After a strike-struck year that wreaked havoc on Hollywood, we’re all excited for the 2024 movie release calendar to return to normal—and to finally give us an opportunity to lay eyes on several must-see projects that may have landed on our list of the best movies of 2023, had they not been shuttled off to the following year. Though this list easily could have been twice as long, these are the 22 films that really have us counting down the days, from enormous franchise extensions (hello, Dune 2!) to teeny indies that pack a punch (that’s you, Janet Planet).

The Book of Clarence

• Release Date: January 12
• Studio: Sony
• Director: Jeymes Samuel
• Noteworthy Cast: LaKeith Stanfield, Omar Sy, Alfre Woodard, David Oyelowo, Teyana Taylor

It’s not an American Life of Brian, but it’s not not an American Life of Brian. LaKeith Stanfield stars as the titular wannabe prophet, a Bibical-era schemer who takes all the wrong lessons from his contemporary Jesus Christ (Nicholas Pinnock). Expect swords-and-sandals-era irreverence, and several cameos from big-name stars as New Testament figures (Oyelowo, for instance, pops up for a single scene to play John the Baptist).

Mean Girls 

• Release Date: January 12
• Studio: Paramount
• Director: Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr.
• Noteworthy Cast: Angourie Rice, Reneé Rapp, Auli’i Cravalho, Tina Fey

Though you wouldn’t know it from the trailer, this new spin on Fey’s classic high-school comedy is, in fact, a musical—one based on the Broadway Mean Girls, featuring a book by Fey and songs by her husband, Jeff Richmond. (Legally Blonde: The Musical alum Nell Benjamin wrote the lyrics.) Even without the dance breaks, it’s not a shot-for-shot remake of the original; the story has been updated for the TikTok era, though the more things change, the more they stay the same. As Bebe Wood’s Gretchen Weiners puts it on Halloween: “Cady, if you don’t dress slutty, that is slut-shaming us.”

Drive-Away Dolls 

• Release Date: February 23
• Studio: Focus
• Director: Ethan Coen
• Noteworthy Cast: Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan, Beanie Feldstein, Colman Domingo

This long-gestating comedy—Coen’s first narrative feature made without his brother, Joel—was originally titled Drive-Away Dykes, which should give us some idea of its sensibility. The trailer paints the movie as a modern-day exploitation flick mixed with Thelma and Louise, with Viswanathan playing the more buttoned-up member of that duo, and Qualley as the freer spirit. There are a bunch more stars slated to appear in it as well, including Pedro Pascal, Bill Camp, and Matt Damon—which may be why Focus delayed its appearance from September to February, to avoid the actors’ strike.

Dune Part 2 

• Release Date: March 15
• Studio: Warner Bros. 
• Director: Denis Villeneuve
• Noteworthy Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Austin Butler

“It’s important—it’s not a sequel, it’s a second part. There’s a difference,” Villeneuve told VF for our exclusive first look at the next chapter in his blockbuster space saga. That second part will pick up with Chalamet’s Paul Atreides as he learns to embrace the power of the desert, becoming a full-fledged Fremen—that’s the tribe of warriors to which Zendaya, as his love interest Chani, belongs—and leading them in a counterattack that will avenge his fallen family. We’ll also meet a host of new characters, chief among them Pugh’s Princess Irulan and Butler’s Feyd-Rautha, who may just be larger than life: As Villeneuve put it, “Austin Butler brought to the screen something that would be a cross between a psychotic, sociopath serial killer and Mick Jagger.”

The American Society of Magical Negroes 

• Release Date: March 22
• Studio: Focus
• Director: Kobi Libii
• Noteworthy Cast: Justice Smith, David Alan Grier, An-Li Bogan, Drew Tarver

This satire marks the directorial debut of comedian and actor Kobi Libii, best known at this point for appearances on two Comedy Central series with Jordan Klepper. With Focus Features distributing it and a Sundance premiere set, it’s already pretty high-profile for a debut feature. But Libii has bona fides—he’s a graduate of both Sundance’s screenwriter and director labs. It’s pretty hard to beat the punchy description too: “A fresh, satirical comedy about a young man, Aren, who is recruited into a secret society of magical Black people who dedicate their lives to a cause of utmost importance: making white people’s lives easier.”

