Happy New (Pop Culture) Year!

It’s a new year, which means new pop culture content. These are some of the films and television series I’m most looking forward to in 2025. THIS POST CONTAINS POTENTIAL SPOILERS!!

• Stranger Things 5

My most highly anticipated pop culture event of the year, Stranger Things‘s fifth and final season, may not happen in 2025. Filming on the season, delayed for months by the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes, just wrapped on December 20. Given the timeline for previous seasons, the creators will need at least most of the year to complete post-production special effects and editing. But I’m hopeful we’ll see episodes by the end of the year; it would make a terrific Christmas gift!

We don’t have much information about the season, but here’s what we do know: Stranger Things 5 will consist of eight episodes and feature all of the series’ regular cast members – and one very special guest star. Linda Hamilton, the iconic badass best known for her role as Sarah Connor in the Terminator franchise, joins the cast for the final season in an undisclosed role (my theory, based on absolutely nothing: she’s the “Shock Jock” referred to in the title of episode five). Amybeth McNulty, so adorable as Robin’s crush Vickie, has been promoted to series regular. And Frank Darabont, director of iconic films like The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, came out of retirement to helm two episodes.

We also know the titles of seven of the eight episodes (cryptically, the title of episode two was announced as “The Vanishing of…” with the name blurred out). The most intriguing title to me is “Escape from Camazotz”, a clear reference to my childhood favorite, Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time (in the novel, Camazotz is a dark planet where Meg and Charles Wallace’s father is being imprisoned). I don’t know what it means, but I can’t wait to find out!

• Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

The new year will bring the third installment in the Benoit Blanc mystery franchise. Like the first two films, Wake Up Dead Man features an all-star cast that includes Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, and Thomas Haden Church. Writer-director Rian Johnson and star Daniel Craig have both stated that as long as the other is involved, they will continue to make more Benoit Blanc movies. Just take all my money now.

FUN FACT: All three films are named for pop songs. “Knives Out” is by Radiohead, from their 2001 album Amnesiac, “Glass Onion” can be found on The Beatles’ White Album, and “Wake Up Dead Man” is a track from the 1997 U2 album Pop.

• Yellowjackets, season three

On Valentine’s Day, season three of the Showtime psychological horror thriller series Yellowjackets will drop on Paramount+. It seems like a fitting release date for a show with a cannibalism storyline (especially when it’s combined with the tagline “This Valentine’s Day, eat your heart out”). The tantalizing teaser dropped about a month ago and includes a quick look at newest cast member Hilary Swank, whose role has yet to be revealed (among the popular theories: she’s the older version of Melissa or another survivor, she’s an agent or officer investigating the gang in the 2021 timeline, or she’s a mother/family member of a survivor in the 1998 timeline, which was introduced in season two).

• The Life of Chuck

Mike Flanagan + Stephen King is a magical combination (see also Doctor Sleep, Gerald’s Game, and Midnight Mass, which was inspired by King’s 1975 masterpiece ‘Salem’s Lot). So when I heard Flanagan was directing The Life of Chuck, based on the King novella of the same name, I knew I was all in. The Life of Chuck, which stars Tom Hiddleston as the titular character and a cast of Flanagan favorites like Mark Hamill, Samantha Sloyan, Kate Siegel, and Carl Lumbly, premiered at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, where it won the People’s Choice Award. The film was acquired by Neon and is scheduled to arrive in theaters on May 30. In the vein of beloved King adaptations like The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, The Life of Chuck could be a contender come next year’s awards season.

FUN FACT: At the September premiere of The Life of Chuck, Mark Hamill fan-boyed out after being seated next to Stephen King.

• Wednesday, season 2

Steve Buscemi, Joanna Lumley, Tandiwe Newton, Haley Joel Osment, Heather Matarazzo, Christopher Lloyd, and Lady Gaga will all appear in season two of Netflix’s Emmy-winning series Wednesday. Jenna Ortega will return as the titular character, along with most of the season one cast. No word yet on a storyline or release date; in fact, the only thing we know for sure is the title of the first episode – “Here We Woe Again”. But showrunners Al Gough and Miles Millar have promised that season two “will be delightfully dark, kooky, and mysterious.” I’m counting on it.

