Another summer movie season, another summer spent with air-conditioned theaters and Hollywood blockbusters.
This July is packed with sequels like Spider-Man: Far From Home and can’t-miss Disney entries like their remake of The Lion King. Here’s a quick breakdown of all the wide releases you need to see before August.
‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ (July 2)
Cast: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Samuel L. Jackson, Jake Gyllenhaal, Cobie Smulders
Director: Jon Watts
Marvel and Sony’s follow-up to Spider-Man: Homecoming is set to own the July 4th weekend, as Far From Home finds a post-Endgame Peter Parker on a school trip to Europe. There, he will battle some elemental foes, meet Nick Fury, and enter a complicated relationship with Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), who calls an alternate Earth home. Can’t. Wait.
See It With: Everyone, especially fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
‘Midsommar’ (July 3)
Cast: Florence Pugh, Will Poulter, Jack Reynor
Director: Ari Aster
Ari Aster, the writer-director of last summer’s sleeper horror hit Hereditary, is back with another fright fest that promises to be 100 percent nightmare fuel.
In what looks like a spiritual cousin toThe Wicker Man, Midsommar centers on a young couple’s trip to a Sweden for its renown midsummer festival and how quickly their trip devolves into a violent and bloody affair at the hands of a creepy pagan cult. Judging by the teaser trailer, this movie will not just scare you — it, like Hereditary, will mess you up for life.
See It With: Cerebral horror movie fans? This one’s for you.
‘Crawl’ (July 12)
Cast: Kaya Scodelario, Barry Pepper
Director: Alexandre Aja
Another horror movie coming our way, this one sure to be more high-octane than Ari Aster’s slow-burn nightmare. Crawl follows the story of a young woman who attempts to save her dad during a Category 5 hurricane in the Deep South. Unfortunately, she soon learns they not only have to survive the hurricane itself, but also the bloodthirsty and vicious alligators that have flooded the town. It looks like it will be a scary fun time at the movies.
See It With: Your action-horror loving friends
‘Stuber’ (July 12)
Cast: Kumail Nanjiani, Dave Bautista
Director: Michael Dowse
Guardians of the Galaxy‘s Dave Bautista and The Big Sick‘s Kumail Nanjiani star in this two-hander that is an R-rated throwback to ’80s action comedies.
Nanjiani plays Stu, an Uber driver who really struggles to earn than five-star rating when he picks up a cop (Bautista) hot on the trail of a killer. Lots of LOLs quickly ensue in Stuber, which seems to be gunning for the 21 Jump Street crowd.
See It With: Friends and family who love comedies, and especially Kumail.
‘The Farewell’ (July 12)
Cast: Awkwafina, Diana Lin
Director: Lulu Wang
Written and directed by Lulu Wang, this Sundance dramedy is getting a limited release before expanding wider — on its way to (hopefully) some much-deserved awards recognition.
Awkwafina (Crazy Rich Asians) plays a Chinese-American woman who must travel back to China when her grandmother becomes terminally ill. There, she quickly uncovers her family’s plot to keep grandma’s diagnosis a secret from her — which leads to some interesting, funny, and emotional complications. The Farewell is sure to be as heartfelt as it is hilarious.
See It With: Pretty much anyone who loves a good cry at the movies
‘The Lion King’ (July 19)
Featuring the voices of: Donald Glover, James Earl Jones, Seth Rogen, Beyonce
Director: Jon Favreau
The Lion King is the next live-action remake from Disney based on one of their 1990s animated classics. Like the original Lion King, this much-anticipated movie is expected to mint all the money at the box office.
Director Jon Favreau applies all the tricks he learned on The Jungle Book to make Lion King‘s CG animals come to life in this photo-real retelling of Simba’s ascension to royalty. Donald Glover, Beyonce, James Earl Jones, John Oliver, and Seth Rogen comprise the impressive voice cast that gives the original a run for its money.
See It With: Disney fans, your family, and ’90s kids looking for a nostalgia fix
‘Once Upon a Time In Hollywood’ (July 26)
Cast: Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Margot Robbie
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio headline Quentin Tarantino’s ninth film, which is reportedly a Pulp Fiction-esque chronicle of various lives intersecting in Los Angeles during the summer of 1969.
As hippie culture comes to a head, former TV star Rick Dalton (DiCaprio) and his stunt double Cliff Booth (Pitt) struggle to find their place in a town that they don’t feel at home in anymore. Their lives presumably get that much more interesting, and complicated, thanks to Rick’s next-door neighbor: Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie). Word ’round the campfire is (Tarantino reference!) that Tate and the infamous Charles Manson murders are a key element of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood‘s story.
See It With: Tarantino fans and anyone who likes good things
‘The Boy 2’ (July 26)
Cast: Katie Holmes, Ralph Ineson, and Owain Yeoman
Director: William Brent Bell
(Credit: STX)
In this sequel to the modest hit first film from 2016, The Boy 2 aims to scratch that jump scare itch horror fans have this summer.
The creepy AF doll named Brahms is back, this time causing a new family’s blood pressure to spike when they move into a new estate and their son befriends the evil doll-thing. If you can watch this movie with the lights off, you are braver than us.
See It With: Fans of creepy doll movies and horror junkies
