Author | Lydia Rice |
Avengers Endgame is undeniably the blockbuster of all blockbusters. It’s kicking off the summer movie season by blowing everyone’s minds and taking their money, so I’ve decided to compile a list of the blockbuster movies lined up to follow it this summer!
1. Aladdin
PG | May 24th | One of two Disney live-action movies premiering this summer, Aladdin stars Will Smith as the Genie, Mena Massoud as Aladdin, and Naomi Scott as Princess Jasmine. The original animated Aladdin is a classic known for its fantastic soundtrack, dynamic characters, and formidable villain. (It’s also my personal favorite Disney movie). While Disney’s Beauty and the Beast generated massive revenue, fans and critics have been more divided about the adaptation as time passed. Audience anticipation for a live-action adaption for Aladdin seems hesitant and it’s hard to tell whether this movie will be a summer star or belly flop right off the box office.
2. Godzilla: King of Monsters
PG-13 | May 31st | Between this movie and Stranger Things season 3, Millie Bobby Brown is raking in both cash and audience hype. While no one expects Godzilla’s latest appearance on the silver screen to be the best cinematic experience ever, audiences are clearly excited for incredible visuals and fun monster fights. I mean really, that’s exactly what makes Godzilla so iconic. This movie has been teasing a “return of the Titans,” which is best interpreted as a bunch of other insanely huge monsters showing up right next to Godzilla and some promising action scenes of CGI giants pummeling each other into the ground. So, if you’re a Millie Bobby Brown stan or you just love seeing the world in an apocalyptic state, this is the summer movie for you.
3. X-Men: Dark Phoenix
Not yet rated | June 7th | This is Fox Studio’s (RIP) second and final attempt at one of the most iconic superhero storylines. With the star-studded cast of James McAvoy as Professor X, Michael Fassbender as Magneto, and Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique (who doesn’t really want to be in this franchise), the plot of this movie will be focusing on Jean Grey (played by Sophie Turner) and her descent into darkness and mental instability as she harnesses incredible powers. At best, we should be able to expect some truly stunning VFX and CGI scenes, some cool space fights, and whatever a cosmic entity is supposed to look like. At worst, we can expect a convoluted plot that tries to play off the famous romance between Jean Grey and Scott Summers (which they never really established in the movies). But, either way, it will be an interesting end to an era, as Marvel gobbles all the X-Men characters up with its purchase of Fox. Hopefully, they do right by this storyline because they’ve stopped Kevin Feige from playing with it for at least a few years.
4. The Secret Life of Pets 2
PG | June 7th | Some of you loved this movie and some of you thought it was stupid in animated form, but love it or hate it, the Secret Life of Pets franchise is indeed a franchise. Featuring Kevin Hart, Tiffany Haddish, and Harrison Ford yet again, this movie will focus on Max’s struggles to adapt as his owner gets married and introduces a new baby to the family dynamic. Expect a country road trip, the height of cinema everywhere, and a new character called Rooster, who is naturally not a rooster, but a farm dog. If that plot sounds a little on the basic side, never fear! Kevin Hart, in the form of Snowball the gangster bunny, will be staging a rescue attempt to free Hu, a white tiger, from a circus.
5. Men in Black International
Not yet rated | June 14th | It seems other studios don’t just want Marvel’s penchant for establishing a massively successful cinematic universe or making the superhero genre immensely popular but also pairing up some super charismatic actors. That’s right, Men in Black International stars the popular team of Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth seen in Thor: Ragnarok as they take on shapeshifting infiltrators. In light of Captain Marvel’s recent release, it seems like Men in Black is taking all sorts of cues from Marvel. And it looks like they might pull it off quite nicely, as the movie looks to be a fun action-packed blockbuster with two great leads. Of course, in a summer filled with action-packed blockbusters, who knows if this one will gain enough traction?
6. Toy Story 4
G | June 24th | Was Toy Story 3 the perfect ending? Yes, most people agree that it was. Are we still 100% going to see Toy Story 4? Yes, yet again. It seems like Toy Story’s fantastic franchise is capitalizing on its reputation as Toy Story 4 finally debuts in theaters this summer. All of the old crew is tagging along in this installment, but the real focus here will be on Bo Peep’s adventures in an antique shop and Woody’s interactions with both her and Forky, a spork created from arts and crafts materials suffering from an existential crisis. It’s safe to say that only Toy Story 4 would mix existential crisis with a road trip styled adventure, just like it’s also safe to say that everyone will be lining up to see it.
7. Spider-Man: Far From Home
Not yet rated | July 2nd | In the wake of Avengers: Endgame (no spoilers, promise!), it seems like everyone will be desperate the impact on Peter Parker’s not so average adventures as Spider-Man. Played by Tom Holland, Peter Parker will be going with his school on a trip to Europe. It’s an interesting contrast with Holland’s first film, Spider-Man: Homecoming, in setting and fans, are intrigued to see if the contrast will continue in other ways during the film. Aside from possible emotional trauma, the film will explore Peter’s conflict with the Elementals, as he is recruited by Nick Fury and teams up with Mysterio to fight them. For any Marvel fans, and honestly, anyone whose seen Avengers: Endgame, this movie is one of the must-see summer films.
8. The Lion King
Not yet rated | July 19th | Disney’s second foray into live-action adaptations of their animated classics this year, The Lion King will hopefully showcase some fantastic CGI and special effects similar to Disney’s adaptation of The Jungle Book. It will be interesting to see if even their best effects can create characters with such charismatic expressions as the animated movie and even more interesting to see how they change the soundtrack. But with a cast like Donald Glover, James Earl Jones, and Beyoncé herself, it’s clear that this is definitely a movie to keep an eye on.
9. Dora and the Lost City of Gold
Not yet rated | August 2nd | It’s the movie we never asked for, but all needed - a live-action adaptation of Dora the Explorer. Starring Isabela Moner (think Transformers franchise) as the iconic purple backpack wearing herself, albeit now a teenager, this movie is also shaping up to be an action-packed movie. What could possibly be the plot of a Dora the Explorer live-action movie, you might be thinking? Well, it’s the classic kidnapped parents' trope, as Dora sets off to rescue her parentals played by Michael Peña and Eva Longoria. Will this movie be good? Will it be bad? Will it be so bad it’s good? Honestly, who knows anymore? There’s a live-action Dora movie, enough said.
10. Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw
Not yet rated | August 2nd | More commonly referred to as Hobbs & Shaw, this movie is utilizing Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham to their full potential as they play on the rivalry between Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson), an agent of America’s Diplomatic Security Service, and Shaw (Jason Statham), former British military elite operative, as they have to team-up against Idris Elba, a genetically enhanced anarchist with a disease that could wipe out the population.
Okay, pause. Read over that plot summary again. Only a Fast & Furious movie, am I right?
Like it’s predecessors, it looks like this movie will be filled with crazy, physics-defying stunts and act as a guide on what NOT to do when driving.
Hopefully, you can all use this guide to your options for 2019 summer blockbusters. While they all are unique in some way, the fact that most of these movies are all action-adventure-comedy types is an interesting exhibition of the latest Hollywood trends, with even Dora falling prey to the tinsel town cookie cutter machine.