Steven Spielberg's next movie, with Josh O'Connor and Emily Blunt, set for June 2026
Steven Spielberg is gearing up to direct a new film starring Josh O'Connor and Emily Blunt. The still untitled 'event film' is set for a theatrical release on June 12, 2026, Universal Pictures said Tuesday.
Details are scarce about the new project, which will be based on a story by Spielberg. Screenwriter David Koepp, who wrote the scripts for 'Jurassic Park' and its sequel, 'War of the Worlds' and 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,' is writing the screenplay. Colman Domingo, Colin Firth and Eve Hewson are also set to star.
The summer 2026 season is getting packed with blockbuster projects, including 'Avengers: Doomsday' (May 1), 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' (May 22), 'Toy Story 5' (June 19), 'The Odyssey' (July 17) and 'Spider-Man 4' (July 24).
Universal had previously slated the next film from Oscar-winning 'Everything Everywhere All At Once' filmmakers Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for June 12, but said a new date will be announced soon for that also untitled film.
The studio also released Spielberg's last film, 'The Fabelmans,'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Ariana Grande's Smashes Are ‘Defying Gravity' Yet Again
Ariana Grande's 'Popular' and 'Defying Gravity' return to U.K. vinyl and physical singles charts as ... More anticipation for the second Wicked movie builds. NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 03: (L-R) Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo attend as Universal Pictures presents special New York City WICKED Screening at Metrograph on December 03, 2024 in New York City. (Photo byfor Universal Pictures) Ariana Grande has essentially stopped promoting her most recent album Eternal Sunshine, and interest in the pop project has largely dwindled. While the singer's latest full-length continues to appear on a handful of album charts in the United Kingdom, none of the tunes pushed from the project — or its deluxe edition follow-up, Brighter Days Ahead — are still present. Grande does manage something of a comeback this week, though, as two recent 'popular' cuts 'defy gravity' and return to the charts. 'Popular' and 'Defying Gravity,' both from the first Wicked film, reappear on a pair of rankings apiece in the U.K. The former is credited solely to Grande, while the latter is a collaboration with her co-star Cynthia Erivo. Between the two, 'Popular' is the bigger hit at the moment. This frame, it reenters the Official Vinyl Singles chart at No. 18 and the Official Physical Singles ranking at No. 25. 'Defying Gravity' — arguably the more famous track from Wicked — is not far behind. The duet lands at No. 23 on the vinyl-only tally and No. 32 on the list of the top-selling tracks on any physical format, including CD, cassette, and wax records. In the past, both 'Popular' and 'Defying Gravity' have reached the top five on the two tallies on which they currently appear. Grande's solo tune missed out on becoming a No. 1 by just a single spot, while 'Defying Gravity' peaked in third place. The two tracks have spent four weeks each on the Official Vinyl Singles list. 'Defying Gravity' is now up to six frames on the Official Physical Singles chart, while 'Popular' has amassed seven stays on the roster. While 'Popular' and 'Defying Gravity' are Grande's only charting tunes in the U.K. at the moment, her album Eternal Sunshine does still manage to hold on — even though she's no longer pushing singles from the set. The Grammy-nominated project drops on all three rankings it finds a home on, and it barely manages to keep on the Official Physical Albums list, dipping to No. 99. The set appears dozens of spaces higher on both the Official Albums chart and Official Albums Streaming list, slipping slightly to Nos. 57 and 56, respectively, well over a year after it debuted.
Los Angeles Times
4 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Train a virtual dragon? Film studios turn to Roblox and other games to reach young fans
Surrounded by virtual cliffs and a cascading waterfall, dragon riders on Roblox's massive online gaming platform immerse themselves in a memorable scene from 'How to Train Your Dragon.' In the sequence, the young Viking Hiccup reaches out his hand to touch Toothless, the black, green-eyed dragon he once feared. After players feed Toothless enough digital fish, their avatars reach out to pet the dragon, mimicking the clip from the Universal Pictures movie — a remake of the DreamWorks Animation box office hit. Then they hop on and fly on the dragon to an island where they can watch the trailer. For 21-year-old Annabelle Barone, training a virtual dragon is an experience she'll remember. 'It just makes me want to see [the new movie] even more,' said Barone, who plans to see the film with friends. The Southern California college student expressed her excitement for the franchise on social media site X by sharing images of her avatar petting and flying the dragon in Roblox. Barone, known by the name Robuilds online, creates YouTube videos about her Roblox experiences and has amassed a big following across various social media platforms and Roblox. The game on Roblox, an online platform where people can play and create their own virtual experiences, is just one way film studios such as Universal Pictures, Lionsgate and Warner Bros. are reaching young people such as Barone before a movie hits theaters. By creating immersive experiences and selling movie tickets bundled with exclusive merchandise, studios are tapping into places where teens and young adults hang out online. The 'How to Train Your Dragon' game on Roblox has more than 28 million visits. Over the weekend, the movie raked in $83.7 million in ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada, surpassing expectations. Globally, the film has grossed $197.8 million. 'You have to combine the tactile, the emotional and the virtual,' said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at entertainment data firm Comscore. 'That's what smart marketing is doing today to make the movie theater as relevant, or more relevant to young people than ever before.' Film studios and movie theaters have faced hurdles in recent years including the Hollywood strikes, the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Added to that is the growing amount of consumers' attention taken up by TikTok, YouTube and video games, including from San Mateo, Calif.