By George & Josh Bate
Coming off an extraordinary 2023 with resounding box office and critical successes, Warner Bros. returned to CinemaCon to show off their slate of upcoming films. Check out a full breakdown of all of the news and reveals from Warner Bros. presentation at CinemaCon2024 below.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
First up at the presentation was Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. To present the film were director George Miller and stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth. Miller confirmed that he completed the final cut of the film last week.
Miller explained that the idea for making a Furiosa prequel came about while developing Mad Max: Fury Road. During the development of the 2015 hit, Miller envisioned the origins of Furiosa and mapped out what her story entailed.
Anya Taylor-Joy expressed her love for Charlize Theron’s performance as Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road and described working on Furiosa as one of her proudest moments.
On the opposite side is Warlord Dementus, brought to life by Thor star Chris Hemsworth. The Australian actor detailed his character Dementus. “Twisted, cruel character on one hand,” he said. “And an element of charisma. We wanted to weave in layers of charm, and wit and humor. And darkness and spontaneity.”
Hemsworth spoke of his adoration for the Mad Max films, stating that he used to watch them with is dad growing up and that George Miller was a “God-like figure” in his household.
To wrap up the presentation on Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the audience were treated to approximately 10 minutes of footage from the film. This footage for Furiosa unusually unfolded as essentially a recap of the events of the film. The footage walked the audience through scenes linearly presented from each of the film’s three acts. Spoilers in the next paragraph for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.
The first act showed Furiosa’s mother telling young Furiosa of a green place, a world before the apocalypse. Furiosa is kidnapped by Dementus, leading Furiosa’s mother to attempt to rescue her. Furiosa’s mother fails in this noble attempt and is crucified and killed by Dementus as a result.
The second act sees Dementus hand Furiosa over to Immortan Joe, the lead villain from Mad Max. Fury Road. Here, we see Furiosa team up with Immortan Joe’s biker gang in a series of action sequences reminiscent of those in Fury Road.
The third and final act of the footage, and presumably the film itself, sees Furiosa seek revenge against Dementus for killing her mother. This path for vengeance will see Furiosa fight many of Dementus’ crew in the depths of the wasteland desert..
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is out in theaters May 24, 2024.
The Watchers
M. Night Shyamalan is one of the most prolific and exciting directors around, and now his daughter Ishana is following in his footsteps. After writing and directing several episodes of the Apple TV+ series Servant and directing the second unit for her father’s films Old and Knock at the Cabin, Ishana Shyamalan was at CinemaCon to present her feature directorial debut.
The Watchers is based on a novel of the same name by A.M. Shine, which Shyamalan described as “an intersection of horror and fantasy. It has a wonderful mystery and horror structure embedded in it.”
The footage shown of The Watchers provided more context to the trailer for the film that released several weeks ago (and can be seen below). The most apt comparison for The Watchers is probably her father’s village The Village. Both films see an ensemble of characters contained to a single area as mysterious creatures lurk outside.
The Watchers is out in theaters June 14, 2024.
Superman
James Gunn appeared remotely at CinemaCon from the set of his upcoming film Superman. Gunn showed off a better look at the man of steel’s logo and confirmed that he will be at CinemaCon next year to present footage from the film.
At the conclusion of CinemaCon, David Corenswet (who plays Clark Kent / Superman) and Rachel Brosnahan (who plays Lois Lane) appeared in a clip from behind the scenes of the film. The two, jokingly joined by the set’s emotional support dog, said that they couldn’t give anything away about the film, other than revealing that the film features at least one character with a cape.
Superman will hit theaters July 11, 2025.
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
James Gunn’s Superman wasn’t the only man of steel project Warner Bros. had to show off. Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, described as an “uplifting, inspiring, and stunningly beautiful” documentary film will chronicle the amazing perseverance of Reeve following his paralysis.
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story will hit theaters in September 2024.
Horizon: An American Saga
Kevin Costner makes his return to the Western genre with the upcoming Horizon: An American Saga. The two-part theatrical event will see the release of Chapter 1 on June 28 and Chapter 2 on August 16.
Costner, who was at CinemaCon to discuss his film, stars in, co-wrote, produces, and directs the two films.
Costner described the movies as “journey movies,” rather than “plot movies.” Taking place over 12 years, the story will go through (but not focus on) the Civil War.
Costner stated that he started developing the movie in 1988 and had tried numerous times to get it made.
Footage shown at CinemaCon included clips from both Chapters 1 and 2. The film sports an impressive ensemble cast and an epic, booming score, but, otherwise, didn’t look like anything particularly unique. And certainly not unlike things we’ve seen from the Western genre countless times before. Given Warner Bros.’ evident confidence in these films, however, our anticipation is greater than what this footage alone would suggest.
