Summer 2025 Movie Preview: 50 Films To Watch
Summer’s here and the time is right, for dancing in the street. All we need is movies, movies, they’ll be movies everywhere. OK, something like that (literally, you try writing an original intro to a summer movie preview after doing it for 17-odd years).
But yes, summer is here, our summer movie preview is late, and let’s not blather on too much. Summer is what it is every season: a mix of blockbuster meets indie counter-programming for those that get sick of explosions, and whatnot. So yes, for big summer movies, you’ll get two Marvel movies, a ‘ ’ film, a “”/DC movie, a new “” franchise installment, and more.
Indie-arthouse-wise audiences will receive new films by filmmaker and more. Anyhow, let’s get right to it.
Filmmaker (“”) returns to the scene of his biggest hit in recent years with the black comedy mystery film “ and this time it’s a murder that occurs at ’s character’s extravagant Italian wedding to a businessman on the island of Capri. Lively and along with and many more (read our review).
: May 1 via Amazon MGM.
“” filmmaker takes a team of misfit outcast anti-heroes—played by and —and pits them against the conniving government agent Valentina Allega de Fontain () and her various cronies (read our review).
May 2 via , and yeah, they’re calling it “” now or whatever, sure.
“”
Indie auteur pays ironic tribute to the indie-rock bandby making an ambitious hybrid experiment that’s part documentary, part narrative, part spoof and purposefully unreliable storytelling. The film features the band in archival footage, but also includes actors like and more playing members of either the rock group themselves or key figures in their origin story (read our review).
May 2 via .
“”
Cut from the same absurdist cloth as “,” stars in this absurdist dark nightmare cringe comedy about a suburban dad obsessively pursuing camaraderie with his charming neighbor (). Everything’s fine at first, as the bff-ness blossoms, but of course, it all eventually goes hilariously south. and co-star.
May 9 via .
“”
A film companion piece to s sixth studio album of the same name, “” is a musical psychological thriller about an insomniac musician on the verge of a mental breakdown who is pulled into an existential odyssey by a mysterious stranger. “” filmmaker directs, The Weeknd stars, naturally, and and also star. Let’s hope this isn’t an expensive vanity project, given Tesfaye’s previous project, ’s “,” was met with major scorn.
May 16, 2025, via
Directed by , the final installment of a franchise that has spanned four decades, at least for now, “” is rumored to be one of the most expensive films of all time, north of $300 million because e gets what Tom Cruise wants. This final installment and direct sequel to ‘’ stars all trying to stop Gabriel () from obtaining the AI program known as “the Entity.” The film will also make its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, about two weeks before its regular release.
May 23 via
“”
Uber-prolific director delivered a movie and a series last year, and he is doing the same again in 2025, with the series “” and his film “.” Written by “” scribe and maybe taking a broad page out of “,”the action-adventure stars and as a pair of estranged siblings who team up and embark on a journey to find the famed Fountain of Youth. The ensemble cast also includes Eiza González, Domhnall Gleeson, Arian Moayed, Laz Alonso, Carmen Ejogo, and Stanley Tucci.
Release Date: May 23 via Apple TV+.
“Fear Street: Prom Queen”
The “Fear Street” series, based on R. L. Stine’s horror book series of the same name, has already launched a film trilogy for Netflix, and the streamer returns with a new slasher installment, “Fear Street: Prom Queen.” Directed by Matt Palmer and co-written by Palmer and Donald McLeary, this fourth film installment follows the students of Shadyside High as they prepare for prom night, but the competitive mean girls get feisty and then start dropping like flies. The movie stars India Fowler, Suzanna Son, Fina Strazza, David Iacono, Ella Rubin, Chris Klein, Ariana Greenblatt, Lili Taylor, and Katherine Waterston.
Release Date: May 23 via Netflix.
“The Phoenician Scheme”
Wes Anderson’s thirteenth feature-length film, “The Phoenician Scheme,” is an ambitious-sounding espionage black comedy he conceived with longtime collaborator Roman Coppola. The plot follows a wealthy businessman who appoints his only daughter, a nun, as the sole heir to his estate. But soon, they become the target of scheming tycoons, foreign terrorists, and determined assassins. The film stars Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton, and Michael Cera. Then the rest of the massive ensemble includes Riz Ahmed, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Mathieu Amalric, Richard Ayoade, Jeffrey Wright, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Rupert Friend, Hope Davis, Bill Murray, Charlotte Gainsbourg, and Willem Dafoe. “The Phoenician Scheme” will premiere at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival.
Release Date: May 30 via Focus Features.
“Mountainhead”
Having just finished “Succession,” writer/show’s creator Jesse Armstrong makes his feature-length directorial debut with the satirical comedy-drama, “Mountainhead.” Affluence and privilege are at the top of my mind again, and the movie follows four wealthy friends who reunite amidst a global financial crisis, navigating chaos and personal dilemmas. “Mountainhead” stars Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman, Cory Michael Smith, and Ramy Youssef.
Release Date: May 31 via HBO.
