The summer movie season will have a different feel this year
Without theaters, many of your popcorn movies will stream straight to your home.
The summer movie season is looking a lot different than usual this year. ❚ Because theaters are closed by coronavirus, many of the huge blockbusters-in-waiting have been shifted to later this year or even into 2021. That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy new films coming out in June, July and August, though. A lot are coming to streaming services in the next few months that were either intended for theatrical release or always meant for at-home enjoyment. ❚ Some are hanging tough to their theatrical dates, from major movies like Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” (slated for July 17), Disney’s live-action “Mulan” (July 24) and superhero sequel “Wonder Woman 1984” (Aug. 14) to Russell Crowe’s road-rage thriller “Unhinged” (July 1) and the innovative Riz Ahmed musical drama “Sound of Metal” (Aug. 14). While we wait to see if those dates stick, what’s coming to streaming seems a lot more solid: Here are 10 upcoming movies to definitely put on your quarantine calendar:
‘Artemis Fowl’ (June 12)
Stars: Ferdia Shaw, Josh Gad and Judi Dench
Director: Kenneth Branagh
The skinny: Could this be the first major movie franchise for Disney+? The adaptation of Eoin Colfer’s young-adult fantasy adventure follows a boy genius, the latest in a line of criminal masterminds, who takes on a race of powerful fairies to rescue
his kidnapped father (Colin Farrell). Where to watch: Disney+
‘Da 5 Bloods’ (June 12)
Stars: Chadwick Boseman, Delroy Lindo and Isiah Whitlock Jr. Director: Spike Lee
The skinny: With Oscars leaning into streaming efforts this year, is it
finally Netflix’s time to win best picture? Here’s the first real contender of 2020, Lee’s war film about four African American vets who return to Vietnam searching for the remains of their dead squad leader (Boseman) and a buried fortune.
Where to watch: Netflix
‘The King of Staten Island’ (June 12)
Stars: Pete Davidson, Marisa Tomei and Bill Burr
Director: Judd Apatow
The skinny: “Saturday Night Live” regular Davidson stars and co-wrote the script for this semi-autobiographical dramedy about a young New Yorker who’s been in a state of arrested development since his firefighter dad died in the line of duty.
Where to watch: iTunes, Vudu and FandangoNOW
‘7500’ (June 19)
Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Omid Memar and Murathan Muslu
Director: Patrick Vollrath
The skinny: He’s back! In his first major role since 2016’s “Snowden,” Gordon-Levitt stars as an American co-pilot on a jaunt from Berlin to Paris when terrorists storm the cockpit with makeshift knives. An emergency landing becomes necessary when hijackers threaten murder if they’re not let in.
Where to watch: Amazon
‘Irresistible’ (June 26)
Stars: Steve Carell, Byrne and Chris Cooper Director: Jon Stewart
The skinny: Former “Daily Show” alums work together again in this comedy written and directed by Stewart and starring Carell as a Democratic political consultant who helps a retired Marine colonel (Cooper) run for mayor in his small Wisconsin town.
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Where to watch: iTunes, Vudu and FandangoNOW
‘Hamilton’ (July 3)
Stars: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Daveed Diggs and Renee Elise Goldsberry
Director: Thomas Kail
The skinny: This one’s for everybody who hasn’t seen the Tony Awards-conquering musical that captured cultural imagination, lost out on seeing the original cast on Broadway, or even had their recent plans at the theater changed because of the coronavirus. This filmed production of the stage show, starring Miranda as Alexander Hamilton, aims to bring the theatrical experience to those stuck at home.
Where to watch: Disney+
‘The Old Guard’ (July 10)
Stars: Charlize Theron, Chiwetel
Ejiofor and Matthias Schoenaerts
Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood
The skinny: In the action flick based on the comic book series, a team of centuries-old immortal mercenaries (led by Theron) discovers a young new recruit (KiKi Layne) with their same hard-to-kill abilities while also dealing with their secrets being exposed.
Where to watch: Netflix
‘Palm Springs’ (July 10)
Stars: Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti and J.K. Simmons
Director: Max Barbakow The skinny: A hit at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, the romantic comedy features Samberg and Milioti as two guests who hook up at a Palm Springs wedding and then get trapped in a “Groundhog Day”style time loop.
Where to watch: Hulu
‘The Rental’ (July 24)
Stars: Alison Brie, Dan Stevens and Sheila Vand Director: Dave Franco
The skinny: Franco makes his directorial debut with this horror thriller that centers on two couples who rent a weekend getaway online to celebrate a business venture. The locale is idyllic but the situation turns sinister when they think they’re being spied on and secrets are exposed among the friends.
Where to watch: iTunes, Vudu and FandangoNOW
‘The Tax Collector’ (Aug. 7)
Stars: Bobby Soto, George Lopez and Shia LaBeouf
Director: David Ayer
The skinny: “Fury” collaborators Ayer and LaBeouf return for this LA-set action thriller about a pair of guys (Soto and LaBeouf) who collect the profits from various street gangs for a local crime lord, though trouble comes to town in the form of their boss’ Mexican rival.
Where to watch: iTunes, Vudu and FandangoNOW