2025 was, by and large, a really good year for movies. Last year, we got outstanding movies like Ryan Coogler’s daring vampire musical “Sinners,” Paul Thomas Anderson’s Americana masterpiece “One Battle After Another,” the absolutely bonkers alien movie “Bugonia” from Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos, Zach Cregger’s masterful original horror flick “Weapons,” and Rian Johnson’s third “Knives Out” movie “Wake Up Dead Man,” just to name a few. (“One Battle After Another,” incidentally, took home the Academy Award for best picture, but it was a pretty tight race between that and “Sinners.”) So how’s 2026 looking?
Honestly, it’s pretty good so far! Again, we can’t stress this enough: 2025 was an unusually phenomenal year for movies, but we’re keeping score to see what stands out as 2026 keeps trucking along. We’ll update this list when we feel that a new movie checks every box, but for now, here are the best movies of 2026 so far (in order of their theatrical release dates).
Read more: ’70s Movies That Would Never Be Made Today
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
Sir Jimmy dancing with the other Jimmys behind him in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple – Sony Pictures Releasing
Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell, Alfie Williams, Erin Kellyman Director: Nia DaCosta Rating: R Runtime: 109 minutes Where to watch: Netflix
After “28 Years Later” wowed audiences in 2025, its immediate sequel “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple” shocked those audiences by being even better. With Alex Garland penning the script and “Candyman” director Nia DaCosta at the helm, “The Bone Temple” picks up where we left off with Spike (Alfie Williams), who runs afoul of a bizarre group called “the Jimmys” in this post-apocalyptic, zombie-filled world at the end of the previous film.
Surprising even himself — and shocking the lead Jimmy, “Sir Lord” Jimmy Crystal (“Sinners” star Jack O’Connell playing another phenomenal villain) by holding his own in a fight, Spike gets a blonde wig and joins the Jimmys as they travel across the countryside, all the while planting seeds of doubt about whether or not Sir Jimmy is actually the son of Satan like he claims. (Erin Kellyman’s standout Jimmy, whose real name is Kellie, is especially susceptible to this line of thinking and starts seeing the cracks in Sir Jimmy’s story pretty quickly.) Add in a plotline where Dr. Ian Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) tames an infected man he names Samson (Chi Lewis-Parry) and performs one of the year’s best musical numbers to impress the Jimmys, and you’ve got a great movie — and that’s without mentioning the huge surprise cameo at the very end.
Send Help
Linda peeking out from under a woven hat in Send Help – 20th Century Studios
Cast: Rachel McAdams, Dylan O’Brien Director: Sam Raimi Rating: R Runtime: 113 minutes Where to watch: VOD
Gross-out horror king Sam Raimi did it again with his 2026 release “Send Help,” and even if you’re not great with gore, you’ll absolutely want to check out this absurd, hysterical, and jaw-dropping movie. When we first meet Rachel McAdams’ Linda Liddle at her corporate strategy job — a job where she turns off her co-workers by eating tuna fish sandwiches in an open-air office, by the by — she’s devastated when she’s passed over for a promotion by Bradley Preston (Dylan O’Brien), her boss who inherited the company from his father. Still, Linda is included on a business trip on a private plane, and right as Bradley and other men from the company are laughing at Linda’s audition tape for the CBS reality competition series “Survivor,” the plane’s engines start to fail … and Bradley and Linda land on a seemingly remote island as the only survivors.
Linda, unsurprisingly, is perfectly capable of surviving in the wilderness, while Bradley is not — and everything that follows the pair’s unexpected marooning is horrifying, weirdly exhilarating, and wholly shocking. McAdams is one of the industry’s best and most underappreciated performers, and her turn here as Linda is astounding; as the saying goes, if you support women’s rights, you also have to support women’s wrongs.
Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie
Matt and Jay walking down the street with a massive extension cord in – Elevation Pictures
Cast: Matt Johnson, Jay McCarrol Director: Matt Johnson Rating: R Runtime: 100 minutes Where to watch: VOD
Based on Matt Johnson and Jay McCaroll’s web series that also spawned a short-lived TV series, “Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie” is, without question, one of 2026’s funniest and most unique films. Johnson and McCaroll star as “themselves” (well, fictional versions) who, just like in the web series and show, front a group called Nirvanna the Band who are roughly as successful as the titular duo on “Flight of the Conchords” (which is to say, not successful). After almost two decades of flailing, Matt and Jay are trying to book a gig at Toronto’s incredibly famous Rivoli venue, and as they plan increasingly hare-brained schemes to make that happen, they accidentally turn their RV into a time travel device and are sent back to 2008.
“Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie” is uproariously funny, gloriously stupid, and yet another excellent comedic entry into the well-trodden time-travel genre. Even if you’re totally unfamiliar with Johnson and McCarrol’s work, you’ll absolutely love the abject silliness of “Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie.”
