Awards season for 2024 has started in the entertainment industry, and what a season it’s already been. 2024 was a fantastic year for movies, with films like Challengers, Longlegs, Wicked, The Substance, A Real Pain, and countless others. With awards coming out, the movies winning this year make me think about the future.
The Monkey
The first movie I’m anticipating for 2025 is “The Monkey,” coming out on February 21. One of the things that got me interested in this movie initially is the writer and director, Osgood Perkins.
Perkins, creator of recent hit “Longlegs,” has proven himself to be a talented director in the past and is incredibly skilled in the usage of suspense and psychological aspects of horror.
Hearing that Perkins was working on another horror film after “Longlegs” so soon after its release made me mark my calendar right away.
What made me even more interested in “The Monkey,” though, is that when compared to “Longlegs,” the two movies are remarkably different.
Breaking away from the serious psychological thriller that was “Longlegs,” “The Monkey” is based on the Stephen King short story of the same name. The film follows the story of a toy monkey that causes something nearby to die when it claps its cymbals together.
Even as someone who’s seen plenty of weird horror movies, I can admit the idea seems silly, but King’s story leaves plenty of space for a new interpretation.
As someone who’s never been a fan of King’s writing, I was surprised at just how much I enjoyed reading through the short story. King created a very solid foundation for “The Monkey,” and I’m looking forward to seeing how Perkins adapts the story and molds it into something of his own.
I was originally concerned the movie would be dumb, and that if it took itself too seriously it would be an absolutely painful watch, but after reading the 34 pages of the original short story, I see how Perkins can make it work.
If the movie leans more into a dark comedy like the trailer makes it seem, I think the concept could really excel.
If nothing else, with the trailer and a few sneak peeks out, “The Monkey” is looking like it will be an insane watch. For a bit of an idea of what I mean, watching the trailer made me feel like I was watching a more art-house version of the iconic “Final Destination” movies.
It’s exciting to see Perkins take a more absurdist approach to an already absurd idea. Knowing that the movie is leaning into a dark comedy, I can’t wait to see how far they’ll go. The trailer already shows some of the more cartoonish aspects of the film, like lightning crackling across a puddle of water to show it’s electrified.
The trailer also already shows an intriguing balance between the sillier aspects of the movie with the more serious horror-based elements. There are some absolutely wild shots, especially in the most recent trailer, released on January 16.
Two scenes in the new trailer show what I think will represent what the real vibe of the movie is going to be. The first scene takes place in a pawn shop with a variety of eclectic goods, and the second takes place in a hibachi restaurant. Without spoiling anything from the trailer, it’s clear from these scenes that killing characters in outlandish and impossible ways while keeping a somewhat serious energy is something that the movie will excel in.
Seeing how cartoonish the movie seems to be leaning, I can’t wait to see how Perkins signature style of psychological horror and dread fit into the film, especially since those two things are so hard to put together.
Although “The Monkey” was not the movie I was looking forward to the most out of the three on this list, after reading the original story and seeing multiple trailers, it’s quickly made its way up, and I can’t wait to watch once it hits theaters.
Mickey 17
The second movie, “Mickey 17,” is the film I’m most looking forward to this year.
“Mickey 17” is written and directed by Bong Joon-Ho, the same director who wrote and shot “Parasite.” Knowing his past works, I have no doubt that the film will become an all-time favorite of mine.
The movie has had a rocky prerelease, with multiple release date changes. Originally set to come to theaters in March of 2024, the project was moved back to January 31, 2025, before eventually being delayed to April 17. It was again changed most recently to March 7.
While the original delay from March of 2024 was to allow for more time to finish the film, the two most recent date changes have been to fit a more profitable release date, with April 17 fitting Easter weekend and March 7 fitting spring break. The changes also ensured a wider release of the movie in IMAX theaters.
I understand why the movies team fought so hard to get a wider IMAX release, though. The movie is almost guaranteed to be a smash hit.
One of the factors of the guarantee is the cast.
Robert Pattinson stars as the main character, Mickey. Pattinson is a fantastic character actor. The way that he changes everything down to his voice for different performances shows just how much he cares about his craft.
Many people don’t see Pattinson past his work in “Twilight,” but he’s proven himself again and again, and has continuously been able to display a crazy range in his movies. A perfect movie to show that range is one of his most recent projects, “The Boy and the Heron,” where his voice acting exceeded any expectations I had for him. Even now, watching it back for what must be the tenth time, I’m still amazed with his performance.
