Post-'Barbenheimer' Summer Movie Guide – What to See?

July Movie Releases

July 3-5

"Despicable Me 4" (Universal, theaters): Gru and the minions are back, with a new baby in the mix.

"Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F" (Netflix, streaming): Forty years after Axel Foley crossed jurisdictions to investigate a crime, Eddie Murphy is back for a fourth film, alongside Judge Reinhold and Paul Reiser.

"MaXXXine" (A24, theaters): After "X" and "Pearl," Ti West concludes his unlikely trilogy by bringing Mia Goth's aspiring star Maxine to Los Angeles in 1985 in this highly stylized slasher.

"Touch" (Focus, theaters): Baltasar Kormákur directs a thrilling romance about a widower's search for his first love 50 years after she disappeared.

"Kill" (Roadside Attractions, theaters): Set on the Rajdhani Express to New Delhi, this bloody action thriller stars Lakshya as an army commando who takes on a gang of violent thieves terrorizing passengers while on his way to derail his true love's (Tanya Maniktala) arranged marriage.

"Possum Trot" (Angel Studios, theaters): Based on a true story about 22 families in a small East Texas town who adopt 77 difficult to place children out of the foster system.

"Space Cadet" (Prime Video, streaming): Emma Roberts plays a woman who embellishes an application and lands in NASA's astronaut training program.

July 11

"Tyler Perry's Divorce in the Black" (Prime Video, streaming): Meagan Good stars in this new Tyler Perry joint about a woman realizing the ugly truth about her husband.

July 12

"Fly Me to the Moon" (Sony/Apple TV+, theaters): Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum star in this romantic comedy from Greg Berlanti about a marketing executive hired by NASA to fake the moon landing...just in case.

"Sing Sing" (A24, theaters): Colman Domingo stars in this movie about a few incarcerated men who begin acting in a theater group. This fall festival breakout is based on "The Sing Sing Follies" by John H. Richardson and "Breakin' the Mummy's Code" by Brent Buell and co-stars Paul Raci as well as several former prisoners.

"Longlegs" (Neon, theaters): Nicolas Cage and Maika Monroe lead this thriller about an FBI agent assigned to an unsolved case involving a serial killer.

"National Anthem" (Variance Films and LD Entertainment, theaters): Photographer Luke Gilford's directorial debut, about queer rodeo subculture, starring Charlie Plummer.

July 13

"Princes Mononoke" re-release (Fathom Events, theaters).

July 19

"Twisters" (Universal, theaters): Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell and Anthony Ramos lead a new band of storm chasers in this standalone sequel to the 1996 blockbuster directed by Lee Isaac Chung ("Minari," "The Mandalorian") and produced by Steven Spielberg.

"Skywalkers: A Love Story" (Netflix, streaming): An adventurous couple dream of climbing the world's "last super skyscraper" and performing an acrobatic stunt on top.

July 21

"The NeverEnding Story" 40th Anniversary re-release (Fathom Events, theaters).

July 26

"Deadpool & Wolverine" (Disney, theaters): The Merc with a Mouth (Ryan Reynolds) and the previously dead X-Man (Hugh Jackman) find their way to one another at last, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in this Shawn Levy-directed film. There are more rumors than confirmations about what it's even about, and who will be making a cameo, but two things are certain: It's rated R and it's going to be one of the summer's biggest hits.

"Dìdi" (Focus, theaters): This coming-of-age pic from Sean Wang about a 13-year-old Taiwanese-American kid (Izaac Wang) in the Bay Area on his last summer before high school in 2008 won the audience award at the Sundance Film Festival.

"The Fabulous Four" (Bleecker Street, theaters): Lifelong friends (Susan Sarandon, Megan Mullally and Sheryl Lee Ralph) go to Key West for a wedding (college pal, played by Bette Midler).

August Movie Releases

August 2

"The Instigators" (Apple TV+, theaters; Streaming on Aug. 9): Doug Liman directs this comedic heist movie starring Matt Damon, Casey Affleck and Hong Chau.

"Harold and the Purple Crayon" (Sony, theaters): Many years after Spike Jonze was supposed to adapt the classic 1955 children's book, and several delays with this iteration, the family fantasy film is finally making it to theaters. Starring Zachary Levi as Harold and Lil Rel Howery, it blends animation and live action.

