Universal Studios has some of the most famous franchises in the world. This year looks to see the studio try and capitalize on some of the more recent favorites as well as going back to their roots to bring some interesting stories to the screen. Other releases range from absolute bonkers to fun family fare. Fans will get a little taste of everything from Universal’s 2023 film schedule, so whatever you’re looking for at the box office, they should have something for you.
M. Night Shyamalan is back with another fun twisty thriller. This time he adapts a novel by Paul Tremblay. A family is enjoying a quiet weekend at their small cabin getaway. No one is around for miles. This starts off great, but soon four individuals show up and tell them that someone in their family has to die or the world will end. The movie looks to put Dave Bautista front and center as one of the intimidating strangers that want to prevent the end of the world.
Based on a real story that had a much shorter result. In this film, a bear ingests a lot of cocaine and goes on a rampage. The film seems to be a return to the ridiculous animal attacks films from the 80s and 90s. Weirdly this film will mark Ray Liotta’s last big screen appearance and is directed by Elizabeth Banks. A wild tornado of ideas and people that hopefully will live up to the hype more than Snakes On A Plane did.
The most famous plumber in the world gets the big screen treatment. We just pretend that other film didn’t happen. Mario gets pulled into the Mushroom Kingdom and has to rescue Princess Peach from the clutches of the evil Bowser. Fans of the video game franchise were not happy that Chris Pratt was hired to voice the main character. We’ll have to see if his voice is really that bad. On the other hand, people seem to be loving Jack Black as Bowser.
The first of two Dracula side projects from the studio this year. This one focuses on the side character of Renfield and his troubled relationship with his evil master. The trailer seems to show more of a superhero mold for the movie. When Renfield eats bugs, he gets crazy superpowers. His relationship with Dracula seems strained and will be the focus of the film. If anything, Nic Cage playing Dracula is what will bring in a lot of curious film fans.
The 10th entry in The Fast and the Furious franchise is supposed to be the last one. From the cast list, it looks like everyone they can get that has been in a Fast and Furious movie returns. Except for The Rock. I wish he and Vin could work things out. Considering the ridiculous lengths the series has gone to in previous entries, it should be interesting to see what happens in this one.
An animated feature film with Will Ferrell playing the lead. A stray dog collaborates with other stray animals to get revenge on his former owner. The cast looks great. Besides Ferrell, other voices include Isla Fisher, Jamie Foxx, Will Forte, and Randall Park.
Christopher Nolan brings to life the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer. He is one of the famed scientists credited with building the atomic bomb. The film is a combination of two different books that were written on the subject. It was filmed with IMAX cameras and is supposed to be a great presentation for the format. This film is for sure one of the most anticipated movies on the Universal 2023 film schedule.
The second Dracula-centric film from the studio for the year. This film looks to be a lot more serious in tone than Renfield. It covers the famed voyage of Dracula from Transylvania to England. The book only briefly mentions the ship the Demeter shows up in an England port with the crew dead, and a wolf escapes onto land. This movie aims to tell the story of what happened on the doomed trip.
The comedy group Please Don’t Destroy has sort of taken over for the Lonely Island Boys for making digital shorts on SNL. They try making their first feature film as three roommates who want to change their station in life by searching for a buried treasure in a nearby mountain. It will be interesting to see if their style of humor translates to the big screen like the Lonely Island did.
David Gordan Green and company continue their remake trend as they go back and create a direct sequel to the original 1973 film. This seems like a weird direction since The Exorcist TV show (spoiler) already tried this. Geena Davis was revealed to be a grown-up Regan from the original film. The interesting thing about this film is they are bringing back Ellen Burstyn as Regan’s mom. No indication if Regan will be in this movie or who will be playing her. It will be interesting to see if fans flock to this like they did their Halloween reboot trilogy.
No details on the plot, but we will see, or hear rather, Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake reunite on screen for the successful animated franchise. The last two films have proved incredibly popular, and all indications are this will follow the same route. Nice to see that Trolls will never go out of style, no matter what decade it is.
Another animated feature from the gang at Illumination who did the Despicable Me series and introduced the world to the Minions. This film follows a family of ducks who try and convince their dad to go on the vacation of a lifetime. No cast has been announced at present, but Illumination seems to put out quality family films, so this should be more of the same.
What are you looking forward to from Universal’s 2023 film schedule? Let us know in the comments.