Superhero movies may have taken a downward turn in 2023, but Hollywood is still all-in when it comes to franchises. Considering the state of the box office, the movie industry and the streaming-verse may be in some pretty hot water if the films and TV shows on this list fail to deliver in 2024. If there’s anything we’ve learned from the last year, it’s that prior success does not guarantee future success.
Regardless, we’re still very excited about the following 10 franchises that are returning with new movies or shows in 2024. Some of the franchises are even getting films and TV series in the same year, which will hopefully make 2024 enjoyable for fans. Either way, we can’t wait to see how these stories play out on our screens.
Dune
As they say in Dune, “the spice must flow.” And 2024 is going to be the biggest year in the history of this franchise because the sequel, Dune: Part Two, is arriving in theaters on March 1, with the Max original series, Dune: Prophecy, premiering later this year.
Dune: Part Two will continue the story of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) as he attempts to avenge his family and bring down a galactic empire. Dune: Prophecy takes place several centuries before that, but the events of the past will illuminate some of the aspects of the modern Dune films. If the movie and the show are successful, we may even get to see more Dune novels translated to the big screen.
Ghostbusters
It took forever and a day to get a proper Ghostbusters sequel, but Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is arriving on March 29, just under three years after Ghostbusters: Afterlife gave the franchise new life. The new generation of Ghostbusters are all back, including Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) and Trevor Spengler (Finn Wolfhard), with their mom, Callie Spengler (Carrie Coon), and her boyfriend, Gary Grooberson (Paul Rudd), joining the team as well.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a party without the original cast members. Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and even William Atherton are confirmed to appear. Ghostbusters young and old will face the threat of the Death Chill, which could start a new ice age in New York City.
Legendary’s MonsterVerse
There are still two more episodes of the Apple TV+ series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters set to premiere this month. But that’s just the beginning for Legendary’s MonsterVerse in 2024. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is coming to theaters on April 12.
And while Godzilla vs. Kong played up the rivalry between these two Titans, it looks like they’re going full bro mode in the sequel as they team up against an even more deadly foe.
Mad Max
Why does it take such a long, long time for Mad Max sequels to arrive? Mad Max: Fury Road was one of the most-acclaimed action flicks of the last decade, and it still took another nine years for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga to give the franchise another kick-start on May 24.
Since this movie is Furiosa’s origin story, the lead role will be played by Anya Taylor-Joy instead of Charlize Theron. Thor: Love and Thunder‘s Chris Hemsworth is playing against type as Warlord Dementus, one of the film’s primary villains and the man standing between Furiosa and her freedom. If you’re putting money down, always bet on Furiosa to come out on top.
Planet of the Apes
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is getting the coveted May 24 release date ahead of Memorial Day weekend. That’s a sign that 20th Century Studios has a lot of confidence that this Planet of the Apes sequel will maintain the momentum of the modern prequel series that began in 2011 with Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is not another reboot, but it is a fresh start because it’s jumping 300 years into the future after War for the Planet of the Apes. A young chimpanzee named Noa (Owen Teague) is stepping to the forefront alongside a young woman called Mae (The Witcher‘s Freya Allan) as they face a common foe: Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand). Against the teachings of his namesake, Proximus Caesar is enslaving apes and humans alike in his quest for dominance. And only the unlikely duo of Noa and Mae can bring him down.
X-Men
The one redeeming aspect of The Marvels is that it sent up a pretty big signal that the X-Men are about to formally make their entrance into the MCU. In the live-action realm, we’ll have to wait until July 26 to see Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman team up in Deadpool 3. Somehow, we doubt that superhero fatigue will get in the way of fans who want to see Deadpool (Reynolds) and Wolverine (Jackman) headline a film together. Other X-Men and Marvel characters from 20th Century Fox’s films are also rumored to appear.
Disney+ is also set to premiere X-Men ’97, a sequel series to the classic X-Men: The Animated Series, which will pick up where that show left off. The first X-Men cartoon helped pave the way for the X-Men movies and the MCU itself, and it’s still very popular. If the new series can recapture that show’s lightning in a bottle, it could be the X-Men resurgence that we’ve been waiting for. Unfortunately, Disney+ hasn’t set a date for X-Men ’97 yet, but we suspect it will arrive in February or March.
Batman
This is going to be the year of the Batman villains. On October 4, Joker: Folie à Deux – the sequel to the billion-dollar hit Joker – will arrive in theaters with Joaquin Phoenix reprising his role as Arthur Fleck, the man who became the Joker. It’s not clear if there’s going to be a Batman in this world, but there will be a Harley Quinn. Lady Gaga is co-starring in the sequel as Dr. Harleen Quinzel, the Joker’s new psychologist, who will get warped by his ever-expanding madness.
Meanwhile on Max, The Batman is getting a spinoff for Colin Farrell’s Oswald Cobblepot. The Penguin will arrive on Max in late 2024, and it will chronicle Oz’s rise to the top of Gotham City’s criminal underworld. The story does take place after The Batman, but we’re not expecting Robert Pattinson to show up for any cameos.
Those two projects aren’t the only big things happening in Gotham for 2024. Prime Video is expected to premiere the new mature audiences animated series Batman: Caped Crusader later this year.
Alien
Because of the Hollywood strikes, it looks like FX’s Alien series may slip to a 2025 release date. Thankfully, the next film in the franchise, Alien: Romulus, has already secured a 2024 release date: August 16. Fede Álvarez, the director behind 2013’s intense reboot of Evil Dead, has put together a new story that takes place between the first Alien movie and Aliens.
Plot details have been a closely guarded secret so far, but the cast members include Cailee Spaeny, Isabela Merced, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu. If this movie is like any of the previous films, then you shouldn’t expect a lot of characters to make it to the end.
Fallout
The Fallout video games couldn’t get a live-action film together, but the franchise will soon have the next best thing: a big-budget Fallout original series that is coming to Prime Video on April 12. Much like the games, the show takes place hundreds of years after the surface of the world was devastated by a nuclear war.
Ella Purnell stars in the series as Lucy, a young woman who has lived in a vault for most of her life before emerging in the wasteland of Los Angeles. However, the most notable cast member may be Justified‘s Walton Goggins (pictured above), who portrays the mutant gunslinger known as The Ghoul.
Arcane: League of Legends
Netflix’s Arcane: League of Legends animated series dazzled audiences in 2021 with Pixar-quality animation and a stunning story that brought the world of the video game to life. It’s been an excruciating wait between seasons, especially since Netflix has already announced that Arcane season 2 won’t be arriving until late 2024.
The first season was largely about the emotional rift between two sisters, Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) and Jinx (Ella Purnell), set against the backdrop of the conflict between the affluent city of Piltover and the downtrodden city known as Zaun. In the first season finale, Jinx came to terms with Vi, but that didn’t stop Jinx from firing a devastating weapon at Piltover’s ruling council just as they were about to grant Zaun independence and avert a war. Now, there’s no going back in season 2, and the fallout from that should be intense.
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