2022 – A Look Ahead
As we start the new year, it’s time to have a look ahead at some of the highlights “coming soon” in 2022.
January – Scream. The confusingly titled Scream is in fact the fifth film in the series, and this legacy sequel brings back Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox and David Arquette from the 1996 original movie. Also out in January is The 355, Jessica Chastain’s female-led action spy thriller with an amazing cast.
February – Uncharted. This film is actually a prequel to the popular videogame series, and stars Tom Holland as a younger version of Nathan Drake, alongside Mark Wahlberg’s mentor Sully. As a big fan of the games, I’m reserving judgment on this adaptation for now, but I’m hoping that they’ll have done the material justice. Also out in February is Death on the Nile, the all-star sequel Kenneth Branagh’s earlier Poirot film, Murder on the Orient Express.
March – The Batman. This reimagining of the Batman mythos looks like a very interesting one, as writer/director Matt Reeves (the man behind the excellent Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy) has promised a return to the detective roots of the comics, while also (if the trailers are anything to go by) delivering gritty action by the bucketload too. Joining Robert Pattinson as the caped crusader is an all-star cast including Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as a serial-killer take on the Riddler, Colin Farrell as the Penguin, and Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon.
April – Sonic the Hedgehog 2. The first Sonic the Hedgehog was – surprisingly – not bad at all. It was a light-hearted, family-friendly adventure, with just enough humour to keep the adults engaged, and I’m hoping for more of the same from this sequel, which sees the always reliable Idris Elba join the (voice) cast.
May – Doctor Stranger in the Multiverse of Madness. The MCU has dabbled with the concept of the multiverse on the small screen before (in the excellent Disney+ show Loki and in What If…?), and on the big screen (in Spider-Man: No Way Home), but here it’s going to take centre stage. Joining Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Stranger is Elizabeth Olsen as the Scarlett Witch (fresh from arguably 2021’s best TV show, WandaVision), and Chiwetel Ejiofor also returns as Mordo. May also sees the much-delayed release of Top Gun: Maverick, which I’m intrigued to see (even though I’m not a huge fan of the original 1986 film).
June – Jurassic World: Dominion. I really enjoyed Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, but whatever your feelings are about that film, the prospect of seeing Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum return to the series alongside Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Pratt, Daniella Pineda and Justice Smith from the new trilogy is a tantalising prospect.
July – Thor: Love & Thunder. Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok was an absolute blast, so I’m really excited to see what he’s cooked up this time, especially as it sees the return of Natalie Portman to the series, and has Christian Bale as the new antagonist. July also sees the release of Minions: The Rise of Gru, and while the first Minions film wasn’t great, I really love the Despicable Me films, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a return to form with this prequel.
Later in 2022 – In September, we have the (as yet untitled) seventh Mission Impossible film, and given how good Fallout was, I can’t wait to see where Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie go next. October sees the release of Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse – Part One, the sequel to the joyous Into the Spider-Verse. The film is so big, it’s being split into two halves, with Part One hitting screens in 2022, and Part Two following in 2023. November sees the release of the much-delayed solo DCEU film The Flash, which follows on from Zack Snyder's Justice League and has confirmed the return of Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne for the first time in 30 years. November also sees the release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the sequel to the excellent Black Panther which will sadly have to address Chadwick Boseman’s tragic absence. Finally, December should see the release of the Aquaman sequel The Lost Kingdom, as well as Avatar 2, the belated sequel to 2009’s cinematic behemoth.
So that’s a selection of what to look out for in 2022 and in the meantime, I’ll be working on my cinematic highlights from 2021...
