January and February are typically very slow months for new film releases. In the spirit of looking forward, here are some of my most anticipated films of 2023.

A Good Person (dir. Zach Braff)
Written and directed by Zach Braff, A Good Person will follow Florence Pugh as a young woman who survives a tragedy and emerges with an opioid addiction, trauma, and grief, as she tries to pull her life back together with the help of her would-be father-in-law, played by Morgan Freeman. As a self-proclaimed Florence Pugh fan, I can’t wait to see her play a modern woman in what I expect to be a powerful and heart wrenching performance, with dark laughs throughout, courtesy of Braff’s screenplay and direction.
Release Date: March 24, 2023

Beau is Afraid (dir. Ari Aster)
Following the release of the first trailer last week, my excitement has tripled. Beau is Afraid will follow Joaquin Phoenix as Beau, who has to take a unique and bizarre journey to reach home and his mother. If we can expect anything from Aster, following Midsommar and Hereditary, it is that anything is possible in this film, and the bizarre journey will be nothing short of just that: bizarre.
Release Date: April 21, 2023

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (dir. Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson)
Following the groundbreaking animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, comes the second instalment, following Spider-Man as he travels through the multiverse, along with Gwen Stacey, to save all the other Spider-people. I was pleasantly surprised to see how much I enjoyed the first film in this series, as one of my most common comfort films to put on at any time, so I look forward to an even bigger look into the spider-verse and its spider-people.
Release Date: June 2, 2023

Asteroid City (dir. Wes Anderson)
Asteroid City will follow a group of people, including characters played by Maya Hawke, Margot Robbie, Scarlett Johansson, and Sophia Lillis, as world-changing events disrupt an annual Junior Cadet convention. While little more is known about this film, Anderson can be expected to deliver a simple yet powerful story filled with beautiful colours, cinematography, and his classic blunt and dry humour we have all come to love.
Release Date: June 16, 2023

Barbie (dir. Greta Gerwig)
Following the character Barbie, as she is expelled from Barbieland and forced to search for and make it in the human world, this is easily my most anticipated film of the year. If Greta Gerwig can pull this off, I think it will truly be a major milestone in her going down as one of the greats. At this point, who isn’t excited about Barbie?
Release Date: July 21, 2023

Oppenheimer (dir. Christopher Nolan)
With a release date on the same day as Barbie, movie theatres are sure to be packed on the weekend of July 21, 2023. Bringing to the screen the story of J Robert Oppenheimer, the man who led the team to the creation of the atomic bomb, Nolan is sure to deliver one of the most devastating character studies of this year, about the man who invented one of the worst weapons of mass destruction.
Release Date: July 21, 2023

Challengers (dir. Luca Guadagnino)
Starring Zendaya and Mike Faist, Challengers will follow the tennis-playing couple as she trains him into a world-class grand slam champion and their struggles following a challengers event she encourages him to take part in following a losing streak. With Zendaya’s return to the big screen following Dune, and her highly acclaimed role in Euphoria, I can’t wait to see what she will do, alongside Guadagnino’s direction, in this romantic sports film.
Release Date: August 11, 2023

Dune: Part 2 (dir. Denis Villeneuve)
As a sequel to the 2021 film Dune, the film will follow Timothee Chalamet as Paul Atreides, who unites a team to seek revenge against the people who destroyed his family. With Chalamet and Zendaya returning to their roles, as well as newcomers to the series Florence Pugh and Austin Butler, this film begs its audience to see it on the biggest screen possible. Will we see a return of the iconic Elvis accent to the silver screen, courtesy of Butler? We will soon find out.
Release Date: November 17, 2023

Wonka (dir. Paul King)
Focussing on the early life of Willy Wonka and one of his first adventures, I am excited to see Timothee Chalamet in yet another iconic role in film this year, as Wonka himself. This truly seems like it will be Chalamet’s year, and this highly anticipated film looks like it has the potential to be career-defining for both him and director Paul King.
Release Date: December 15, 2023