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 hits theaters on June 28, 2024 and Chapter 2 hits theaters on August 16, 2024.
Mickey 17
Academy Award winning director Bong Joon-ho (Parasite) made his CinemaCon debut at this year’s Warner Bros.’ presentation.
Bong Joon-ho’s latest film, which is shrouded in mystery, was described as a “very strange hero’s journey.” The film is based on the 2022 novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton. Bong Joon-ho jokingly said that his film is called Mickey 17 (and not Mickey7), because he wanted to kill Robert Pattinson’s character 10 more times.
Joining Bong Joon-ho on stage was star Robert Pattinson, who recently excelled for Warner Bros. in Matt Reeves’ The Batman. Pattinson said, “I’ve been the biggest fan of Bong for many years. He’s my hero.” When he was approached for the film, Pattinson said he was told, “You’ll love the script, but the part is impossible.”
Mickey 17, which Pattinson described as “funny and bizarre,” will see Robert Pattinson play multiple versions of himself in a quirky, Twin Peaks: The Return-esque sci-fi doppelgänger adventure. Mix in a bit of Groundhog Day, Source Code, and Edge of Tomorrow and you can begin to envision what Mickey 17 is like.
Joining Pattinson in the film are Steven Yeun, Toni Collette, Mark Ruffalo, and Naomi Ackie.
Mickey 17 hits theaters January 31, 2025
Trap
It was Shyamalan2 at CinemaCon as M. Night Shyamalan was also at the event to present footage from his new film – Trap.
Introducing the new film with a live musical performance, the film will follow what happens when something terrible happens while people are at a concert.
The footage shown of Trap was easily the most impressive and gripping of the entire Warner Bros. presentation (which is saying something given the impressive array of films on display). The footage shows a father (Josh Hartnett) and his teen daughter attending a concert. When Hartnett’s character goes to the bathroom during the concert, he notices a strange police presence around the venue. The father asks a concessions employee what’s happening, to which the employee responds that the police are using the concert as a trap for a serial killer known as the Butcher. A few moments go by before the footage reveals the twist… that Hartnett’s father character IS the serial killer. To call the footage jaw-dropping would be an understatement. Shyamalan and Warner Bros. look like they have a real hit on their hands here.
Trap is in theaters August 9, 2024.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
“It’s really fucking good.” That’s how Michael Keaton described the upcoming Beetlejuice sequel at CinemaCon.
Joining Keaton on stage were director Tim Burton and co-stars Catherine O’Hara, Monica Belucci, Willem Dafoe, and Justin Theroux. Keaton explained that he and Burton had discussed making a sequel to the classic film many times over the years, but waited until a script came around that felt right.
Footage was shown of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which expanded upon the previously released trailer by showing much more of Keaton’s titular character. The sequel looks to have perfectly captured the aesthetic, tone, and practical effects of the original, and Burton seemed excited to return to a world beloved by so many.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice hits theaters September 5, 2024
Joker: Folie à Deux
Easily the most anticipated film of Warner Bros. slate, the sequel to Todd Phillips’ 2019 hit was discussed at CinemaCon. Presenting the film was Todd Phillips, who began his presentation by thanking movie theaters and exhibitors for screening Joker despite controversy surrounding the film.
Phillips spoke about how there is a sequel to Joker, despite originally saying it was a standalone film. “When we were making the first movie, I know I previously had said it’s a one off, but Joaquin [Phoenix] and I always spoke about making a sequel,” Phillips said. “Because we loved the character Joker and in turn Arthur.”
Joining Joaquin Phoenix in the film is Lady Gaga, who will play Harley Quinn. Phillips said he cast Gaga in this iconic role “because she’s magic.”
Phillips addressed a rumor that the Joker sequel is a musical, simply stating, “It’ll make sense once you see it.”
The trailer for Joker: Folie à Deux, which was shown at CinemaCon, can be seen below.
Joker: Folie à Deux is in theaters October 4, 2024.
2025 Warner Bros. Films
To close out the presentation, Warner Bros. showed off some behind the scenes looks at their 2025 slate. Jack Black spoke about Minecraft. Ewan McGregor and Anne Hathaway made a few comments about the upcoming David Robert Mitchell film Flowervale Street. Maggie Gyllenhaal discussed her upcoming Bride of Frankenstein film The Bride! And, finally, Final Destination: Bloodlines behind the scenes footage was shown with Owen Patrick Joyner and Richard Harmon speaking from behind the scenes.
Stay tuned to The HoloFiles for continued coverage of CinemaCon 2024.