By George & Josh Bate
Amazon MGM Studios made their CinemaCon debut this year with a presentation highlighting their commitment to the theatrical experience and a host of films across a variety of genres. With A-list stars like Ben Affleck, Ryan Gosling, Halle Berry, Chris Pratt, and Chris Hemsworth on stage to speak about their work on upcoming Amazon MGM releases, spirits were high as the studio looked ahead at what’s to come.
Below you’ll find a comprehensive overview of the Amazon MGM Studios presentation at CinemaCon….
Project Hail Mary
Amazon MGM kicked off their presentation immediately with a trailer of Project Hail Mary. Based on the acclaimed novel by Adam Weir, the film from directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller stars Ryan Gosling as a middle school teacher turned astronaut, who is tasked with saving humanity as the Sun begins to die.
Although the trailer showed far too much of the movie, it was humorous and touching with a tone (and narrative) similar to Ridley Scott’s The Martian (of note, Project Hail Mary is based on a novel by The Martian scribe Andy Weir). Sandra Hüller co-stars as the woman who recruits Gosling’s character for the mission.
The trailer, which is backed by Harry Styles’ “Sign of the Times,” begins with Gosling as a teacher in a classroom of youngsters. He is approached by Hüller to take on a mission to save the Earth and, despite Gosling’s reluctance, is recruited.
There’s more than a few lines in the trailer that stood out included, “I put the not in astronaut,” “I can’t even moonwalk,” and “Some people are not good at things. You have the right stuff. I have the wrong stuff.”
At the end of the trailer, Gosling’s character encounters an alien, which readers of the novel will know is Rocky. Phil Lord said that Rocky is “the most lovable alien since E.T.”
Gosling said that he was enticed to join the project as he “fell in love with a book by Andy Weir.” He continued, “It’s an insanely ambitious story that’s massive in scope and seemed really hard to make and that’s kind of our bag.”
Miller said Project Hail Mary is “the biggest challenge” he and his filmmaker partner Phil Lord have ever undertaken.
Gosling generated some good laughs from the crowd as he poked fun at the teleprompter lines which had him call Lord and Miller “the fellas” and say that they “have a singular vision, which is weird because there’s two of them.”
Project Hail Mary hits theaters on March 20, 2026.
The Thomas Crown Affair
Michael B. Jordan recorded a video that was screened to the crowd at CinemaCon. Jordan thanked movie theater owners for supporting his directorial debut Creed III and announced that he will be directing a remake of the MGM classic The Thomas Crown Affair. This is the second time the iconic heist film from 1968 has been remade after director John McTiernan helmed a remake starring Pierce Brosnan in 1999.
The Thomas Crown Affair hits theaters on March 7, 2025.
Verity
Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson, and Josh Hartnett also recorded a video for the CinemaCon audience. The trio were there to talk about their upcoming movie Verity, a psychological thriller based on the bestselling novel by Colleen Hoover.
A trailer of Verity was shown exclusively at CinemaCon and teased a suspenseful, sexy, and unpredictable movie ahead. Hartnett woes Hathaway, who plays bestselling author Verity Crawford. After some mysterious accident though, Verity becomes mute and paralyzed. Hartnett’s character Jeremy Crawford brings on Dakota Johnson’s Lowen Ashleigh to complete his wife’s book, which seemingly triggers secrets to unravel.
Verity hits theaters on May 15, 2026.
After the Hunt
Following his video appearance during Lionsgate’s CinemaCon presentation to discuss his reimagining of American Psycho, Luca Guadagnino appeared in-person during Amazon MGM Studios’ CinemaCon presentation. The renowned Italian director was there to talk about his new film After the Hunt, which stars Julia Roberts, Andrew Garfield, and Ayo Edebiri.
Garfield and Edebiri joined Guadagnino on stage to discuss their new film before presenting a trailer. The footage suggests the movie will be a gripping psychological thriller that examines cancel culture. The film follows Julia Roberts as a woman who struggles when her husband (played by Andrew Garfield) is accused of sexual misconduct by her student (played by Ayo Edebiri). All is not as it seems, however, as Garfield and Edebiri’s characters certainly seem like they have something to hide. From the trailer alone, it is clear that this film will spark conversation and possible controversy.
After the Hunt hits theaters on October 10, 2025.
Mercy
A trailer for a new Chris Pratt-led mystery then premiered at CinemaCon. Mercy takes place in a near future U.S. in which criminal trials are determined by an artificial intelligence after the accused has 90 minutes to assess all the evidence of the case and prove his innocence.
The trailer shows Chris Pratt’s character strapped to a chair with tons of images flying around him as he is accused of murdering his wife (played by Annabelle Wallis) and tries to prove his innocence. It seems like a creative murder mystery, one that will contain itself to a single setting while leaning into its neat premise.