Mickey 17 

• Release Date: March 29
• Studio: Warner Bros. 
• Director: Bong Joon-ho
• Noteworthy Cast: Robert Pattinson, Toni Collette, Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Mark Ruffalo

How can a movie with such a short teaser already have so much attention? Well, it’s Bong Joon-ho’s follow-up to Parasite, and the latest in Robert Pattinson’s seemingly career-long effort to work with every exciting auteur alive. The premise sounds pretty sci-fi—familiar territory for the director of Snowpiercer and The Host—but also with plenty of room for surprise. Here’s how the studio describes it: “A disposable employee is sent on a human expedition to colonize the ice world Niflheim. After one iteration dies, a new body is regenerated with most of his memories intact.”

Challengers 

• Release Date: April 26
• Studio: Amazon/MGM
• Director: Luca Guadagnino
• Noteworthy Cast: Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, Mike Faist

Why has the trailer for this tennis movie been viewed more than 9.2 million times in the last six months? Put it this way: People really, really want to see Zendaya caught in a love triangle—or a threesome? Or a full-fledged throuple?—with Prince Charles and Riff from West Side Story. And of course, the action is overseen by Guadagnino, who cut his teeth on the poignantly stylish sex of Call Me By Your Name. The world was left reeling when the strikes prompted Amazon to cancel the film’s planned Venice premiere and shunt it off to the spring; may we all be satisfied when we finally see it next year.

Civil War 

• Release Date: April 26
• Studio: A24
• Director: Alex Garland
• Noteworthy Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny, Wagner Moura, Nick Offerman

It’s become tiresome to complain about “the discourse,” either in earnest or in jest, but it does seem like a lot of people will have a lot to say about Garland’s latest nightmare, which its distributor calls “an adrenaline-fueled thrill ride through a near-future fractured America balanced on the razors edge.” More specifically: 19 states have seceded in Garland’s near-future USA, as a despotic president (Offerman) promises to deal “swiftly” with the uprising by any means necessary. Releasing a movie like this during an especially contentious election year? What could possibly go wrong?

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga 

• Release Date: May 24
• Studio: Warner Bros. 
• Director: George Miller
• Noteworthy Cast: Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth

There’s a lot of dystopian gobbledygook to parse in the official description for the next chapter in Miller’s Mad Max saga—the Green Place of Many Mothers! The Citadel! Immortan Joe! The Warlord Dementus! Really, though, all you need to know is that Taylor-Joy looks ready to kick ass as the younger version of Charlize Theron’s iconic hero, with Hemsworth suiting up as her chief biker foe. (We think? Again, this description has a lot going on.) May she ride eternal, shiny and chrome.

Inside Out 2

• Release Date: June 14
• Studio: Disney
• Director: Kelsey Mann
• Noteworthy Cast: Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Tony Hale, Liza Lapira, Maya Hawke

The original Inside Out ended on a clever joke: With all of preteen Riley’s emotions back in order, Amy Poehler’s Joy says contentedly, “After all, Riley’s 12 now. What could happen?” Those adolescent chickens are coming home to roost in Inside Out 2, with the addition of Anxiety (voiced by Maya Hawke) to the emotional control room. It’s the first Pixar sequel since 2022’s dubiously received spin-off Lightyear, so the pressure will be on to prove that there’s more story—and not just more money—to be found in the world of Inside Out.

The Bikeriders 

• Release Date: June 21
• Studio: Focus
• Director: Jeff Nichols
• Noteworthy Cast: Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, Michael Shannon, Mike Faist

This ’60s biker gang has traveled a long road since their film debuted at the Telluride Film Festival this past August. Originally, it was slated to be released December 1 by 20th Century Studios; after the strikes and a surprise sale to Focus, it’s now been rescheduled for June. “I’m sure it’s wrapped up in all of my insecurities and other things, but I left that screening kind of just wondering if people would get the thing that I was doing,” Nichols told VF’s Rebecca Ford shortly after that world premiere. After a bit of shuffling, he’ll finally learn the answer.

