Onscreen's 2024 Preview

Words Lee Curtis

2023 will be forever remembered for one weekend that saw its two biggest films go head-to-head in a blockbuster summer that brought audiences back to the big screen in record numbers and reminded us all of the power of cinema. If 2023 was the year of Barbenheimer, what will 2024, another year of incredible films, be known?

From a world of pure imagination as Wonka to the desert planet of Arrakis to continue the hero’s journey of Paul Atreides, Timothée Chalamet reprises his role in what is perhaps the most anticipated film of the year, Dune: Part Two. The star-studded second chapter in Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of the renowned sci-fi novel is set to finally return audiences to Arrakis for a war and epic cinema spectacle like no other.

The epic action continues as Ryan Gosling stars as a stuntman who becomes a real action hero in The Fall Guy and Ridley Scott is also set to unleash his sequel to his legendary Gladiator. There’s great dystopian adventures as you witness the alien invasion that sends the world to silence in A Quiet Place: Day One, encounter a new dominant species on Earth in Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes, and return to the Fury Road to discover the origins of an iconic Mad Max character, with Anya Taylor-Joy starring as Furiosa.

2024 is also a year of exciting team-ups with two legendary cinema monsters continuing their newfound allegiance to fight a new enemy in Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, Ghostbusters old and new bust ghosts side by side in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, and Marvel’s “merc with a mouth” and Wolverine reluctantly set aside their differences in Deadpool 3, starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman.

Talking of superheroes, Sony's Spider-Man Universe expands even further with three new Spider-Verse stories: Madame Web, Kraven The Hunter, and the currently untitled Venom 3. While at DC, Joaquin Phoenix returns as Arthur Fleck to continue the dark story of the infamous Batman villain in Joker: Folie À Deux. Lady Gaga co-stars as Harley Quinn in a sequel that’s in fact set to be a musical.

Musicals are still all the rage and there’s three on the way to keep audiences partying long into the New Year. The millennial movie night favourite gets a Gen Z makeover in an all-new musical Mean Girls, an American classic is retold with spectacular stage numbers in The Color Purple, and 2024 is also the year audiences will be off to see the first part of Wicked, which brings the Wizard Of Oz origin story from stage to screen.

They’re sure to be real crowd-pleasers, but there’s lots more to keep the whole family entertained. The makers of Minions have two new animations as Illumination invite you to take flight with a family of ducks in Migration and reunite you with Gru and the girls for Despicable Me 4. Jack Black is back as Po for the first time in almost a decade in Kung Fu Panda 4, Pixar take us back inside the mind of now-teenage Riley in Inside Out 2, everyone’s favourite blue hedgehog speeds back onto the big screen in Sonic The Hedgehog 3, and Disney go back to a time before Simba in Mufasa: The Lion King. But that’s not all, in 2024 you’ll be packing your bags and joining your beloved marmalade-sandwich-munching bear on a journey of a lifetime in Paddington Peru.

For more information on these films and all of the major theatrical releases in 2024, be sure to follow our socials, keep an eye on our website, and pick up new issues of our magazine that’s your ultimate guide to cinema.