-based Roblox. The increasing amount of videos posted online and other entertainment options means it's tougher than ever to grab people's attention. And yet, Gen Z is driving momentum in the box office and has been a 'critical audience for moviegoing in the past three years,' according to a report from the National Research Group, a market research company. Roughly 37% of Gen Z have seen more than six movies at the theater during the last year, compared with 29% in 2023, a February survey of more than 3,200 Americans showed. The group defines Gen Z as people between the ages of 12 and 27. Barone, the Roblox player, is on track to see about 10 movies in theaters this year, she said. 'I have gone alone, but it is more fun to have a friend with you,' she said. Roughly 51% of the audience for 'How to Train Your Dragon' were family groups, and 27% of moviegoers were younger than 13, according to data from EntTelligence. Gaming is the 'new center of youth culture,' offering studios a way to immerse fans in films before they're released in the theater, said Todd Lichten, head of entertainment partnerships at Roblox. On average, Roblox users spend 2 1/2 hours on the platform a day. Roblox, a platform popular among kids and teens, has 97.8 million users who visit it daily. 'They're not just looking to create this passive experience that they can re-create in other platforms,' Lichten said. 'They're looking to bring our players together in a way that's going to be authentic to the [intellectual property], but also rally them around something that has a real community goal to it.' Sawhorse Productions, a creative agency and production company in Los Angeles, has created games for 'How to Train Your Dragon,' 'Wicked,' 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' and others in Roblox. It also worked on 'Sinners: Survive the Night,' a game within Fortnite, another massive online gaming platform, that's based off of the hit horror movie. Roblox said it's seen success with reaching young movie fans. The Roblox game based off of 2024's 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,' which included a virtual Fandango box office where players could purchase movie tickets, lifted theater release awareness and intent to visit the theater, a case study from Roblox said. Nic Hill, co-founder and chief innovation officer at Sawhorse Productions, said developers design games in ways that keep users coming back. In the 'How to Train Your Dragon' Roblox game, new challenges, dragons and virtual items including Viking hats pop up before the movie's release. 'You get that longer engagement and reasons to keep visiting and engaging further than just playing it once,' he said. Universal Pictures declined to comment. Days before 'How to Train Your Dragon' hit theaters, the gaming platform Minecraft promoted a virtual experience based on the film too. PG-rated family flicks have been smash hits this year, fueling box office sales worldwide. 'A Minecraft Movie,' based on the popular video game, has surpassed $951 million at the global box office. Viral moments on social media helped drive fandom for the film. Videos of young moviegoers cheering and throwing popcorn in theaters when the term 'Chicken Jockey' is yelled out in the film racked up millions of views on TikTok. Film studios are turning to TikTok for marketing purposes. Ahead of the release of 'John Wick' spinoff 'Ballerina,' Lionsgate teamed up with the social media platform to sell tickets to the film on TikTok Shop. Lionsgate bundled movie tickets with posters and Continental coins, promoting sales by livestreaming a 'Ballerina' premiere event on the social media app. 'TikTok is home to a dynamic community of moviegoers and film enthusiasts who discover and engage with new titles and cultural moments,' Reia Davidson, vertical director of media and entertainment at TikTok, said in a statement. TikTok users are more than 44% more likely to go to movie theaters than nonusers, making it another valuable place for film studios to create buzz around a film, the social media platform said last year. It's not just new releases film studios are trying to promote across games and social media. Lionsgate worked with Roblox to sell virtual movie merchandise for one of its biggest franchises, 'Twilight.' Roblox users can buy a bundle that includes a code to download the 2008 'Twilight' movie, a digital movie T-shirt and another item, such as a virtual amulet. Jen Brown, Lionsgate's executive vice president and head of global products and experiences, said young fans want to engage with movies in different ways. Games and social media are where they socialize. 'As we think about how we want to extend our content into the world, it's really important that we're part of that community building process, and we're letting fans have fun with it,' she said.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
How to Stream All the Jaws Movies Right Now on Peacock
The grandaddy of all summer blockbusters, Jaws hits the big 5-0 this week! To celebrate such an impressive milestone, Peacock has become the official streaming home to all four movies in Universal Pictures' shark-centric film franchise. The great Steven Spielberg kicked off the iconic IP in June 1975, before handing the directorial reigns off to Jeannot Szwarc (like Spielberg, he directed episodes of NBC's Night Gallery), Joe Alves (who worked as production designer on the first entry), and Joseph Sargent (like Spielberg, he worked with Jaws star Robert Shaw on The Taking of Pelham One Two Three) for the sequels. RELATED: "[I didn't come back for the Jaws sequels] because making the first movie was a nightmare," Spielberg admitted years after the fact (via The Express). "There were endless problems with the shark and it was an impossible shoot. I thought my career was over because no one had ever taken a movie 100 days over schedule." All four Jaws films are now streaming on Peacock through Monday, July 14. They include the following titles: The Jaws movies can also be found via Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, along with a special 50th Anniversary edition of the '75 original. You can also catch the original, along with an introduction from Spielberg, during a special 3-hour broadcast June 20 at 8:00 p.m. ET on NBC. RELATED: If the Jaws saga fails to fully satiate your great white-sized hunger for shark-related action, then be sure to check out Peacock's other predatory offerings like 47 Meters Down, 47 Meters Down: Uncaged, and the complete Sharknado trilogy. Peacock offers two affordable subscription plans, including Premium ($7.99 a month with ads) and Premium Plus ($13.99 a month with no ads and download access for certain titles). Students, meanwhile, can enjoy Premium for just $1.99 for a year!