Beetlejuice 2

• Release Date: September 6
• Studio: Warner Bros. 
• Director: Tim Burton
• Noteworthy Cast: Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Jenna Ortega, Catherine O’Hara, Willem Dafoe

Can Jenna Ortega do for the Deetz Family what she’s already done for the Addams Family? That seems to be the very direct goal for this long-in-the-works sequel, which brings back Michael Keaton as the bio-exorcist demon, along with Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara. Ortega is reportedly playing the daughter of Ryder’s character, Lydia. Given the smash success of Netflix’s Wednesday, it actually does feel like the right time for a Beetlejuice sequel—but given that Burton’s last feature film was the quickly forgotten Disney remake Dumbo, it’s difficult to tell if lightning will strike twice.

Joker: Folie à Deux 

• Release Date: October 4
• Studio: Warner Bros. 
• Director: Todd Phillips
• Noteworthy Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Zazie Beetz

What in the world do you get when you put Lady Gaga into the over-the-top, Taxi Driver—inspired world of 2019’s Joker? It’s hard to imagine anyone who could resist the urge to find out, which is why the Joker sequel has been hotly anticipated ever since those first set photos emerged. Gaga is Joker associate Harley Quinn, a role Margot Robbie only recently wrapped up—but beyond that, we don’t know much about the story. Will Phillips find inspiration from other Martin Scorsese movies? Will Joaquin Phoenix give a performance worthy of another Oscar he looks deeply uncomfortable winning? We’ll spend much of 2024 wondering.

Gladiator 2 

• Release Date: November 22
• Studio: Paramount
• Director: Ridley Scott
• Noteworthy Cast: Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal

“Gladiator was one of my favorite films growing up. It’s beyond strange,” Paul Mescal told Vanity Fair in February of booking the lead in this sequel, which takes place approximately 15 years after the best-picture-winning first film. “This all feels more dumbfounding than the Oscar nomination, to be honest.” Just, uh, don’t ask Russell Crowe what he thinks of the movie, in which he will reportedly not appear. “They should be fucking paying me for the amount of questions I’ve had to answer about a fucking film that I’m not even in,” Crowe said in July. “It’s got nothing to do with me; in that world I’m dead, six feet under, and that’s that.”

Wicked: Part One 

• Release Date: November 27
• Studio: Universal 
• Director: Jon M. Chu
• Noteworthy Cast: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater

Though the strikes did a number on the 2024 release calendar, they thankfully will not delay the first of Chu’s two (two!) films based on the blockbuster Broadway musical. Erivo is Elphaba, the belting, misunderstood heroine originally played on Broadway by Idina Menzel; Grande is Glinda, the popular quasi-mean-girl originally played by Kristin Chenoweth. The rest of the main cast is rounded out by Fellow Travelers Bailey as their shared love interest, Fiyero, and Spongebob—sorry, Slater—as goodhearted Boq, who only romances Glinda in real life.

Mufasa: The Lion King 

• Release Date: December 20
• Studio: Disney
• Director: Barry Jenkins
• Noteworthy Cast: Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, John Kani

A prequel for the live-action remake of The Lion King, which grossed $1.6 billion globally, is not a huge surprise. The fact that it’s directed by Moonlight’s Barry Jenkins, however, truly is. What will this genuine auteur add to the photorealistic CGI world first explored by Jon Favreau? The curiosity is likely enough to make anyone overcome their Disney remake skepticism and check it out for themselves.

Untitled Jordan Peele Film 

• Release Date: December 25
• Studio: Universal 
• Director: Jordan Peele
• Noteworthy Cast: Who knows!

