鈥� 鈥� is a hard act to follow. But as Hollywood enters another summer movie season, armed with fewer superheroes and a landscape vastly altered by the strikes, it鈥檚 worth remembering the classic about what works: 鈥淣obody knows anything.鈥�
Four decades later, that still may be true. Yet one thing Hollywood has learned in releasing films through the pandemic and the strikes is how to pivot quickly.
The summer of 2023 brought a new enthusiasm for moviegoing, with the of 鈥淏arbie鈥� and 鈥� ,鈥� and surprise hits like 鈥� ,鈥� helping the season鈥檚 box office crack $4 billion for the first time since 2019. But before the industry could take a victory lap, there was another crisis looming with , which for months.
MOVIES FIND A WAY POST-STRIKE
In the fallout, theaters lost big summer titles like 鈥淢ission: Impossible 8,鈥� 鈥淐aptain America: Brave New World鈥� and 鈥淭hunderbolts鈥� to 2025. But they gained a gem in Jeff Nichols鈥� 鈥淭he Bikeriders鈥� (June 21), about a 1960s Midwestern motorcycle club, as studios moved films around on the summer chessboard. 鈥淒eadpool & Wolverine,鈥� once set to kick off the summer moviegoing season on May 3 like many Marvel movies before it, is now sitting happily on July 26, patiently waiting to dominate the summer charts.
鈥淚 do love being right there in the belly of summer,鈥� said director Shawn Levy. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a juicy moment.鈥�
The kickoff weekend instead belongs to an original film about a different kind of superhero. 鈥� ,鈥� starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, is part romantic-comedy, part action-comedy, and all love letter to the stunt performers that make movies spectacular. It鈥檚 an earnest crowd-pleaser that could jumpstart a season that feels, in some ways, like a throwback, with full-throttle spectacles (鈥淔uriosa: A Mad Max Saga,鈥� 鈥淭wisters鈥�), comedies (鈥淏abes鈥�), IMAX wonder (鈥淭he Blue Angels鈥�) and even a Kevin Costner Western.
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer has seen the highs and lows of summer movies over the decades, with blockbusters including 鈥� 鈥� and the 鈥淧irates of the Caribbean鈥� movies.
This season, he has three very different offerings on the calendar, two are fourth installments in popular franchises 鈥� 鈥淏everly Hills Cop鈥� (July 3, Netflix) and 鈥淏ad Boys鈥� (June 7, theaters) 鈥� and one was planned for streaming but tested so well that it鈥檚 getting a theatrical rollout (鈥淵oung Woman and the Sea,鈥� May 31).
鈥淧eople just want to be entertained,鈥� Bruckheimer said. 鈥淚t really comes down to us to make the right movies that they want to go see.鈥�
THE $4 BILLION GOAL POST
A Hollywood summer lasts 123 days from the first Friday in May through Labor Day Monday in September. Pre-pandemic, $4 billion was a normal summer intake and theaters could count on anywhere between 37 and 42 films to open on over 2,000 screens. The outlier was 2017, which had only 35 movies on over 2,000 screens and topped out at $3.8 billion. It makes last summer鈥檚 $4 billion haul with 32 wide releases (45% of the $9 billion domestic haul) even more impressive.
This summer should have 32 wide releases as well and over 40 movies opening in 500+ theaters. Notably only two of them are Marvel movies (鈥淒eadpool鈥� and Sony鈥檚 鈥淜raven the Hunter鈥�) and are the only superhero movies on the calendar until the 鈥淛oker鈥� sequel in the fall.
鈥淧eople are going to see movies, not box office, and it looks like a really solid summer from a moviegoer鈥檚 perspective,鈥� said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore.
REVVING UP FOR ORIGINALS
鈥淭he Bikeriders鈥� was one that planned for an awards season rollout, with a turbo boost from stellar reviews out of the Telluride Film Festival hailing star turns for and Jodie Comer. But as they inched closer to its release date it became clear that the strikes were not going to resolve in time for a press tour.
鈥淚t was kind of like walking on frozen glass for three months,鈥� Nichols said. 鈥淚 was touring around doing press and trying to build this energy on my own. Let me tell you, it鈥檚 not the same as Austin Butler.鈥�
Later in June, , Kevin Costner will begin rolling out his two-part Western epic 鈥淗orizon: An American Saga,鈥� set during the Civil War. And as always there are a slew of Sundance breakouts peppered throughout the summer, from Jane Shoenbrun鈥檚 鈥淚 Saw the TV Glow鈥� and 鈥淒idi鈥� to 鈥� 鈥� and 鈥淕ood One.鈥�
FARE FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
Family films often go into hyperdrive in the summer, capitalizing on long days out of school. This year has plenty, like 鈥淭he Garfield Movie鈥� and 鈥淒espicable Me 4,鈥� re-releases of Studio Ghibli classics, and streaming options (鈥淭helma the Unicorn鈥�). But perhaps none has more anticipation behind it than 鈥淚nside Out 2鈥� (June 14, theaters), which meets up with Riley as she enters her teenage years as a new group of emotions crash Joy鈥檚 party, including Anxiety, Envy, Ennui and Embarrassment.
