There’s no denying Disney is the reigning champ of blockbuster filmmaking these days. Their march towards total victory has been going on for years and it will continue throughout 2019 and going much further beyond. I’ve made a list of the upcoming Disney films I look forward to the most!
Captain Marvel
Set in the ’90s, Captain Marvel will follow iconic hero Carol Danvers, a former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, and how she becomes a member of the elite Kree military unit called Starforce. We’ve seen a bit of everything in the Marvel Cinematic Universe… except a movie centered on a super-heroine.
Release Date: March 8
Dumbo
Tim Burton takes on Disney’s saddest movie ever in what looks like a glittery, adorable circus-set extravaganza! It’s bound to be VERY different from the cartoon we all know and love. It’s Tim Burton sooo… it looks like we’ll cry but also get creeped out?!
Release Date: March 29
Penguins
Disney has a series of entertaining and adorable nature documentaries and Penguins will be yet another excellent and endearing movie, like Bears, African Cats, Chimpanzee, Born in China, and many others. This time they focus on an Adelie penguin named Steve, as he seeks out love, family, and friendship in the frigid Antaractic landscape.
Release Date: April 19
Avengers: End Game
This is the continuation of 2018’s record-breaking Avengers: Infinity War! I guess we’ll finally find out how the best team of heroes on the planet (or what’s left of it) manages to stop Thanos. Assuming they do. Don’t they??
Release Date: April 26
Aladdin
This live-action remake has Will Smith starring in the role of the magical genie! Honestly, I just really need to see how this magic carpet is gonna look IRL!
Release Date: May 24
Dark Phoenix
So, technically, 20th Century Fox produced this film. But because Disney bought Fox this summer, it will likely make Dark Phoenix the first X-Men movie to be released under Disney’s name. This is actually a sequel to X-Men: Apocalypse and it will revolve around Jean Grey and her inadvertent unleashing of The Phoenix.
Release Date: June 7
Toy Story 4
Woody, Buzz and all the other plaything pals saddle back up for a franchise restart after the conclusion of Andy’s Trilogy in 2010. Living happily with Bonnie now, the toys will take their longest journey yet, a roadtrip! I am super excited to see where director Josh Colley takes the beloved cast! It’ll be amazing but probably also ruin me emotionally for the rest of the year.
Release Date: June 21
Spider Man – Far From Home
This is the sequel to 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming and follows Peter Parker on a trip to Europe with friends. This storyline supposedly takes place after the events of Avengers: Endgame, which I guess means, SPOILER, he lives! (This isn’t a Disney released film, but because it’s co-produced by Marvel, it’s included in the list.) Also, it will have Jake Gyllenhaal as the main villain. Yay!
Release Date: July 5
The Lion King
Donald Glover is Simba, Beyoncé is Nala, Billy Eichner is Timon and James Earle Jones is back as Mufasa. I am here for it! This is not a “live-action” version of the 1994 classic, but actually a “photorealistic CG” remake, for the record. My inner child is already crying!
Release Date: July 19
The New Mutants
Based on the Marvel Comics team of the same name, the story will follow five young mutants, just discovering their abilities while held in a secret facility against their will. Although this is a Fox produced film, because of Disney’s acquisition of Fox, this is now going to be a Disney released film, too. The cast so far sounds amazing, which includes Maisie Williams (Game of Thrones) and Charlie Heaton (Stranger Things)!
Release Date: August 2
Artemis Fowl
Based on the 2001 novel of the same name, the story follows Artemis Fowl II – a 12-year old prodigy who sets out on adventure to rescue his criminal father and restore the family fortune. It’s been described as “Die Hard with fairies.” The book was very popular, winning a number of awards including the Young Reader’s Choice Award. Plus, Kenneth Branagh is directing and he generally does good stuff!
Release Date: August 9
Frozen 2
Round 2 of the Arctic Adventure has been a six-year development which suggests a story worthy of a wait. Jennifer Lee (who co-directed the first and also this one) is co-writing the follow-up with Hidden Figures screenwriter Allison Schroeder, so it’ll be great for sure!
Release date: November 22
Star Wars
This just might be the most anticipated movie of the year! All we really know is that this will be the conclusion to the Skywalker saga, the ninth episode and still untitled. We know Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian) will make an appearance and that Carrie Fisher will, posthumously, too. The fact that J. J. Abrams is returning to the director’s chair for this, really makes me look forward to see this movie! It’s sure to be epic.
Release Date: December 20
But, what about 2020 and even beyond that? Ofcourse Disney always has a stacked release calendar lined up, so here are a few projects they’re working on:
Onward
Set in a suburban fantasy world, Disney • Pixar’s “Onward” introduces two teenage elf brothers who embark on an extraordinary quest to discover if there is still a little magic left out there. “At Pixar we try to create stories that come from some kind of personal truth,” said Scanlon. “This film was inspired by my own relationship with my brother.”
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Surprise! Disney is doing a live-action remake of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, starring Beauty and The Beast’s Josh Gad as the title role. While the House of Mouse hasn’t actually confirmed the news, the actor seemingly has, talking to Twitter to share a photo from outside Notre Dame de Paris Cathedral.
“‘Sing the bells, bells, bells,bells, bells, bells, bells, bells…,” he wrote, which are lyrics to the song ‘The Bells of Notre Dame’ from the 1996 animated film.
He also retweeted a post from Broadway.com announcing the news with three bell emojis. Well that is exciting!!
update: Jan. 16, Disney officially announced a live-action Hunchback of Notre Dame is in the works, so get ready to be there with bells on!
Mulan
Scheduled to release on March 27th, 2020, Disney’s live-action remake of Mulan has already hit some controversial snags, with rumors of white-washing making the rounds across the internet. Luckily, it seems that those complaints were nothing more than rumors, and Mulan’s production is back on track.
The movie tells the tale of how a young woman from China disguises herself as a man to join the army in order to save her father from certain doom. While generally little is known, we have our fingers crossed that the story remains faithful to the original and that at least some of the classic songs make it into the movie in one form or another.
Maleficent 2
I am looking forward to this movie the most of all! Maleficent 2!! It was sort of an unexpected move, when the House of Mouse announced a sequel to the pseudo-remake but I am sooo here for it! The original Maleficent was somewhat of a retelling of the classic Sleeping Beauty, but instead of a straight remake, it focused on the iconic villain. So far, a sequel is scheduled for a May 29th, 2020 release. I can not wait!
Jungle Cruise
We’ve all seen adaptions of Disney rides to films be widely successful before (*cough cough* Pirates of the Caribbean), and we expect this one will be no different. With Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt!
Cruella de Vil
The ruthless and horrifying villain from 101 Dalmations is apparently going to be getting a live-action pseudo-remake/ prequel treatment too, just like Maleficent. I am very curious about Cruella’s backstory because she’s just an extremely selfish and evil individual. What happened to her? Also, who will play the role? The movie is in pre-production with no release date attached.
Lady and the Tramp
Currently going through post-production, Lady and the Tramp is a blended CGI and live-action “re-imagining” of the 1955 animated original. Perhaps the most peculiar element of this project is that it has been designed solely as an exclusive for Disney’s streaming service. I am very excited about the modern take on this beloved classic.
We’re so looking forward to all of these movies! How about you?