Even if Pattinson wasn’t starring, the other starring actors in the film like Steven Yeun, Naomi Ackie, Mark Ruffalo, and Toni Collette all guarantee stellar performances.
The plot though is what really makes a film, and it’s clear that “Mickey 17” has the perfect ingredients.
Like “The Monkey,” “Mickey 17” is based on a book, “Mickey7” by Edward Ashton. The story follows Mickey, a man who signed up to be an “Expendable” for space expeditions, allowing his body to be cloned if he dies on dangerous missions. When it’s discovered that there are multiple clones of Mickey alive at the same time, the story really begins.
That idea alone is enough to pique my interest, but what fully convinced me to add “Mickey 17” to my watchlist is the direction it seems to be leaning.
Watching the trailer, what really caught my attention, besides the stunning settings and directing, was the more psychological conflicts that were introduced.
Having the main character wrestle with what it really is to be a clone and whether or not the next clone would really be him is something I’ve always wanted to see explored in sci-fi movies, and having it explored by a writer and director as talented in representing heavy topics as Bong Joon-Ho puts any concerns I might’ve had about the concept to rest.
What also puts my mind at ease is the fact that Bong Joon-Ho had Final Cut privileges for the film, meaning that he had full creative control, without needing to ask the studio or producers about what he could or couldn’t include.
In a day and age where movie studios are worried about money over anything else, it makes me happy to see a film where the director is in full control over his craft.
Although “Mickey 17” was robbed of its rightful place on Letterboxd’s list of most anticipated movies of 2025, it surely won’t be robbed of my seat in theaters, or of the awards I’m sure it will eventually earn.
28 Years Later
The last of the films I’m most excited to see in 2025 is “28 Years Later.”
“28 Years Later,” releasing June 20, is a sequel to the iconic film “28 Days Later,” a pivotal movie for the zombie genre.
“28 Days Later” was the first film to introduce the concept of zombies that could run, not just the shuffle in the way that had been the norm for so long— so hearing that there would be a sequel was thrilling.
What solidified my interest in the movie almost instantly though, was hearing that there would be a returning directing and writing team.
“28 years later” is written by Alex Garland and Directed by Danny Boyle, the same duo who worked on the first movie.
I’m looking forward to seeing a horror sequel with the original creators working on it still, especially after such a big gap in time.
Many movies with sequels coming out after a long period of time, especially horror movies, have a different team to write and direct than the original. The original writers may offer opinions and their consent to create a sequel, but that might be the extent of their involvement.
Knowing the “28 Years Later” will be in trustworthy hands settles many of the concerns I had. Audiences can trust Garland and Boyle to treat the film with the same amount of love and attention that devoted fans would wish for.
With the first trailer out, I was surprised to see that the film may be focusing more on the societal consequences of a zombie apocalypse, rather than just the zombies.
Like the title says, the “28 Years Later” takes place almost three decades after the events of the first movie. Following a small community on a secluded island, it seems the movie will focus on how people have adapted and changed their ways of living to survive.
Though I’m a sucker for almost any zombie movie, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that the genre has become oversaturated and cliched. With very few interesting takes on zombies in recent time, “28 Years Later” makes me hopeful there’s still some creativity to tap from the genre.
Another aspect of the film that’s so refreshing to see is how they’re already handling the tone.
Even from just the short trailer we have, there are impressive displays of extreme shifts in the mood between scenes. From the first moments of the trailer, we’re shown children watching TV quietly before being thrown into the apocalypse of the first film. Another jarring scene change brings us from the flashback of the apocalypse to the current day of the movie, on a serene, quiet island.
Being able to flip between the calm and the chaos that the movie requires is vital to the success of the film, because if there’s never any calm, the insanity that comes later would have less impact.
One of the things so many zombie movies struggle with is balance but seeing the trailer and knowing the team behind the creation of “28 Years Later” there’s almost no doubt in my mind that it won’t have the same issue.
“28 Years Later” is a film I’ve been wishing for since I watched the original “28 Days Later,” and with what I’ve seen, I can’t imagine that it will disappoint.
Honorable Mentions
There are countless other movies coming out in 2025 that I will undoubtably adore, along with these three. From the date I chose these three films, there are already more that I wish I could’ve included. “Opus”, a horror comedy starring Ayo Edebiri is no doubt a movie I will never shut up about, “Frankenstein,” the long-awaited Guillermo Del Toro remake is destined to hit it out of the park, and many, many more movies already look like they’ll be going platinum on my TVs.
With the new year, there are so many new opportunities to get into different kinds of movies. Break out and see something you think you won’t like. It’s guaranteed to be a great year for film.