Have you looked at the calendar recently and wondered, “Where did the summer go?” I can’t blame you if you have, as 2025 seems to have moved on lightspeed — especially at the box office. While we continue to sort through feelings and grosses on everything from Thunderbolts*: The New Avengers (or whatever they’re calling it now) to Weapons, there are some 2025 fall movies that are about to debut in theaters.
Yes, there’s a lot of fun awaiting us on the calendar of 2025 fall movies; and quite a few of them look good. So while the list you’re about to read is only a sampling of what looks good on the menu, these are the titles that are getting folks like myself really hyped up. Now let’s hope none of these flicks repeat Mortal Kombat II‘s delay into May 2026, as the rest of this cinematic harvest is too hot to miss.
September 2025
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale – September 12th
Ok, so this one’s a slight cheat, because I’ve already seen the cinematic finale to this British drama hit. However, I not only need to get my wife into the theater to see it, but I’m very curious how fellow fans will react to this “grand finale” and its charms. (Especially when THS’ review of Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is as sparkling as my own.)
The Long Walk – September 12th
This fall is quite promising for Stephen King fans, as two of his “Bachman Books” have been adapted for our pleasure. First up on the schedule is The Long Walk, which pits Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, and a host of young talent against a brutal test of endurance and survival. I can already sense the tears coming.
Him – September 19th
If you tell me that MonkeyPaw Productions has something in the works, I’ll show up. But if you pull a move like director Justin Tipping’s Him, and cast Marlon Wayans as a hellion who looks to be offering a deal involving some faustian football, and you’ve got me locked in. (Seriously, dude looks VERY intense in that trailer.)
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey – September 19th
Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell are performers that can pretty much do anything. A Big Bold Beautiful Journey seems to be the latest picture to test that theory; as this sci-fi heart thief appears to be a much warmer riff on Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Also, how have both Robbie and Farrell not won an Oscar yet?
Dead of Winter – September 26th
I don’t know what excites me more about the film Dead of Winter: a hardened Judy Greer with a sniper rifle, or Emma Thompson playing a grieving widow that’s giving her a run for her money? Much as we saw with Liam Neeson in his Taken era, I’m hoping that Ms. Thompson might be up for some more action pictures — provided this one plays as promising as it looks.
October 2025
Play Dirty – October 1st
Writer/director Shane Black hasn’t graced the world with a film since 2018’s The Predator. So when the announcement for Prime Video’s Mark Wahlberg/Lakeith Stanfeld led crime caper Play Dirty recently landed, it felt like news that needed to be celebrated. Between this and the Arnold Schwarzenegger/Alan Ritchson Christmas action picture The Man with the Bag, it looks like holiday flavored snark is coming home a bit earlier than expected.
Good Boy – October 3rd
You’d basically expect Shudder to bring out the big guns for the Halloween season; and that they are. With titles like V/H/S Halloween and Queens of the Dead bringing up the later part of the month, tricks and treats are definitely on the menu. But starting off the month nice and early is the festival darling Good Boy, in which we follow a tale of undead terror through the eyes of a dog. (If the star of this picture dies, expect riots.)
Tron: Ares – October 10th
Cards on the table, I have to say that if there’s one movie I’ve been waiting 15 years to see on the Fall 2025 schedule, it’s Tron: Ares. With Jared Leto’s titular program seeming to do a face turn to save humanity, I’ve summed up this movie as the most violent remake of The Little Mermaid I’ve ever seen. It has been way too long since the world of Tron graced out screens, and I’m itching to get back onto The Grid — which makes the fact that Ares tickets are now on sale all the more delightful.
Frankenstein – October 17th (limited theatrical) / November 7th (streaming on Netflix)
Netflix seems to have everything on the 2025 fall movies calendar. With Kathryn Bigelow’s A House of Dynamite looking to potentially be this generation’s Fail Safe, and Ballad of a Small Player giving us more Colin Farrell goodness, October’s streaming offerings are quite promising. However, much like Tron: Ares, I’ve been waiting for Guillermo del Toro to deliver his passion project adaptation of Frankenstein for so long, I’d (politely) push those films aside temporarily to engage in this classic tale highlighting the horrors of creation.
Bugonia – October 24th
Reuniting Emma Stone and director Yorgos Lanthimos for “something weird” is turning into a bit of a yearly tradition. Taking that place amidst the fall 2025 movies smorgasbord, Bugonia is a remake of the equally nutty South Korean film Save the Green Planet!; with Ms. Stone primed for more crazy thrills. However with Jesse Plemons on the opposite side of this dark kidnapping/brainwashing comedy, it appears we’ll be getting double the insanity — with a truly unpredictable result.
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere – October 24th
As both a kid from New Jersey and an appreciator of good musical biopics, Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere appeals to me on two separate fronts. Exploring the genesis of his album Nebraska, director Scott Cooper and star Jeremy Allen White are primed to bring the house down with this chapter of The Boss’ rise to cultural fame.
November 2025
Predator: Badlands – November 7th
Even if the trailers didn’t suggest that Dan Trachtenberg’s Predator: Badlands is a secret Alien vs. Predator bridge movie, I’d still be amped for it. His work with 2022’s Prey proved that the man knows this series and knows it well. That being said, the fact that Elle Fanning’s artificial person (read: android) Thia will be fighting other versions of herself, an employee of Weyland-Yutani’s Bioweapons Division, has me thinking our dreams could be coming true amidst this beautiful carnage.
In Your Dreams – November 7th
Netflix has been on a role with its animation titles in 2025. As Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, Fixed, and of course KPop Demon Hunters have helped put the streaming studio on the map in various ways, the arrival of In Your Dreams couldn’t be coming at a better time. A star studded spectacle that, at its heart, sees two kids trying to keep their family together, this sounds like an old school delight that will probably involve tissues.