We know literally two things about Jordan Peele’s next movie. One: It is a movie directed by Jordan Peele, of Get Out, Us, and Nope fame. Two: It’s coming out December 25, 2024. Will previous Peele collaborators like Daniel Kaluuya, Lupita Nyong’o, Keke Palmer, or Steven Yeun make an appearance? Will the film be visually arresting and psychologically unsettling, raising high-minded questions about the way we live now? Will the title be terse? Your guess is as good as ours, pal!

Nosferatu 

• Release Date: December 25
• Studio: Focus 
• Director: Robert Eggers
• Noteworthy Cast: Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, Ralph Ineson, Simon McBurney, Willem Dafoe

Coming from the director of The Witch, The Lighthouse, and The Northman, this take on the classic horror tale promises to be a stylish and inventive update, and maybe exactly the kind of Christmas Day counterprogramming the holiday season needs. The original film, which turned 100 last year, was a landmark in German expressionism and remains an iconic part of vampire lore. It’s a high bar, to be clear, but if there’s anything we’ve learned from Robert Eggers’s filmmaking career to this point, the man loves a challenge.

His Three Daughters 

• Release Date: Undated
• Studio: Netflix
• Director: Azazel Jacobs
• Noteworthy Cast: Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen

A surprise tearjerker when it premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in September of 2023, His Three Daughters is an extremely intimate, deeply felt drama about three sisters gathering to await the imminent death of their father. Filmed almost entirely in a New York City apartment, and featuring the kinds of intense monologues you might associate with theater, the film from Azazel Jacobs is still incredibly cinematic—and not just because of the hypnotizing power of a Natasha Lyonne close-up. Picked up by Netflix after the festival, it’s a small film that might play well on the streaming platform, but is one of the 2024 movies worthy of a full-fledged awards push when the time comes.

La Chimera 

• Release Date: Undated
• Studio: Neon
• Director: Alice Rohrwacher
• Noteworthy Cast: Josh O’Connor, Isabella Rossellini, Carol Duarte

Funny, stylish, and a little bit surreal, this film from Alice Rohrwacher (Oscar-nominated this year for her short Le pupille) played a number of fall festivals in 2023 but was held by Neon for a full release in 2024. For O’Connor, who also has Challengers on the horizon, it’s yet another fresh and surprising choice: the story of a criminal archaeologist who gets involved in both of a ring of people stealing Etruscan artifacts, and also a crumbling mansion full of red-headed sisters and Rossellini’s imposing matriarch.

Hit Man 

• Release Date: Undated
• Studio: Netflix
• Director: Richard Linklater
• Noteworthy Cast: Glen Powell, Adria Arjona

Though it was picked up by Netflix after its blockbuster premieres at the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals, Hit Man is a movie that really ought to be seen on the big screen, and we’re hoping against hope Netflix might at least give it a Glass Onion–style wide release. It’s not that it’s a visual spectacle or something so grand it can’t be seen on the small screen: Hit Man is just a blast to watch with a group, the story of a mild-mannered professor and police consultant (Powell) who winds up pretending to be a hit man to catch anyone who might be criminally minded enough to try and hire one. Powell’s chemistry with Arjona, as a woman who tries to hire him, would be enough to power a rom-com, but this caper makes for an even more enjoyable vehicle for their talents. Even if you do wind up watching it at home, at least gather a group—we promise it’s worth it.

Janet Planet 

• Release Date: Undated
• Studio: A24
• Director: Annie Baker
• Noteworthy Cast: Julianne Nicholson, Zoe Ziegler

Celebrated playwright Annie Baker packs a wallop in her fall festival darling, an intimate and idiosyncratic film about an unusually close mother-daughter pair. “There is a particular feeling that I associate with being 11 and the way you relate to adults and nature and context that feels very particular to me,” she told VF’s own David Canfield this summer. “Being an 11-year-old girl is about looking, but also looking at yourself being looked at.” Janet Planet expresses that feeling in a painfully accurate way; expect your smartest friends to rave about it when they finally see it at some undisclosed date next year.