"Kneecap" (Sony Pictures Classics, theaters): Naoise Ó Cairealláin aka "Móglaí Bap", Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh aka "Mo Chara", JJ Ó Dochartaigh aka "DJ Provaí", all playing themselves in this film about the titular rap trio from Belfast.

"Cuckoo" (Neon, theaters): Hunter Schaefer stars in this unnerving, blood-soaked thriller set in the German Alps. Dan Stevens plays her father's creepy boss.

August 3

"Ponyo" re-release (Fathom Events, theaters).

August 9

"Trap" (Warner Bros., theaters): Josh Hartnett stars in an original thriller from M. Night Shyamalan about a murderer at large inside a massive arena concert.

"It Ends With Us" (Sony, theaters): Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni star in this adaptation of the Colleen Hoover novel about romantic love and childhood trauma.

"The Fire Inside" (Amazon/MGM, theaters): Ryan Destiny plays professional boxer Claressa "T-Rex" Shields in this biographical sports drama from Oscar-nominated cinematographer Rachel Morrison, in her feature debut.

"Borderlands" (Lionsgate, theaters): After a few years of delays, Eli Roth's colorful action-adventure "Borderlands," based on the video game, is barreling to theaters starring Cate Blanchett, Ariana Greenblatt and Kevin Hart.

"My Penguin Friend" (Roadside Attractions, theaters): Based on a true story, a fisherman (Jean Reno) finds hope in a penguin rescued from an oil spill.

"Good One" (Metrograph Pictures, theaters): A 17-year-old (Lily Collias) goes on a backpacking trip in the Catskills with her dad (James Le Gros) and his oldest friend in this poignant coming-of-age drama. India Donaldson's debut was a Sundance breakout.

August 16

"Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2" (Warner Bros., theaters): Costner continues the story of the American West with this second chapter, exclusively in movie theaters.

"Alien: Romulus " (20th Century Studios, theaters): The director of "Don't Breathe" helms this terrifying new installment in the Alien series, starring Cailee Spaeny, Isabela Merced and David Jonsson.

"The Union" (Netflix, streaming): Halle Berry and Mark Wahlberg are former high school sweethearts turned spies in this action-comedy-romance.

"Close to You" (Greenwich Entertainment, theaters): Elliot Page plays Sam, who goes to his hometown for the first time since his transition for his father's birthday.

August 23

"Blink Twice " (Amazon/MGM, theaters): Zoë Kravitz makes her directorial debut, with Channing Tatum starring as a tech billionaire who invites a waitress (Naomi Ackie) to his private island where odd things start happening.

"The Crow " (Lionsgate, theaters): Bill Skarsgård, FKA twigs and Danny Huston star in director Rupert Sanders' reboot of the comic-based series about a dead musician resurrected to avenge his and his fiance's deaths.

"Between the Temples " (Sony Pictures Classics, theaters): Jason Schwartzman and Carol Kane develop an unlikely friendship while she studies to get a late-in-life bat mitzvah.

"Slingshot" (Bleecker Street, theaters): Casey Affleck and Laurence Fishburne star in this sci-fi thriller about an astronaut whose grasp on reality starts to dwindle on a dangerous mission.

"Place of Bones" (The Avenue, theaters and VOD): Heather Graham plays a mother who gets an unexpected visitor at her isolated ranch in a bloodied bank robber.

August 25-28

"Rear Window" 70th Anniversary re-release (Fathom Events, theaters).

"Whisper of the Heart" re-release (Fathom Events, theaters).

"The Cat Returns" re-release (Fathom Events, theaters).

August 30

"Kraven the Hunter" (Sony, theaters): Deadpool isn't the only R-rated comic book movie on the block this summer. Aaron Taylor-Johnson stars as the titular Marvel villain in this film from J.C. Chandor, co-starring Ariana DeBose and Russell Crowe.

"Reagan" (ShowBiz Direct, theaters): Dennis Quaid plays Ronald Reagan in this childhood to White House biopic, the first full-length film about the 40th U.S. President.

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