Keeper – November 14th
I sometimes wonder if Osgood Perkins even sleeps these days. After landing The Monkey with a bloody hysterical blow, and just as his next next film The Young Ones was announced to the world, Keeper will arrive to take us on another “bad trip.” This time, it’s a relationship drama that sees Tatiana Maslany and Rossif Sutherland’s seemingly suspicious couple asking the same cryptic question: “Why does it always have to end?”
The Running Man – November 14th
The second of the “Bachman Books” adaptations set to debut among fall 2025 movies, Stephen King’s The Running Man finally sees a long awaited remake taking stage. As legendary genre-bender Edgar Wright takes on this dystopian satire, with a cast that includes Glen Powell, Josh Brolin, Domingo Coleman, and Lee Pace, this already has a pedigree of excellence. Throw in fellow co-star Katy O’Brien hyping the movie up on social media, and a Scott Pilgrim reunion with star Michael Cera and co-writer Michael Bacall, and the formula only becomes even more delicious.
Jay Kelly – November 14th (limited theatrical) / December 5 (streaming on Netflix)
Somehow, we’re on the timeline where Adam Sandler and George Clooney are co-starring in a Noah Baumbach dramedy. That’s a good thing, as Jay Kelly’s meta-narrative dissecting fame and its trappings looks to be the sort of exercise that’s meant to stretch the acting talents of all involved. Don’t be surprised if Laura Dern steals this one with her deadpan comedic timing.
Wicked: For Good – November 21st
Finally! The yellow brick road to Wicked: For Good is almost over, with those of us avoiding spoilers for Jon M. Chu’s “Act II” flick only needing to last a little longer. With new songs and old twists waiting to greet us at the movies, Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are sure to break some hearts with this grand finale. (Not to be confused with Downton Abbey’s three-quel with that very subtitle.)
Rental Family – November 21st
“Academy Award winner Brendan Fraser” is a reality that’s still magical to roll around the mind. Which is good, considering his new film Rental Family might put him in awards contention yet again. Playing an out of luck actor hired to be an emotional stand in for a variety of clients, Fraser’s subtle charms carry the trailer — which could in turn yield an emotional tour de force.
Zootopia 2 – November 26th
Almost a decade after Zootopia was a hit in theaters, the 2025 fall movies calendar will see our return to this bustling metropolis menagerie, in the name of solving a new vast reaching crime. Of course, the details of this new installment are still under wraps, save for the fact that Officer Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and master thief Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) will need to team up with Ke Huy Quan’s newcomer Gary De’Snake. I still don’t get how this lead to a teaser with the hamster equivalent of Kraftwerk, but I’m open to the possibilities.
Wake Up, Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery – November 26th (limited theatrical) / December 12th (streaming on Netflix)
Like the great Super Yaki once said, “Benoit Blanc is Back!” Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig’s latest team up in the Knives Out series sees Wake Up Dead Man presenting these movies at their darkest. Though one could still expect Benoit’s sparkling wit and wisdom to return, just as this third entry is getting another two-week theatrical engagement before heading to streaming. Seriously Netflix, you’re leaving money on the table here!
December 2025
Dust Bunny – December 5th
The logline for Hannibal creator Bryan Fuller’s Dust Bunny is simple: an eight year old girl hires her neighbor to kill the monster under her bed. But when that neighbor is Mads Mikkelsen, and the cast also include Sigourney Weaver and David Dastmalchian, this supernatural romp starts to become even more intriguing. Let’s just hope that monster doesn’t turn out to be Daniel Craig, as we know how his last encounter with Mr. Mikkelsen turned out…
Five Nights At Freddy’s 2 – December 5th
Blumhouse’s sleeper hit Five Nights at Freddy’s gave the movie world something it’s sorely been lacking in recent years: gateway horror. Allowing youngsters familiar with Scott Cawthon’s game franchise to be scared in an effective PG-13 experience, the new sequel is doubling down on that prospect in some novel ways. Though now I have to wonder what Skeet Ulrich’s mysterious role happens to be, and how Matthew Lillard’s return will turn this into even more of a subtle Scream love fest?
Is This Thing On – December 19th
Will Arnett looks to be channeling his Bojack Horseman days in Bradley Cooper’s latest, Is This Thing On? Playing a stand-up comedian going through a divorce, Arnett is both hysterical and heartbreaking in the footage that’s shown in the teaser. We’re literally just one well-timed needle drop away from the tears flowing freely, and I wouldn’t put it past musical enthusiast Cooper to make that happen.
Avatar: Fire and Ash – December 19th
Whether you’re a fan of the Avatar movies or not, you can’t deny that you’re going to see Fire and Ash when the time comes. James Cameron’s record breaking sci-fi epic in progress is a cultural curiosity to some, and a deeply held favorite to others. All will come together at the movies, for a chapter that introduces something we haven’t really seen before: Na’vi on Na’vi combat.
Marty Supreme – December 25th
Who’d have thought that 2025 would be the year of the A24/Safdie Brothers double team? October sees Benny bringing Dwayne Johnson’s MMA biopic The Smashing Machine to market, while Christmas has Josh serving up the Timothée Chalamet-starring Marty Supreme. Our titular character is a wanna-be ping pong champion in the 1950s, at a time when the world sees him as merely a dreamer. A dreamer that, according to Gwyneth Paltrow, has “a lot of sex” with her character; but a dreamer nonetheless.
How could you not be excited about the crop of Fall 2025 movies heading our way? Now keep in mind, these dates are subject to change – as we saw with Mortal Kombat II. That being said, don’t hold back your excitement, and get your calendar straightened, because once these babies start to hit, the rest of the year will seem like a blur.
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