• 28 Years Later

Danny Boyle and Alex Garland have reteamed for the third installment in the 28 Days Later franchise. The mesmerizing trailer, which features a 1921 recording of Rudyard Kipling’s poem “Boots”, garnered over 10 million views in 48 hours. Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes, and Jack O’Connell will star (initial reports that Cillian Murphy would reprise his role as Jim from the first film turned out to be incorrect). 28 Years Later, which is set for release on June 20, was shot immediately before the series’ fourth film, which should hit theaters in 2026.

• Presence and Black Bag

Auteur Steven Soderbergh directed two 2025 films: Presence, a haunted house horror starring Lucy Liu and Julia Fox, and Black Bag, a spy thriller with Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender. Soderbergh rarely misses for me, so I’m really looking forward to this one-two punch.

FUN FACT: The last year in which Soderbergh directed two movies was 2000. Those two films – Traffic and Erin Brockovich – grossed a combined $463 million dollars and garnered ten Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. Gladiator beat them both, but Soderbergh did take home the Best Director prize for Traffic. Traffic also won Best Supporting Actor (Benicio del Toro), Best Screenplay, and Best Film Editing, while Erin Brockovich earned just one award (for Julia Roberts’ fearless, funny performance in the title role).

• Companion

A horror sci-fi romance from first-time director Drew Hancock, Companion is slated for release at the end of January. The film stars the luminous Sophie Thatcher, best known as teenage Natalie on Yellowjackets, and Jack Quaid (offspring of Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan). I don’t know exactly what’s happening here, but it looks bonkers in the best way.

• The Traitors, season 3

Alan Cumming returns with an all-new wardrobe and an all-new cast of reality stars, including four former Survivor contestants: Rob Mariano, Tony Vlachos, Jeremy Collins, and Carolyn Wiger. The Traitors is a murder mystery competition series in which reality television personalities compete in often ridiculous challenges and screw each other over (in other words – reality television). All of this is just a sideshow, though. The main attraction is Alan Cumming and his sublime sartorial choices. Cumming is always in on the joke, even when the contestants are taking the competition entirely too seriously. And that wardrobe! Distinctly Scottish, with lots of plaids and hats and scarves and shawls and kilts, every outfit is absolute perfection.

The first three episodes of The Traiters season one are available on Peacock now.

• The Monkey

I wanted to love Longlegs, but it just didn’t do it for me. I found the secondary storyline, involving Agent Lee Harker (Maika Monroe) and her mother, Ruth (Alicia Witt), far more interesting than the title character (Nicolas Cage), and writer-director Oz Perkins (son of scream king Anthony) simply added too many elements to make a cohesive narrative. But there’s no denying that Perkins is a talented filmmaker, and I will happily give him another chance with 2025’s The Monkey, based on the terrifying short story by Stephen King. Neon released a teaser in time for Christmas; The Monkey is scheduled for release on February 21.

• The Last of Us, season 2

Season two of HBO’s bonkers good series, based on the award-winning video game of the same name, returns in April. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, who portray our heroes Joel and Ellie, will be joined by Kaitlin Dever, Catherine O’Hara, and Jeffrey Wright. The season takes place five years after the first season’s events and is expected to be seven episodes long.

• Love Hurts

This action comedy features Ke Huy Quan in his first-ever starring role (thanks to that career-reviving, Oscar-winning turn in Everything Everywhere All at Once). Quan stars as Marvin, a former hitman turned realtor who finds himself drawn back into his former life by his brother Knuckles. The supporting cast includes Ariana DeBose, Daniel Wu, Marshawn “Beast Mode” Lynch, and Sean Astin (Goonies reunion, yay!). Love Hurts will land in theaters on February 7.

• Last Breath

Last Breath, based on the 2019 documentary of the same name, tells the terrifying true tale of deep sea diver Chris Lemons, who became trapped 100 meters below the ocean’s surface with no light, no heat, and only the remaining gas in his backup tank. Alex Parkinson, who also directed the doc (available to stream on Netflix), makes his narrative debut here. In addition to Finn Cole, who plays Lemons, the film’s cast includes Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, Cliff Curtis, and Djimon Hounsou. Last Breath will hit theaters on February 28, and it looks like we’ll all be holding ours.

