2026 is shaping up to be one of the biggest blockbuster years in a while. The year started off with “Project Hail Mary” and “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” dominating the box office, with the former film setting records for a non-franchise film. Together, the two have already grossed over a billion, which marks the most theaters have made in the beginning of the year.
“My manager’s pretty excited. They think it’s going to be a really busy summer,” senior Will Houser, an employee at the College 9 Theater, said.
True to that sentiment, the summer is full of anticipated hits, starting with “Supergirl” and Steven Spielberg’s “Disclosure Day” in June, then moving into “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey.”
“I’m most excited for the ‘Odyssey,’ because my friend is named Odysseus,” senior and IB Film Year 2 student Nolan Brautigam said.
The end of the year arguably has the most build-up. In November, the fifth “Hunger Games” film, “Sunrise on the Reaping,” will be released with a star-studded cast that includes McKenna Grace, Elle Fanning, Glenn Close and Ralph Fiennes.
“I’m mostly excited for ‘Sunrise on the Reaping.’ […] I watched the trailer and it looked so colorful […] We need more vibrant movies and more light,” senior Lily Gutberlet said.
But the most considerable date will be on Dec. 18, when “Dune: Part Three” and “Avengers: Doomsday” are released. Nicknamed “Dunesday” by fans, it draws comparison to the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon from the summer of 2023, where both features drew record-high crowds and a fan-induced mania for both that exceeded all expectations.
Looking more closely ahead, the biopic “Michael” releases next Friday, April 24, and “Devil Wears Prada 2” on May 1 follows up the acclaimed 2004 classic. However, the latter comes with the revered Meryl Streep, who has been known in the past to refute sequels. Junior Yidi Zhang said, “I think it’s unnecessary,” but others appreciate that the time between the films may have warranted a worthy screenplay, and nostalgia is always a winning factor.
There are other films like “Fight Club” that are being re-released, and Billie Eilish’s concert film, “Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D).”
Looking beyond the new feature films, the State Theatre, located in downtown State College, also has a strategic lineup that they announce each month. For April, they have “Ready or Not” and “La La Land.” May features include “Star Wars” on May 4 and “Jurassic Park” later on in the month.
“We choose our movies throughout the year based on a lot of things. Some are easy choices, like Christmas Movies in December and horror and Halloween movies in October. When we get closer to the summer season, older blockbusters like Jaws or Raiders of the Lost Ark are fun. We also like to have movies we can build an event around at certain times of the year, like Star Wars on Star Wars day, The Big Lebowski, Mean Girls or Pulp Fiction. As many students leave for the summer, we play some older repertory films,” Bob Livsey said. Livsey is the primary cinephile of the State Theatre and is responsible for which movies are chosen each month.
“I really like how they release movies that are kind of older, but then some that aren’t old either. If I just happen to miss them, in actual theaters, it’s nice to be able to go and see it on a bigger screen and have a sound system that really immerses you. I get that full movie-going experience,” senior and IB Film student Nolan Brautigam said.
No matter what month or genre of movies someone prefers, the lineup of 2026 will offer something to everyone. The most recent movies heading to theaters will be “Michael” on April 24, “The Devil Wears Prada 2” on May 1 and “The Mandalorian & Grogu” on May 22.
