2018 might not have been the busiest year for sci-fi film—Annihilation remains a stand-out, though no-one seems to talk about Ready Player One, The Predator, or Solo: A Star Wars Story any more.
There’s plenty to keep genre fans happy in the new year, however, with a crop of sci-fi pics that range from arthouse weirdness to the biggest of blockbusters. Mining through our writers’ lists of the films they’re most looking forward to seeing in 2019, we’ve ranked the top ten (hopefully) coming to a screen near you.
10. Captive State
John Goodman and Vera Farmiga star in this sci-fi thriller set in a Chicago neighbourhood nearly a decade after an occupation by an extra-terrestrial force, in shades of a less-friendly Alien Nation. From director Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes).
Not yet dated in NZ – releases March 29 in USA.
9. Chaos Walking
Tom Holland stars in this dystopian sci-fi adapted from co-writer Patrick Ness’s novel, set in a world where there are no more women and people can hear each other’s thoughts. As you can see from Daisy Ridley’s presence in the image from the set above, only part of that is 100% true.
Not yet dated in NZ – releases March 1 in USA.
8. Alita: Battle Angel
Producer James Cameron teams up with director Robert Rodriguez for this adaptation of the classic action/sci-fi manga set in the twenty-sixth century. What we’ve seen of this suggests the titular female cyborg is brought to life with CGI that’s jaw-dropping.
In cinemas February 14.
More info on Alita: Battle Angel
7. Gemini Man
Ang Lee action-sci-fi stars Will Smith—in dual roles—as an aging assassin who finds himself up against a younger clone of himself, one who can predict his every move. Clive Owen, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Benedict Wong co-star, and as you can see in the on-set selfie above, Smith and Lee seem to be getting on swimmingly.
In cinemas October 3.
6. Untitled Terminator sequel
Deadpool director Tim Miller takes the reins of the Terminator franchise, conceiving the story alongside David Ellison and James Cameron, who makes a welcome return to the Terminator universe, also producing with Ellison. Equally exciting, if not more so, is Linda Hamilton’s return as Sarah Connor to once again square off against Arnold Schwarzenegger. Mackenzie Davis, Natalia Reyes and Gabriel Luna co-star – and that’s about all we know, other than that this entry is apparently a direct sequel to Terminator 2: Judgment Day, ignoring other timelines.
In cinemas October 31.
5. Captain Marvel
Oscar winner Brie Larson is Captain Marvel in Marvel’s first female-fronted superhero movie, set in the 1990s in a previously unseen period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Carol Danvers (Larson) teams up with Nick Fury (a digitally de-aged, two-eyed Samuel L. Jackson) to… well, we’re not entirely sure, but basically fight some aliens and stuff by the looks of it.
In cinemas March 7.
4. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
“This is sci-fi?!” we hear you splutter. Well, it damn well is, with a super-collider beneath the streets of Brooklyn crashing parallel universes together—including six different versions of Spider-hero who team up and fight to stop Wilson “Kingpin” Fisk from inadvertently destroying all of their realities. Trust us, this one is buzzy, indeed, and absolutely deserves its spot on this list.
In cinemas January 3.
More info on Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
3. High Life
Robert Pattinson stars in Claire Denis’ tale of criminals sent into deep space, and towards a black hole—while being experimented on sexually by on-board scientists. Juliette Binoche, Mia Goth, and André Benjamin co-star
Not yet dated in NZ – premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival but has also yet to be dated for general release.
2. Star Wars Episode IX
Congratulations, Sherlock, the image above isn’t actually the screenplay for the next Star Wars sequel. Little is known about the third and final instalment of the sequel trilogy that last saw grown adults enraged by The Last Jedi. Perhaps these folks will be consoled by J.J. Abrams coming back to direct in place of Rian Johnson. Who knows? We just want to see it, please.
In cinemas December 19.
More info on Star Wars: Episode IX
1. Ad Astra
Our most-anticipated sci-fi pic of 2019 sees Brad Pitt as an engineer who journeys across the galaxy in search of his father. James Gray (The Lost City of Z) directs the pic, front-loaded with an Oscars-certified cast that also includes Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland and Ruth Negga.
In cinemas May 23