鈥淭hat age gives us everything we need and love for a Pixar film,鈥� director Kelsey Mann said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 full of drama, it has potential for a lot of heart, and I could also make it really funny.鈥�
John Krasinski is also delving into the inner world of children with his ambitious live-action hybrid 鈥淚F鈥� (May 17, theaters) about the imaginary friends that get left behind and two humans (Ryan Reynolds and Cailey Fleming) who can still see them.
THE ALLURE OF HORROR
Audiences seeking the adrenaline rush of horrors and thrillers have plenty of choices, including 鈥淢aXXXine,鈥� the conclusion to Ti West鈥檚 accidental Mia Goth trilogy (鈥淴鈥� and 鈥� 鈥�) that debuts around the fourth of July.
Goth鈥檚 aspiring actress has made her way to Hollywood where a killer is stalking Hollywood starlets around the time of the home video boom of the 1980s.
鈥淲e recreated the sleazy side of Hollywood in a hopefully charming way,鈥� West said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely a pretty wild night at the movies. A big, rockin鈥�, fun movie.鈥�
On June 26, audiences can also delve into the beginnings of 鈥淎 Quiet Place鈥� with a prequel set on 鈥淒ay One鈥� starring Luptia Nyong鈥檕 and 鈥淪tranger Things鈥欌�� Joseph Quinn. Director Michael Sarnoski said they wanted to explore the 鈥渟cope and promise鈥� of a Quiet Place movie in New York. Later, Fede 脕lvarez brings his horror acumen to 鈥淎lien: Romulus鈥� (Aug. 16), set between the first two.
M. Night Shyamalan is back as well with a thriller set at a pop concert (鈥淭rap,鈥� Aug. 9) and his daughter, Ishana Night Shyamalan, makes her directorial debut with the spooky, Ireland-set 鈥淭he Watchers鈥� (June 14) with Dakota Fanning.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very suspenseful and unexpected,鈥� Ishana said. 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 very much built for the experience of being in a theater.鈥�
THE STARS ARE STREAMING
Much to the chagrin of theater owners, big summer movies have also existed off the big screen for years now. And the streamers have movie stars and spectacle with the festival favorite 鈥淗it Man,鈥� the Anne Hathaway romance 鈥淭he Idea of You,鈥� Jerry Seinfeld鈥檚 starry pop-tart movie 鈥淯nfrosted鈥� and a Mark Wahlberg/Halle Berry action comedy 鈥淭he Union.鈥�
They have franchises too: 鈥淏everly Hills Cop: Axel F鈥� (July 3) was a movie that was in and out of development since the mid-1990s, but got new life when Paramount licensed the rights to Netflix.
鈥淲e raised our hand to make sure we got the franchise right and kept the integrity and fun of the original,鈥� Bruckheimer said.
This installment adds an emotional component in which Eddie Murphy鈥檚 Axel Foley reunites with his estranged daughter (Taylour Paige). It also sees the return of Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser and Bronson Pinchot and adds Kevin Bacon and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
On Aug. 9, Apple TV+ will also have 鈥淭he Instigators,鈥� a new action-comedy starring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck as normal guys attempting a heist. 鈥淢idnight Run鈥� was one of their touchstones.
鈥淭he script was so funny and I wanted to really embrace that,鈥� Doug Liman, who directed, said.
BUT ALSO, NOBODY KNOWS ANYTHING
Remember, anything can happen with summer movies.
We can pretend we knew that 鈥淏arbie鈥� would be the , but would anyone have bet that an R-rated drama about the father of the atomic bomb would have as Harrison Ford鈥檚 last ride as Indiana Jones? Or that a $14 million crowdfunded movie from a new studio about child trafficking with next to zero promotion would earn over $250 million?
鈥淣obody knows anything is right,鈥� said 鈥淭he Instigators鈥� producer Kevin Walsh. 鈥淭he movie business is so unpredictable. You never know what鈥檚 going to work and what isn鈥檛. But you have your taste. And following your taste and your instincts in this business is paramount.鈥�
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