I do highly enjoy the Venom films and cannot wait to return to the banter and action that the Venom movies promise on Nov. 8.
These are my most anticipated movies of 2024, and I honestly cannot wait to see them. And who knows, maybe one of them will take the throne for my favorite movie ever. Movies are truly a form of connection to me, and I know many other people feel the same way, so here’s to the cinema world of 2024, and hopefully even more exciting movies come our way in 2025 as well.