Summer is here, bringing with it more entertainment options than barbecues. Whether you’re in the mood for a touching family tale about an anthropomorphic seashell, an adaptation of your book club's favorite read, or the latest blockbuster superhero outing, this year's summer slate has something for everyone.
Memorial Day weekend traditionally kicks off summer at the movies, and this year's holiday kicks off with one helluva blockbuster: Top Gun: Maverick, courtesy of the movie star of all movie stars, Tom Cruise. As far as tentpoles goes, the summer slate includes juggernauts like Jurassic World: Dominion and Thor: Love and Thunder, plus major studio releases in the form of Jordan Peele's latest horror movie, Baz Luhrmann's Elvis biopic and the new Brad Pitt action flick. The Indie side of summer will see a selection of the best of the fests debut, alongside auteur entries (the new Cronenberg!) and multiple Jane Austen adaptations.
Check out the list below to begin planning your movie theater and/or streaming adventures for June, July, and August. (With some must-see May titles includes, because it's never too early for summer, right?)
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Doctor Strange's magical meddling will unleash a multiverse of new threats in this spooky take on superheroics from director Sam Raimi. Benedict Cumberbatch is back as the eponymous doc, as are Elizabeth Olsen's newly-anointed Scarlet Witch and Benedict Wong's Sorcerer Supreme, with Xochitl Gomez joining the MCU as the universe-hopping America Chavez.
Watch: In theaters on May 6
READ: Everything to Know About 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness'
Downton Abbey: A New Era
In this sequel to the Emmy-winning series and the 2019 film, everyone's favorite aristocrats head to the South of France. The returning original cast is joined by Downton newcomers Hugh Dancy, Laura Haddock, Nathalie Baye and Dominic West. Creator Julian Fellowes is once again behind the script, with filmmaker Simon Curtis assuming directing duties.
Watch: In theaters on May 18
READ: Everything to Know About 'Downton Abbey: A New Era'
Top Gun: Maverick
It's been 36 years since Tony Scott's Top Gun hit theaters in the spring of '86. Now, Joseph Kosinski's Top Gun: Maverick returns Tom Cruise's Captain Pete Mitchell to the big screen to instruct a new generation of hot shot recruits played by Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, Monica Barbaro, Danny Ramirez, Jay Ellis and Manny Jacinto. Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm and Ed Harris also star.
Watch: In theaters on May 27
GALLERY: Remembering 'Top Gun' Director Tony Scott's Daring Career
The Bob's Burgers Movie
Downton Abbey isn't the only TV series getting the big screen treatment. The Belchers — Bob, Linda, Tina, Gene and Louise — are getting their very own movie, which sees the family dealing with a sinkhole in front of their restaurant that threatens to ruin their summer. The Bob's Burgers Movie hails from original creator Loren Bouchard and longtime series director Bernard Derriman.
Watch: In theaters on May 27
READ: How Loren Bouchard Adapted 'Bob's Burgers' for the Big Screen (Exclusive)
ALSO OUT IN MAY:
On the Count of Three (Jerrod Carmichael's directorial debut, in select theaters on May 13)
Senior Year (starring Rebel Wilson, out May 13 on Netflix)
Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (the reboot you never knew you needed, out May 20 on Disney+)
The Valet (starring Eugenio Derbez and Samara Weaving, out May 20 on Hulu)
Fire Island
It only took 200 years, but we're finally getting the gay Pride and Prejudice of our dreams. Directed by Spa Night's Andrew Ahn, this loose adaptation of the classic stars Joel Kim Booster and Bowen Yang as best friends at the center of a very modern, very queer and very Jane Austen-y rom-com. Also starring Conrad Ricamora, James Scully, Matt Rogers and Margaret Cho.
Watch: On Hulu streaming June 3
Halftime
Jennifer Lopez has been working in entertainment for over 30 years, breaking barriers and setting records (she once had the number one album and the number one movie in the country in the same week). And it's clear she has zero intentions of slowing down. Now, her Netflix documentary provides a behind the scenes look inside Lopez’s life, career, and non-stop hustle.
Watch: On Netflix streaming June 8
Hustle
The more serious side of Adam Sandler comes out again in this sports drama about a down-on-his-luck basketball scout, Stanley Sugarman, who discovers a once-in-a-lifetime basketball star abroad (real-life Utah Jazz player Juancho Hernangómez). The unlikely duo return to the States together to take on the NBA. Hustle counts Lebron James as one of its producers.
Watch: On Netflix streaming June 8
Jurassic World Dominion
Jurassic World Dominion fulfills a promise 30 years in the making: Dinosaurs have taken over the world. The reboot threequel also brings together stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard with original Jurassic Park stars Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum — returning to their iconic roles of doctors Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler and Ian Malcolm, respectively — with Colin Trevorrow at the helm.