Hoppers
Mabel looking confused in Hoppers – Pixar/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Cast: Piper Curda, Bobby Moynihan, Jon Hamm, Kathy Najimy, Dave Franco Director: Daniel Chong Rating: PG Runtime: 104 minutes Where to watch: VOD
Over the past several years, Pixar has been leaning on legacy sequels a bit more often … but they still make plenty of great original projects, and “Hoppers” is the latest entry into that canon. This extraordinarily fun and smart movie — which Looper’s own Alistair Ryder awarded a positive review — is led by Piper Curda as Mabel, a college student who’s been passionate about animals and the environment since she was very young and lived with her beloved grandmother. After her grandmother passes away, Mabel is horrified to her that her Oregon town of Beaverton, led by Mayor Jerry Generazzo (Jon Hamm), is prepared to bulldoze a nearby glade to build a freeway. Shortly thereafter, though, she finds out that her favorite professor Dr. Samantha “Sam” Fairfax (Kathy Najimy) is creating a technology that allows a human to “hop” into an animal’s body and experience their life.
Mabel, as a result, “hops” into the animatronic body of a beaver, befriends some actual critters — including King George, a beaver monarch known as the Mammal King voiced by Bobby Moynihan — and tries to convince her fellow humans to spare the glade. Definitely check out “Hoppers” if you haven’t already — it’ll give you a lot to chew on. (Sorry.)
Pizza Movie
Jack Lizzy and Montgomery looking shocked in Pizza Movie – Hulu
Cast: Gaten Matarazzo, Lulu Wilson, Caleb Hearon, Daniel Radcliffe Director: Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney Rating: R Runtime: 97 minutes Where to watch: Hulu
If you’re at all familiar with super-niche Internet sketch comedy from the 2000s — and more specifically, one group called BriTANick — you’ll love “Pizza Movie.” If not, you’ll still probably love “Pizza Movie.” Written and directed by Brian McElhaney and Nick Kocher, the duo known as BriTANick who also wrote the 2026 horror comedy “Over Your Dead Body” and have appeared in projects like “How I Met Your Mother,” “Pizza Movie” stars “Stranger Things” alum Gaten Matarazzo as college student Jack, who spends most of his time with his best friend Montgomery (Sean Giambrone). Both are bullied and struggling with the social aspect of college when, one night, they decide to indulge in some mind-altering drugs known only as M.I.N.T.S. — and when the effects hit them extremely hard, the duo chases down a pizza delivery robot to get food as quickly as possible.
“Pizza Movie” charts all the distinct phases of Jack and Montgomery’s brains on M.I.N.T.S., so we should say here that if stoner comedies aren’t your jam, you might not like this one. Still, for our money, “Pizza Movie” is fun, stupid in a distinctly fun way, and an absolutely delightful use of 97 minutes. Why not pair it with your favorite pie?
Project Hail Mary
Ryland in space looking at Adrian on Project Hail Mary – Amazon MGM Studios
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Sandra Hüller, James Ortiz, Lionel Boyce Director: Phil Lord and Christopher Miller Rating: PG-13 Runtime: 156 minutes Where to watch: VOD
One of the biggest box-office successes of 2026 also happens to be one of its very best movies — and yes, we’re talking about Ryan Gosling’s majestic space movie “Project Hail Mary.” Directed by the “21 Jump Street” duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, “Project Hail Mary,” which marks the second studio adaptation of sci-fi author Andy Weir’s work after “The Martian” in 2015, introduces us to Gosling’s mild-mannered and quietly brilliant science teacher Dr. Ryland Grace as he wakes up alone on a massive spacecraft. Using a non-linear story, Lord, Miller, and screenwriter Drew Goddard slowly tell us how Ryland got there and what he’s trying to do — and put simply, he’s trying to save the universe.
After scientists discover that the sun is in danger is being blocked by a strange substance they dub Astrophage, Ryland and a small crew head out to a constellation known as Tau Ceti (that’s very far away from Earth) to see why it’s completely unaffected by Astrophage. When Ryland wakes up, though, he discovers the bodies of that small crew and, while trying to find his way home, instead encounters a small boulder-like alien he named Rocky, who’s part of a race known as the Eridians. (Rocky is not CGI but a puppet operated by and voiced by James Ortiz, whose performance is nothing short of spectacular.) As Ryland and Rocky work together to figure out how to fix the Astrophage issue, they form a truly beautiful friendship, and take it from us — even if you’re not a big sci-fi fan, you’ll find yourself crying over a little rock alien before you know it.
The Drama
Charlie whispering in Emma’s deaf ear in The Drama – A24
Cast: Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Alana Haim Director: Kristoffer Borgli Rating: R Runtime: 105 minutes Where to watch: VOD
Kristoffer Borgli’s 2026 follow-up to his indie hit “Dream Scenario” gives audiences one of the biggest and weirdest twists of the entire year … and it’s also, without question, one of the best movies released this year. As Boston couple Emma and Charlie (Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, both outstanding) prepare for their wedding, they enjoy a late-night tasting with their friends Rachel and her husband Mike (Alana Haim and Mamoudou Athie) and start spilling secrets casually over wine. Asked about the worst thing any of them have done, Mike, Rachel, and Charlie all giggle over some pretty nasty wrongdoings — let’s not forget that Rachel locked a child in an abandoned structure and didn’t tell anyone where he was — but when Emma confesses her secret, everyone, including Charlie, views her differently.