• It: Welcome to Derry

As a Gen-Xer, I am contractually obligated to adore Tim Curry’s interpretation of Pennywise, but even I have to admit that Bill Skarsgård’s version is far more spine-chilling (a photo of Bill Hader running away from Skarsgård in actual terror on the set of It Chapter Two became a viral meme a few years ago). It: Welcome to Derry, a prequel series developed in part by Andy Muschietti, who directed both It films, will feature Skarsgård reprising his iconic role. The series takes place in the 1960s, prior to the events of the first film. That’s all we know now; HBO has not released a trailer or announced a premiere date.

• Mickey 17

Bong Joon-ho took a six year hiatus after the release of the Best Picture-winning Parasite; he’s back in 2025 with the sci-fi black comedy Mickey 17. Based on the novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton, the film stars Robert Pattison, Toni Collette, Steven Yeun, and Mark Ruffalo, and will premiere at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival. This feels like a Moon–Multiplicity hybrid, and I am 100% here for it.

• The Running Man

Also back this year is Edgar Wright, helming his first feature since 2021’s Last Night in Soho. The Running Man, starring Glen Powell as the titular character, is the second movie adaptation of the dystopian sci-fi novel by Stephen King, published under his ’80s pseudonym Richard Bachman. Unlike the 1987 version directed by Paul Michael Glaser, the Wright film is expected to be much more faithful to the source material. The supporting cast will include Katy O’Brian, Josh Brolin, Lee Pace, Michael Cera (Scott Pilgrim reunion, yay!), William H. Macy, Sean Hayes, and Colman Domingo. The Running Man is scheduled for release on November 7.

FUN FACT: Stephen King’s first choice for his pseudonym was Gus Pillsbury, the name of his maternal grandfather. After that name was outed, King changed it to Richard Bachman, inspired by the rock group Bachman-Turner Overdrive.

• Zero Day

Zero Day, a six-episode political conspiracy thriller created by Narcos showrunner Eric Newman, will hit Netflix on February 20. Zero Day features Robert De Niro in his first leading role in a television series; the stellar supporting cast includes Lizzy Caplan, Jesse Plemons, Joan Allen, Connie Britton, Bill Camp, Dan Stevens, Angela Bassett, and Matthew Modine.

FUN FACT: Zero Day stars one Academy Award winner (De Niro) and three more nominees (Plemons, Allen, and Bassett).

• The Studio

The Studio, an Apple TV+ series created in part by childhood friends and frequent collaborators Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, will star Rogen as Matt Remick, head of the fictional Continental Studios. The first two episodes of the series, which also features Catherine O’Hara, Kathryn Hahn, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders, and Bryan Cranston, will debut on March 26.

• Back in Action

After a ten-year hiatus from acting to focus on her family (husband Benji Madden and their two children), Cameron Diaz returns with an action comedy called, appropriately, Back in Action. The Netflix film, which will arrive on January 17, pairs Diaz with Jamie Foxx as married former spies who find themselves pulled back into the espionage business. This just looks like an absolute delight.

• Death of a Unicorn

In horror comedy Death of a Unicorn, Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega star as father and daughter Elliott and Ridley, who cause the titular event while on their way to the home of Rudd’s boss (he works for a pharmaceutical company). Upon discovering that the unicorn has curative powers, the wealthy Leopold family attempts to harness those powers for financial gain, with deadly consequences. The excellent supporting cast includes Richard E. Grant, Téa Leoni, and Will Poulter, and the film’s music will be scored by John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter, and Daniel Davies.

FUN FACT: Daniel Davies is the son of The Kinks’ guitarist Dave Davies and the godson of John Carpenter.

• The Battle of Baktan Cross

Paul Thomas Anderson’s tenth feature, tentatively titled The Battle of Baktan Cross, will star Leonardo DiCaprio, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, Sean Penn, and Alana Haim. Apparently based loosely on the Thomas Pynchon novel Vineland, the film will be Anderson’s most expensive to date, with a budget exceeding $100 million. Warner Bros. execs feel DiCaprio’s presence in the film justifies the budget, even though Anderson’s highest-grossing film – 2007’s There Will Be Blood – only made about $76 million. The Battle of Baktan Cross is expected in theaters on August 8.

FUN FACT: P.T. Anderson previously adapted another Thomas Pynchon novel, Inherent Vice, in 2014.

• The Gilded Age, season three

No release date has been announced for season three of HBO’s The Gilded Age, but it is expected by the end of the year. Among the actors reportedly joining the cast for season three are Bill Camp, Merritt Wever, Leslie Uggams, Andrea Martin, and Dylan Baker.