Watch: In theaters June 10
Cha Cha Real Smooth
In writer-director Cooper Raiff's sophomore feature, he plays 20-something Andrew, who moves back home after graduating college. When he begins moonlighting as a bar mitzvah party starter, Andrew befriends a single mother, Domino (Dakota Johnson), and gets a glimpse of a future he wants. Cha Cha Real Smooth premiered during this year's Sundance Film Festival, where it won the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award.
Watch: On Apple TV+ streaming June 17 and in select theaters
Good Luck To You, Leo Grande
Two-time Oscar winner Emma Thompson headlines as a retired school teacher and widow who has never experienced an orgasm. So, she takes matters into her own hands and hires a sex worker, the charming Leo Grande (Daryl McCormack), to help her achieve her dream of good sex. The romantic comedy hails from director Sophie Hyde from a script by English comedian Katy Brand.
Watch: On Hulu streaming June 17
READ: Emma Thompson Discusses Her Bold Performance in 'Good Luck to You, Leo Grande'
Lightyear
According to Toy Story lore, Buzz Lightyear is a toy modeled after a character in a sci-fi blockbuster. Now, Pixar is releasing that movie, with Chris Evans voicing the "real" Buzz Lightyear. Marooned on a hostile planet 4.2 million light-years from Earth, Buzz enlists a crew of Space Ranger (voiced by Uzo Aduba, Keke Palmer and Taika Waititi) and a cute robot cat named Sox to take on the villainous Zurg (James Brolin).
Watch: In theaters on June 17
Official Competition
Can a millionaire, an auteur, a Hollywood heartthrob and a theatre legend come together to make the greatest movie in cinematic history? In this satire, Penélope Cruz stars as revered filmmaker Lola Cuevas, who accepts an entrepreneur's impulsive offer to finance her next movie. To play her leads, Lola casts A-list movie star Félix Rivero (Antonio Banderas) and stage legend Iván Torres (Oscar Martínez), who just happen to be bitter nemeses.
Watch: In theaters on June 17
The Black Phone
Bestselling horror writer Joe Hill’s story was adapted by director Scott Derrickson, with Ethan Hawke cast as a serial killer called The Grabber, whose latest victim has a telepathic link to the killer's previous victims. The film premiered during last year's Fantastic Fest and marked a return to horror films for Hawke (The Purge) and for Derrickson (Sinister).
Watch: In theaters on June 24
Elvis
Elvis Presley is getting the biopic treatment, Baz Luhrmann-style. Austin Butler plays the King of Rock and Roll over multiple decades of his career, with Tom Hanks as Colonel Tom Parker, the manager who first discovered Presley. Meanwhile, the ensemble cast portrays the likes of Priscilla Presley, Jimmie Rodgers, Little Richard and the Godmother of Rock 'n Roll, Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
Watch: In theaters on June 24
Marcel the Shell With Shoes On
Everyone's favorite shoe-wearing seashell sets out on his biggest adventure yet, leaving his quaint existence with his grandmother Connie (Isabella Rossellini) and pet lint, Alan, to find his long-lost family. Jenny Slate (who voices Marcel) wrote the screenplay with Nick Paley and Dean Fleischer-Camp, who directs and appears in the movie as Dean, the documentarian who first discovered Marcel.
Watch: In theaters on June 24
ALSO OUT IN JUNE:
Crimes of the Future (David Cronenberg brings baby body horror, in theaters June 3)
Watcher (starring Maika Monroe, in theaters June 3)
Lost Illusions (the Cesar Award-winning Best Picture, in theaters June 10)
Brian and Charles (the must-see Sundance oddball, in theaters June 17)
Jerry & Marge Go Large (starring Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening, on Paramount+ June 17)
Spiderhead (Chris Hemsworth goes sci-fi, on Netflix June 17)
Minions: The Rise of Gru
We learned a little about the origins of The Minions, the goofy little banana-hued assistants to wannabe supervillain Gru (Steve Carell) in their first solo movie. Now in Minions: The Rise of Gru, we’ll learn how they came to work alongside their beloved boss, as we get a prequel featuring a 12-year-old Gru and his desperate desire to become the most despicable person in the world. The animated comedy also features the voices of Jean-Claude Van Damme, Alan Arkin, Taraji. P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, and Julie Andrews.
Watch: In theaters on July 1
Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song
The definitive documentary about the late, great singer-songwriter reflect on the legacy of Leonard Cohen through the prism of the eponymous hit hymn. Hallelujah is as much a look into Cohen's creative process in recording the song as it is a cultural account of its influence on music as we knew it. With Cohen's blessing, the movie includes a wealth of never-before-seen footage.
Watch: In theaters in New York and L.A. on July 1
Thor: Love and Thunder
Chris Hemsworth's Thor has become possibly the funniest Avenger in the bunch, thanks to Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi. They're back at it again in Thor: Love and Thunder, which finds the wayward God of Thunder and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), the new Mighty Thor, taking on a god-butchering super-villain called — what else? — Gorr the God Butcher (played by Oscar winner Christian Bale)
Watch: In theaters on July 8
Don't Make Me Go
John Cho stars as a father with a terminal brain tumor embarking on a road trip with his teenage daughter. They're looking for the mother who abandoned her years ago, as he also tries to prepare her for life after he's gone. The heartfelt drama premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and was written by This Is Us writer and producer Vera Herbert — so you know it's going to hit you right in the feels.