After the trailer ended, star Chris Pratt arrived on stage strapped to the very chair he filmed Mercy in. In a humorous bit that resembled the premise of the film, Pratt was tasked with adequately thanking the movie theater exhibitioners in the crowd before being released. With four minutes to do so, Pratt comically stumbled over his words, called his co-star Rebecca Ferguson for help, and even got advice from his director Timur Bekmambetov. The bit made for a pretty innovative way to promote Mercy while also honoring what CinemaCon is all about.
Mercy hits theaters on January 23, 2026.
Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective
A different kind of whodunnit was up next for Amazon MGM. A video played to the crowd which previewed Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective.
The film stars Hugh Jackson as a man who helps sheep solve the murder of their beloved shepherd. Jackman and his co-star Emma Thompson spoke about how the film is a clever spit on the murder mystery that also delivers with laughs and heart. The former definitely shined through based on the footage we saw.
Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective Story hits theaters on February 20, 2026.
Crime 101
Chris Hemsworth, Halle Berry, and director/co-writer Bart Layton then arrived on the CinemaCon stage to talk about their new heist film Crime 101.
Hemsworth teased that the film will have you guessing to the very end, while Layton pointed out that he wrote a dirt bike-riding maniac specifically for Barry Keoghan.
The title refers to U.S. Route 101, which connects Los Angeles to the Central Coast, San Francisco Bay, and North Coast. Given the L.A. setting to this heist film, comparisons to Heat feel inevitable.
The trailer teased an entertaining, albeit conventional, crime thriller. Chris Hemsworth and Monica Barbaro are on a date and Hemsworth makes a comment about unintentionally finding himself in handcuffs before. Mark Ruffalo plays a cop investigating a series of heists along the 101 and gets closer and closer to Hemsworth’s character as the trailer progresses after realizing that Hemsworth does not use violence during his heists. Halle Berry, meanwhile, plays a businesswoman who collaborates with Hemsworth for a heist. The end of the trailer sees Hemsworth pose as a limo driver for Ruffalo, who hints that he knows who Hemsworth really is.
Crime 101 is slated to hit theaters in 2025.
Is God Is
A trailer for Is God Is then played at CinemaCon. Based on the acclaimed play of the same name by Aleshea Harris, the film follows two girls who witnessed their father commit a horrific arson attack on their mother (played by Vivica A. Fox) when they were kids. Years later, their mother is dying and has one last dying wish: for her daughters to kill their father. What proceeds is an intense, vibrant trailer of a seemingly disturbing movie.
James Bond
Amazon made headlines recently by purchasing the rights to James Bond. Although it is too early to talk about 007 casting, studio executives Courtenay Valenti and Sue Kroll spoke about hiring Amy Pascal and David Heyman to oversee the new film.
“We are committed to honoring the legacy of this iconic character while bringing a fresh, exotic new chapter to audiences around the world alongside Amy [Pascal] and David [Heyman],” the executives said. “They’re both in London getting started and couldn’t be here tonight, but we wanted to thank them for what we know to make an incredible partnership.”
Masters of the Universe
Beyond Bond, the most anticipated movie ahead for Amazon MGM is arguably Masters of the Universe. Fans have clamored for He-Man to return for years and that will soon be the case.
A behind the scenes video of Masters of the Universe was presented to the CinemaCon crowd. Director Travis Knight spoke enthusiastically about having the opportunity to take on this project, remarking that he even had a He-Man haircut at high school. A series of behind the scenes images and videos follow, which highlight depictions of iconic characters like He-Man and Skeletor that seem to be ripped straight from the original cartoon series (barring a modification or two). Skeletor, who is played by Jared Leto, remained under wraps in the footage, as did a full look at Nicholas Galitzine in the He-Man suit.
Masters of the Universe hits theaters on June 5, 2026.
The Accountant 2
Closing out the Amazon presentation was The Accountant 2. The sequel to the 2016 action movie recently premiered at South by Southwest and earned great reviews. To present the film, Ben Affleck, Jon Bernthal, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, and director Gavin O’Connor were in attendance.
The CinemaCon crowd had a great time watching Affleck and Bernthal half-heartedly make their way through reading teleprompters. After a day of overly scripted presentations at CinemaCon, it was refreshing to see two big actors like Affleck and Bernthal make it abundantly obvious that they were reading from teleprompters and turn the situation into a bit of a joke.
An extended trailer for The Accountant 2 was screened to the CinemaCon crowd. Much of the footage has already been seen in previous trailers.
The Accountant 2 hits theaters on April 25, 2025.
To wrap up the presentation, many of the actors and filmmakers came back on stage to take a big selfie (led by a selfie stick-wielding Vivica A. Fox). Check out the photo below.