We won’t spoil Emma’s secret in “The Drama” here (though it’s all over the Internet), but trust us when we say that her secret isn’t so much a proper “twist” as it is a twisted inciting incident that sets up a number of totally different twists. Despite how dark it gets, “The Drama” is perversely funny, centered by truly astounding performances from modern treasures Zendaya and Pattinson, and might even get you to shout at the screen once or twice as the characters make absolutely deranged decisions. “The Drama” is heavy, but it’s also a must-see 2026 movie.
Mother Mary
Mary posing in a headdress and gold outfit in Mother Mary – A24
Cast: Anne Hathaway, Michaela Coel, Hunter Schafer Director: David Lowery Rating: R Runtime: 112 minutes Where to watch: Theaters
Anne Hathaway appears in a whopping five movies in 2026, and at least one of them is one of the year’s best … and that’s her psychosexual pop-star drama “Mother Mary.” (It’s important to note that, as of this writing, Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey — which features Oscar winner Hathaway as Penelope, has not yet hit theaters.) Directed by David Lowery — who’s best known for his avant-garde historical drama “The Green Knight” from 2021 — “Mother Mary” centers around the titular pop star (Hathaway), whose real name is never revealed. As Mary puts together a comeback show meant to make her fans forget about a terrifying onstage accident at her last public performance, she seeks help from her old friend, fashion designer Sam Anselm (“I May Destroy You” star and creator Michaela Coel), who lives in a remote estate in the English countryside.
We definitely don’t want to spoil the major beats of “Mother Mary” here either, but let’s just say that the movie focuses on artistic integrity and expression, where artists find inspiration — or, in Mary’s case, what happens when they seem to lose their vision — and the price that some creatives will pay to achieve true “perfection.” Come for the unbelievable on-screen fashion in “Mother Mary” (which actually might be better than the fashion found in Hathaway’s May release “The Devil Wears Prada 2” — and stay for the simmering tension between the film’s two incredible lead performers.
Hokum
Ohm crouching in a dumbwaiter with a lantern in Hokum – Neon
Cast: Adam Scott, Peter Coonan, David Wilmot Director: Damian McCarthy Rating: R Runtime: 107 minutes Where to watch: Theaters
Ever since Damian McCarthy’s 2024 indie horror movie “Oddity” scared audiences out of their seats, they’ve been patiently waiting to see the Irish filmmaker’s next project — and they won’t be disappointed by “Hokum.” This super-scary movie stars Adam Scott, known for everything from “Parks and Recreation” to “Party Down” to the Emmy-nominated sci-fi-series “Severance,” as cantankerous American author Ohm Bauman, who heads to a rural lodging in Ireland called the The Bilberry Woods Hotel to finish his super-popular Conquistador trilogy. (He also, and this is important, chooses the Bilberry because it’s where his parents spent their honeymoon decades prior.) After brushing off most of the staff at the Bilberry, Ohm settles in to write, but before long, he starts noticing some pretty spooky hauntings at the hotel.
We definitely don’t want to spoil “Hokum” here — as with many other 2026 picks on this list, you should go in blind if you can — but just be warned that if you’re easily spooked, “Hokum” might not be a great fit for you. If you’re actively seeking a movie that’ll have your hair standing on end, though, go watch “Hokum.” Come for McCarthy’s particularly frightening brand of horror, and stay for yet another phenomenal lead performancer from Scott.
The Sheep Detectives
Sheep looking down at someone in The Sheep Detectives – Amazon MGM Studios
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Patrick Stewart Director: Kyle Balda Rating: PG Runtime: 109 minutes Where to watch: Theaters
Call it the “Paddington” effect, because this cozy British movie that’s ostensibly meant for children took the world by storm when it premiered in 2026. “The Sheep Detectives,” directed by by Kyle Balda and written by, of all people, “Chernobyl” and “The Last of Us” showrunner Craig Mazin — and based on Leonie Mann’s novel “Three Bags Full” — introduces audiences to George Hardy (Hugh Jackman), a friendly shepherd living near the small English town of Denbrook who corrals a flock of sheep and reads them lurid murder mysteries every single day. When George is found murdered, the sheep, including their defacto leader and murder mystery expert Lily (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), spring into action and decide it’s up to them to solve George’s murder using all of the tools he gave them during their reading sessions.
On paper, “The Sheep Detectives” looks and sounds like an absurd and even flat-out dumb premise. In practice, “The Sheep Detectives” is shockingly charming, witty, and warm, and you’ll be absolutely thrilled watching this intrepid flock of sheep avenge the man who showed them kindless and love throughout his life. “The Sheep Detectives” is fun for the whole family, but even the most cynical adult will find something to love here; just make sure you don’t get the wool pulled over your eyes. (Sorry, again.)
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Read the original article on Looper.