A new kingdom. Some new feelings. The return of an Oscar®-winning duo. A swearing Super Hero and his clawed companion. Silent screams in space. The return to Motunui. And the origins of a lionized king.
That’s just some of what moviegoers can expect as The Walt Disney Studios rolled out its 2024 theatrical film slate at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on Thursday.
The 2024 releases represent an eclectic group of films from across Disney’s blockbuster brands with franchise films from Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Animation, 20th Century Studios, Pixar, and more. It’s also an example of the company’s ongoing effort to deliver creativity and excellence from its film studios.
“The upcoming lineup from our studio is incredibly exciting,” Alan Bergman, Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman, said. “With a mix of established franchises and fresh stories, there’s something for everyone and we look forward to serving up a variety of films that deliver a steady flow of exceptional cinematic events to theaters.”
This year’s slate follows a 2023 that saw Disney bring in nearly $5 billion at the global box office. That includes $1.9 billion domestically across 17 titles. Acclaim also followed financial success last year as Disney led the industry with 20 Oscar® nominations, including five wins.
Now, 2024 is shaping up to be a great year. Here’s some of what Disney is bringing to a theater near you this year:
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
May 10
Disney opens its summer movie season with the latest chapter in 20th Century Studios’ Planet of the Apes franchise, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
The film — which is directed by Wes Ball — takes place generations after 2017’s War for the Planet of the Apes to tell the story of a young ape’s harrowing journey across a new empire. The Planet of the Apes franchise has showcased innovative storytelling by introducing remarkable motion capture technology to bring the apes to life and to bring audiences into this brave new world.
The last three films in the franchise (2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes, 2014’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and 2017’s War) have not only been groundbreaking in terms of their creativity, but have also been hits with moviegoers, bringing in a combined $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office.
Inside Out 2
June 14
Growing up can be emotional, and Pixar is once again ready to show audiences how much with Inside Out 2. The highly anticipated sequel to one of the animation studio’s most popular films brings audiences back into the head of Riley as she takes on the trials and tribulations of being a teenager.
Riley’s Emotions such as Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler) will have to deal with Riley getting older as well as some new feelings taking up space as Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Envy (Ayo Edebiri), Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos), and Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser) all move in.
Since racking up $858 million in 2015 and earning an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, Inside Out has gone on to become one of Pixar’s most beloved and recognizable titles. Excitement over the film has been found everywhere from shorts to merchandise to attractions showing that even the smallest of emotions can have the biggest of impacts.
Kinds of Kindness
June 21
Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos are wasting no time getting back to the big screen following their award-winning collaboration with last year’s Poor Things.
Searchlight Pictures’ Kinds of Kindness — a triptych fable directed by Lanthimos — brings the studio together again with Stone and the director just a few months after Poor Things took home four Oscars® — including a Best Actress win for Stone.
Stone leads a stellar cast that also includes Jesse Plemons, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Hong Chau, Joe Alwyn, Mamoudou Athie, and Hunter Schafer.
Deadpool & Wolverine
July 26
Deadpool & Wolverine brings Deadpool — the merc with a mouth played by Ryan Reynolds — to the blockbuster Marvel Cinematic Universe… and he won’t be coming alone.
Reynolds will be joined by Hugh Jackman — who is once again playing the iconic character Wolverine — to take on common enemies and likely some hijinks across the Marvel Universe.
Deadpool & Wolverine comes in at No 1. on Fandango’s list of Most Anticipated Summer Movies of 2024 (a list that also includes Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and Inside Out 2). The film follows two hugely successful films with 2016’s Deadpool and 2018’s Deadpool 2, which brought in $784 million and $734 million at the global box office, respectively.
With that type of popularity, Deadpool should fit right in with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a franchise that has brought in nearly $30 billion at the global box office.
Alien: Romulus
August 16
In space, no one can hear you scream, but come this August the screams will be loud and clear at the cineplex.
Alien: Romulus is set to terrify audiences as the latest film in the Alien series — a franchise that has made more than $1.5 billion worldwide going back to 1979’s touchstone horror science fiction film, Alien.
Romulus — which stars Cailee Spaeny and is written and directed by Fede Alvarez — takes place between the events of the 1979 film and its sequel, 1986’s Aliens, as a space crew attempts to survive the most horrifying creature in the galaxy.
Moana 2
November 27
The ocean is calling and so is the return of one of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ most adored films.
Moana 2 brings audiences back to Motunui as Moana, Maui, and a brand-new crew of unlikely seafarers journey to the far seas and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she’s ever faced. The all-new epic animated musical will feature the returning voices of Auli‘i Cravalho as Moana and Dwayne Johnson as Maui.
Since 2016’s Moana — a smash hit that made $645 million worldwide — love for the high seas adventures of Moana and Maui has not wavered. The original film recently crossed 1 billion hours streamed on Disney+ and was the most streamed movie of 2023 on any platform in the U.S.
Mufasa: The Lion King
December 20
The popularity of The Lion King has spanned generations and now audiences will be able to see the origin story of the king himself, Mufasa, this holiday season.
Directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker, Barry Jenkins, Mufasa: The Lion King will explore the story of how Mufasa became one of the greatest kings of the Pride Lands.
The prequel continues the tradition of the original 1994 movie and follows the cinematic style of 2019’s The Lion King, which made $1.6 billion at the global box office. The innovative approach blends live-action filmmaking techniques with photoreal computer-generated imagery.
But 2024 is just the start.
Disney has multiple notable releases in the years to come such as Captain America: Brave New World, The Fantastic Four, Blade, Toy Story 5, Zootopia 2, Tron: Ares, Snow White, The Mandalorian and Grogu, the live-action Moana, Avatar 3, and the Bruce Springsteen biopic Deliver Me from Nowhere.