2021's Most Anticipated Movies

Not every year is the same as 2021. Most hype lists get released late in the year and we have a few early surprises. 2021 is going to look and feel different than most. Warner Bros. Pictures has their entire slate releasing on HBO Max, Netflix is promising a film a week basically for the entire year. Already having released some powerhouse movies, every studio is going to jockey for position later in the year with their big releases. These are the Ten Films scheduled for release as of March or later that get my attention the most for a variety of different reasons.

10. The Forever Purge (July 9, 2021)- The Purge series has continued to up the stakes every outing. The premise and titular event has still not overstayed its welcome and with the promise that this is the biggest and boldest entry yet has me intrigued to say the least. If things don't turn around soon this movie may find itself delayed to later in 2021 but as of right now it makes the list.

9. Death On the Nile (September 17,2021)- Originally scheduled for a late 2020 release this one felt the sting already of the Pandemic. Murder on the Orient Express had a beautiful cast and recreated a time period well. I expect that this one given more time will flush out the nuances and tell an even grander story set around Hercule Poirot and his latest caper. The cast list is a jaw dropper just to look at and if it improves on the small things there should be no doubt this film will be a fun little surprise.

8. Ghostbusters: Afterlife (November 12, 2021)- Directly following the original films this should become the latest film to show respect to the original while continuing on in name. The new generation falls to Finn Wolfhard and McKenna Grace both more than capable young actors at carrying a franchise for many years to come. It's been said that Ivan Reitman shead tears when his son Jason showed him the first cut of the movie and that's enough to get me on board for the next generation of Ghostbusters shenanigans.

7. Army of the Dead (TBD, Possibly May 2021)- Zack Snyder says it all. Then you take that man's name and you add in the words Zombie Heist film and you have a film clouded with massive intrigue. Then you check out the cast list and you see Dave Bautista, Omari Hardwick and Theo Rossi all have parts in this movie. Snyder's stylistic and dark approach to filmmaking should be amazing in the lore of zombies and I expect that he will do something unique like he usually aims for with all his other films.

6. The Suicide Squad (August 6, 2021)- Not much is known plot wise about this film. Notable names that have been added include Idris Elba, Sylvester Stallone, John Cena, Nathan Fillion and Pete Davidson along with Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis and Jai Courtney all reprising their roles from the previous film. Gunn brings a certain flare and silliness that will likely return the Suicide Squad to its comic book roots. At least that's the hope we all have for this film after the debacle that ended up being the first film after the interference of Warner Bros.

5. A Quiet Place 2- (September 17,2021)- Hearing of this film's original delay was one of the biggest bummer moments as the first one was a pleasant surprise among rapidly growing stale horror monster products. Krasinski crafted genuine fear and a genuine story worthy of being attached to. It should be easy to slip back in with the Abbott family as we learn more about where they are now and how they came to be the survival family we witnessed in the first film.

4. Godzilla Vs Kong (March 31st, 2021)- This has been a sequel that many people have been long for. It has been a long time coming amidst many attempts at Godzilla and Kong movies that have been relatively hit or miss. The current series has not been without flaws as it seems like every film deals with a new main cast of characters. Yet I expect that everyone involved will finally play second fiddle to the two greatest monsters ever on screen in an epic tale. Count me on the list of people who will be streaming this opening weekend.

3. Halloween Kills (October 15,2021)- There is nothing quite like making a pitch to retcon more than 5 sequels and have the boss of the original be on board with that. However, here we are and that's what Danny McBride and David Gordon Green were able to do with John Carpenter. The return of Jamie Lee Curtis was amazing as was the addition of Judy Greer and the return to the mystery that is Michael Myers. It returned to pure slasher routes and did away with the issues carried out over the course of the many sequels. It has many intrigued to see if they can carry that success over a trilogy or if the magic was a one hit wonder because it went back to its roots.

2. Zack Snyder's Justice League (March 18, 2021)- What a rocky road it has been to reach this point for Zack Snyder. Many including myself believed this was an impossibility. It seemingly was until HBO Max was announced. A lot of people are aware of the history as to how Snyder was removed from JL back in early 2017. This is an entirely new film. This is the original vision for the film before he was dismissed during a family tragedy and replaced with Joss Whedon who was tasked with making the film more light hearted and approachable. We see here with Snyder's Justice League that it was always meant to be a darker tone with a more edgy feel to it. Something Snyder used for his first two DCEU outings in Man of Steel and Batman V Superman. However this one shakes out upon release, it is sure to spark a lot of conversation. It's all in on this 4 hour epic Justice League adventure.

1. 007: No Time to Die (October 8, 2021)- Daniel Craig's final outing has seen nothing but turmoil on its way to being delivered to audiences. It's the easy thing to lose interest but where this is his final portrayal and obvious ending to the current plotlines, I cannot help but hold onto hope that this is a rewarding and fitting send off to my favorite Bond. Craig has reset the standard for portraying Bond as he seemed more physically capable and less reliant on his suave and charming personality to secure him the victory. It's the most grounded and real 007 has felt in years and I hope wherever the series goes next continues to deliver these types of spy movies. Ones with character growth and villains that actually serve a purpose.