Universal’s Land of Kings
Once again, the daily edition of The Industry will be in your inboxes shortly.
For the next few days, we’ll be sending a separate breakdown of the studio films announced at CinemaCon, which are being positioned to generate either massive box-office revenue or awards.
CinemaCon Day 3 brought freshly announced films from:
Universal
Focus Features
Amazon MGM Studios
Orion Pictures
Steven Spielberg, Christopher Nolan, Michael B. Jordan, and Rick Moranis all took the stage to share footage from their new films.
CinemaCon Day 3 was a stunner. Amazon MGM, Universal, and Focus gave powerful presentations of their upcoming films. One may win Best Picture.
Here’s a breakdown:
Universal
The Odyssey
We finally have clarity on why Christopher Nolan chose this film as his next project following his Best Picture Oscar win with Oppenheimer.
The two most universal Nolan themes are present: time and memory.
First, Nolan took to the stage and shared that The Odyssey is a story that has fascinated humanity for 3,000 years. And, just like in Memento, his main character, Matt Damon (Odysseus), has amnesia.
The footage was groundbreaking. It showed the delivery of the Trojan Horse to Troy, with the Greeks jumping out and burning the city.
In Nolan’s re-imagining, there is a powerful visual cross-cutting between the dark, sweaty interior of the horse’s hull and the sand-bleached wides of the horse being dragged into the city.
The entire thing feels epic and drenched in the psychological torture of a man who is both physically and emotionally wrecked. Releasing July 17th.
Disclosure Day
Spielberg took to the stage and revealed some new footage. It looked epic. There are definitely minor spoilers. So if you don’t want to know, skip and keep reading. If you want full disclosure, click here. Releasing June 12th.
Also mentioned…
Illumination’s Minions and Monsters. Set in 1920, the film involves the minions trying to make it as actors, with a bunch of footage homaging The Great Train Robbery and iconic scenes from Chaplin and Buster Keaton’s work. Christoph Waltz voices the director working with the minions. And John Goodman voices the studio head. Releasing July 1, 2026.
Snoop Dogg film
The Dogg himself came out on stage to share the previously announced team:
Dir: Craig Brewer
Cast: Jonathan Daviss (as Snoop)
Prod: Brian Grazer
Release: 2027
Daviss was wondrous at imitating Snoop's laid-back California-baked rap style. And Brewer, post Song Sung Blue, can ratchet up a heartfelt emotional storyline with some serious punch. This should be great. Filming this summer in the LBC.
Focker-In-Law
Cast: Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Ariana Grande
Release: November 25, 2026
The triangular dynamic between Grande winning De Niro’s approval and being enemies with Stiller is wondrously chuckle-inducing.
One Night Only
Dir: Will Gluck (Anyone But You, Easy A)
Cast: Callum Turner, Monica Barbaro
Release: August 7th
Synopsis:
Two New Yorkers search for love on the one night of the year when sex is legal.
Turner isn’t playing the same ultra-confident suave type that has typified his recent performances (e.g., A24’s Eternity). Here he’s more boyish and nervous, like in Netflix’s Tramps (2016).
Violent Night 2
Cast: David Harbour, Kristen Bell (as the violent, charming Mrs. Claus)
Release: December 4th, 2026
Other Mommy
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Jay Duplass
Release: Oct 9, 2026
This one is going to be super creepy with Chastain playing one normal mom and a look-alike, which is a vision of pure horror.
Oddly, it’s not the only film this year with two mothers, one of whom is an evil duplicate. The other leans more sci-fi and is Republic Pictures’ DreamQuil, which premiered at SXSW and stars Elisabeth Banks.
Focus Features
Sense and Sensibility (2026)
Release: Oct 16th
Werwulf
Dir: Robert Eggers
Release: December 5th, 2026
The trailer showed us something a little darker than previous Eggers films.
This one is populated with a multitude of close-ups of the twisted faces of victims or Werwulfs. Again, Eggers unlocks the Gothic heart of this legend, but there’s something primordial and raw about the way he films Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s body twisting to transform into the creature.
Amazon MGM Studios
After a big win with Project Hail Mary, currently at $525M globally, the Amazon team took to the stage, recommitting their efforts to release 15 films/year. They’re also moving full force to build out their international distribution arm.