Watch: On Amazon Prime Video streaming July 15
Where The Crawdads Sing
Based on the bestselling Delia Owens novel, Where the Crawdads Sing follows the story of Kya (Daisy Edgar-Jones), who was abandoned as a young girl and raised herself in the isolated marshes of North Carolina. As an adult, Kya finds herself accused of murdering local golden boy Chase Andrews (Harris Dickinson).
Watch: In theaters on July 15
The Gray Man
Ryan Gosling is the eponymous Gray Man, an off-the-books CIA asset who unwittingly uncovers agency secrets. So, his psychotic ex-colleague, Lloyd Hansen (Chris Evans), is tasked with taking him out. Regé-Jean Page, Jessica Henwick, Dhanush, Wagner Moura and Alfre Woodard also star in the action from Avengers: Endgame directors The Russo Brothers.
Watch: In theaters and streaming on Netflix on July 15
Nope
Daniel Kaluuya reunites with Jordan Peele for the first time since starring in his Oscar-winning 2017 thriller Get Out. Kaluuya and Keke Palmer star in the film as play horse trainers in an isolated town that experiences a mysterious event in the sky. Universal Pictures hypes that Nope "reimagines the summer movie with a new pop nightmare."
Watch: In theaters on July 22
ALSO OUT IN JULY:
The Sea Beast (from Oscar-winning Big Hero Six director Chris Williams, on Netflix July 8)
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (starring Lesley Manville, in theaters July 15)
Persuasion (Dakota Johnson gets her Jane Austen on, on Netflix July 15)
Anything's Possible (Billy Porter makes his directorial debut, on Prime Video July 22nd)
Vengeance (B.J. Novak makes a murder podcast, in theaters July 29)
Bodies Bodies Bodies
Light as a feather, stiff as a board has nothing on Bodies Bodies Bodies, the party game at the center of A24's upcoming slasher. Set at a mansion during a hurricane, the film follows a group of privileged Gen Zers whose binge drinking and general debauchery leads to a round of "Bodies Bodies Bodies." The film stars Amandla Stenberg, Rachel Sennott, Chase Sui Wonders and Oscar nominee Maria Bakalova, plus Pete Davidson.
Watch: In theaters Aug. 5
Bullet Train
Based on the novel by Japanese author Kōtarō Isaka, Bullet Train stars Brad Pitt as one of a handful of hit men aboard the titular high-speed locomotive who discover their missions are entwined. Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry, Joey King and Andrew Koji round out the colorful cast of assassins, with an ensemble that also includes Michael Shannon, Zazie Beetz, Logan Lerman, Bad Bunny, Masi Oka and Sandra Bullock.
Watch: In theaters on Aug. 5
Resurrection
In this psychological thriller, Rebecca Hall stars as Margaret, a seemingly stable and successful woman whose life unravels when her past comes back to haunt her. The film, which co-stars Tim Roth and thrilled at this year's Sundance Film Festival, has already begun to earn a reputation for its wild twists.
Watch: In theaters on Aug. 5
Day Shift
Jamie Foxx delivers a heart-warming father/daughter story with a twist: vampires. Foxx plays a humble pool cleaner in the San Fernando Valley trying to support his kid — but his real job involves hunting and killing vampires. The action comedy co-stars Dave Franco and Snoop Dogg.
Watch: On Netflix streaming Aug. 12
Breaking
Star Wars alumnus John Boyega stars in this fact-based drama as Brian Brown-Easley, a Marine whose return home put him in such dire financial straits that he resorts to a bomb threat. Previously titled 892, the film won the Special Jury Award for Ensemble Cast (U.S. Dramatic Competition) at this year's Sundance Film Festival and co-stars Nicole Beharie, Connie Britton, and the late Michael K. Williams in his final film role.
Watch: In theaters Aug. 26
Three Thousand Years of Longing
Oscar-winning visionary George Miller's Three Thousand Years of Longing is a romantic fantasia featuring magic, mystery and a pointy eared Idris Elba. Tilda Swinton plays Dr. Alithea Binnie, an intellectual in Istanbul for a conference who happens upon Idris Elba's Djinn, who offers to grant her three wishes in exchange for his freedom.
Watch: In theaters on Aug. 31
ALSO OUT IN AUGUST:
Easter Sunday (starring Jo Koy, in theaters Aug. 5)
Luck (Apple TV+ gets into animation, streaming August 5)
Prey (the surprise Predator prequel, on Hulu Aug. 5.)
Am I OK? (from Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne, on HBO Max Aug. 11)
13: The Musical (the Broadway show comes to Netflix, streaming Aug. 12)
Beast (Idris Elba vs. a lion, in theaters Aug. 19)
Me Time (starring Mark Wahlberg and Kevin Hart, on Netflix Aug. 26)
