There is no shortage of big movies coming out in 2019. Marvel, Disney, and DC all have movies coming to theaters. There are much anticipated sequels and some interesting new ideas. The staff at AiPT! discuss the movies they are looking forward to most in 2019.
What movie are you most looking forward to in 2019?
Forrest Hollingsworth: It’s a hard choice for me between Spider-Man: Far From Home and It: Chapter II. I loved the previous movies for each, and they’re so tonally different that I’ll probably end up splitting the difference and picking both at the end of the year. That being said, I do have some slight hesitations about how well they can translate the uh…weirder bits of It so I would say Spidey just slightly edges it out, Tom Holland can do no wrong.
Robert Reed: The only movie I’m looking forward to in 2019 is Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Okay, so that’s not quite true, but it’s definitely my most anticipated film of the year. Both trailers for the film have been beautifully executed, and have both struck chords with me that, with respect to their creators, Godzilla, Kong: Skull Island, and Pacific Rim just didn’t. If the film matches the ads, then Godzilla: King of the Monsters may end up my personal favorite of 2019.
Davis Pittman: That’s a tough one because I’m pretty excited for a number of films being released in 2019. Those films include: Us, It Chapter 2, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and Pet Sematary, but honestly Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is the one I’m most pumped for.
Nathan Simmons: Look, I know Avengers: Endgame is gonna blow us all away, but my hype meter is going off the charts for John Wick 3. Not only do I believe that the first two flicks in this series are modern action masterpieces, but the cast for this one is bonkers. Among many returning and new faces, we’ve got Anjelica Huston, Jason Mantzoukas, and The Raid‘s Yayan Ruhian joining the fun. The ending of Chapter 2 set the stage for the most intense installment yet, so I’m chomping at the bit to see if they live up to that promise.
Justin Cohen: While 2018 was a very weak year for movies in my opinion, 2019 looks incredible. I’m having a very hard time choosing between The Lion King, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and John Wick 3 as my most anticipated. I haven’t been as hyped for any movie in at least a few years as I am for these three. I’m going to go with The Lion King just because the original 1994 version is my favorite film of all time. I’m nervous going into this one as I don’t think the remake is necessary, but I’d be lying if I said the trailer didn’t give me goosebumps and there’s no doubt I will be at the first showing there is.
What movie do you think will surprise people?
Forrest: Detective Pikachu is going to be good, actually. No further questions at this time.
Robert: Hopefully I’m not jinxing it, but I feel like everyone is sleeping on The Kid Who Would Be King, which releases January 25th. This is Joe Cornish’s second feature as writer-director after 2011’s Attack the Block (a film that also didn’t get enough attention). We’ve had so many bad King Arthur films recently, that this probably gets lost, but I’m hoping it bucks the trend. I’ve also got this creeping feeling that people are going to overanalyze the trailer for Jordan Peele’s Us and get disappointed when it inevitably doesn’t match every single one of their theories. Fingers crossed that neither of these directors hit a sophomore slump.
Davis: I think Pet Sematary is going to be good, even though some are feeling iffy about it.
Nathan: I genuinely hope The New Mutants lives up to the promise of that first eerie teaser. The massive reshoots and multiple rescheduled release dates have me worried, but there’s a lot of potential there, given the talent involved and the source material.
Justin: I have a feeling Pet Sematary is going to be good. Just a hunch.
Kevin Feige recently said it is possible we will see Fox Marvel characters in the MCU in the next 6 months. Do you think we will?
Forrest: Is post-credits scene in Endgame too big of a shot to call? Captain Marvel was essentially introduced off screen so I don’t think it’s out of the realm of possibility to do the same for the X-Men. Heck, just have the “SNIKT!” go off in absolute darkness – people will go nuts.
Robert: It’s very likely, though I wouldn’t be surprised if it was something less expected like Super-Skrull or Galactus as opposed to the X-Men. I’m really hoping Marvel recasts the X-Men characters and jettisons that continuity. It’s not like Marvel’s been perfect (the flubs in Homecoming and Civil War being the big ones), but the X-Men franchise is overly convoluted and I’d love it to be rebooted (but keep Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool please).
Nathan: I agree. I think whatever we end up seeing this year from the Fox stable of Marvel properties, it’ll end up being more of a peripheral character in the vein of the Watchers appearing in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. I’m betting the post-credits scene of Captain Marvel will be concerned with getting Carol caught up to present day for Endgame, while that movie’s credit scenes will be more about giving our beloved Avengers a proper send-off. My best guess is we’ll get our first tease of what’s being added to the MCU at the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Justin: I think we’ll probably see some form of them teased in a post credits scene in either Spider Man: Far From Home or possibly Endgame.
There are at least twenty sequels and remakes coming out next year. This has been a complaint for years now. Do you think there are too many?
Forrest: I don’t really have an issue with sequels at all — continuations of character’s stories, new angles to explore, etc. has been the status quo for literature and expression since, well, its inception. If they still have interesting angles for John Wick, I can ride with that. The remakes, though, are getting a little grating. I personally don’t feel that there’s a ton of creative merit to remaking tried and true films just to show off new technology or technique, and it seems pretty apparent that the impetus there is largely to cash in anyways – The Lion King is completely changed and empowered by being translated to Broadway, not so by CGI.
Robert: I don’t know that I can really complain about sequels. People want stories they enjoy to continue (so long as they’re good). I mean, when you look at the top 20 films at the 2018 worldwide box office, only eight aren’t direct sequels to another film. Two of those eight would be considered spinoffs in any other franchise (Black Panther, Aquaman), and the others are all adaptations of either true stories (Bohemian Rhapsody, Operation Red Sea), or other media (Venom, Ready Player One, The Meg, Rampage). So it’s not exactly like people are flocking to original content at the same rate.
As far as the remakes, I think we have to be honest about what’s really happening – companies (most notably Disney) are trying to protect their IP. In the case of Disney, most (if not all) of their animated works were already based on myths or stories that already existed and could be utilized by other companies (something Disney does not want). Even The Lion King, which was touted as their first original film, is pretty much a ripoff of Kimba: The White Lion. And so what we have is a studio moving to protect their versions of these stories as the “iconic” versions. I think what’s grating on some people is the overfamiliarity. The Lion King (2019) will likely start with a shot-by-shot remake of the 1994 film’s opening sequence – the trailer showed us as much. But I think people are jumping the gun in assuming that the whole film will be that way. The few shots we did see in the trailer from outside that sequence are different than the shots in the ’94 film.
Honestly, I’m more tired of people complaining about sequels and remakes than I am of the sequels and remakes. Don’t want Disney to remake The Little Mermaid? Don’t go see Dumbo, Aladdin, or The Lion King. Want the superhero “trend” to end? Here’s a list of films to avoid in 2019: Glass, The LEGO Movie 2 (because you know LEGO Batman’s going to be there), Captain Marvel, Shazam!, Hellboy, Avengers: Endgame, Dark Phoenix, Spider-Man: Far From Home, and New Mutants. If you’re going to complain, make sure you’re also voting with your wallet.
Justin: I do wish there were more original films. With that said, I don’t necessarily think there are too many sequels. I just wish it was more balanced. Remakes are getting out of hand though. There’s no reason to remake kid’s classics like The Lion King, Aladdin, or Dumbo. Except for the boatloads of money that will be made. And with that said, I’m a part of the problem listing The Lion King as my most anticipated movie of the year!!! Sigh.
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