Here were the big projects mentioned.
I Play Rocky
Dir: Peter Farrelly (Green Book)
Release: Nov 13
The film tells the story of how Sylvester Stallone made Rocky. And in a true case of life mirroring art, it was a true battle. Stallone was a broke actor who spent a decade getting rejections and decided to bet on himself. I was blown away by how resonant it was. Perhaps because, as a filmmaker, I identified with the struggle.
Stallone’s story is as great as Rocky’s. I believe its Oscar chances are strong.
Spaceballs: The New One
Cast: Mel Brooks, Rick Moranis (first film in 30 years), Bill Pullman, Lewis Pullman, and Keke Palmer
Release: April 23, 2027
The extra footage shown at CinemaCon was hilarious and gives me high hopes that this may be as funny as the original. The scene that convinced me: Rick Moranis in a urinal next to one of the Avatar creatures, and he sneaks a peek.
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother
Cast: Mahershala Ali, John Cho, Giancarlo Esposito
Prod Co: Orion
Release: 2026
Ali is a man of faith, a father, and also a hit man. He sells oils and perfumes and kills to protect his community. It’s great to see an action film where the person doing the killing is pained by each death he inflicts. Ali brings a spiritual soulfulness.
The Rest of the Slate:
The Sheep Detectives
Wri: Craig Mazin (The Last of Us)
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine
Release: May 8, 2026
How to Rob a Bank
Dir: David Leitch
Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Pete Davidson, Zoë Kravitz, and John C. Reilly
Prod Co: Imagine Entertainment
Release: Sept 4, 2026
Hoult and Davidson go full anarchy as they create a YouTube channel to livestream their armed bank robberies. They want to inspire others to rob banks (90% success rate) rather than trying to become a millionaire (1% success rate). They’re 2026 Robin Hoods, and the punk style is exciting.
Verity
Source Material: Colleen Hoover
Cast: Dakota Johnson, Anne Hathaway, Josh Hartnett
Release: Oct 2, 2026
Synopsis:
Lowen Ashleigh gets hired by Jeremy Crawford to ghostwrite novels for his bestselling author wife Verity, who’s unable to finish after an accident.
Johnson, the ghostwriter, starts to see ghosts everywhere. It’s bombastic but very self-serious. Like you’re watching a true-crime series unfold in real time. This will continue the trend of Hoover IP doing very well at the box office.
The Beekeeper 2
Cast: Jason Statham
Release: Jan 15, 2027
Statham is back. This time with a little more bee-inspired violence. One stunt was inspired; he grabs a flamethrower and shoves it in someone’s mouth, and incinerates them. Later, we see him cure a bullet wound with a bunch of bee stings.
The Thomas Crown Affair
Dir/Prod/Star and co-writer: Michael B. Jordan
Co-star: Adria Arjona
Composer: Jon Batiste
Release: March 5th 2027
Jordan got on stage and spoke about what he drew from the previous two iterations of the film. For him, the 1997 Pierce Brosnan version was stylish, smart, and sophisticated. The original McQueen version was effortless, cool with a rebellious edge.
Jordan wanted to give the Crown a real reason, a real driver. And the trailer showed that he’s a man who loves living on the edge, while also being effortlessly cool. The chemistry with Arjona is great.
Prime knows this is a valuable piece of IP in their war chest.
A Colt is My Passport
Cast: Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù, Tim Roth
Release: 2027
This has a tinge of Tarantino to it. Dìrísù is a man who can kill anyone with a six-shooter, and he does.
Highlander
Dir: Chad Stahelski (John Wick)
Cast: Henry Cavill, Russell Crowe, Dave Bautista, Marisa Abela
Release: 2027
Upcoming filming locations: Poland, Scottish Highlands
Seeing Abela (Amy Winehouse in Back to Black) kicking ass was pretty fun. Stahelski can always capture electric footage. This has a tinge of John Wick and Blade Runner.
CinemaCon continues this week through today (Thursday).
Upcoming presentations include Paramount and Disney.
Written and edited by Gabriel Miller.
Follow us on: Facebook | Instagram
Want to advertise with us? Email: clarke.scott@theindustry.co