If there's been one predictable thing about 2020, it's been unpredictability especially
in the movie business. The next few months will bring us a plethora of new flicks that
will either get extremely limited theatrical releases, or forgo the multiplex altogether
to focus on home release.
Fans of the 1989 classic Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure and its 1991 sequel Bill & Ted's
Bogus Journey have been pining for a third movie for decades, and are now getting their
wish. Bill & Ted Face the Music will return to the now-middle-aged heroes as they grapple
with their failure to come up with the world-changing music they were supposedly destined to write.
"Bill, we've spent our whole life trying to write the song that will unite the world.
Why can't we just go to the future when we have written it?"
Stars Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter are both back on board, and the stellar supporting
cast includes Samara Weaving, Bridgette Lundy-Paine, Kristen Schaal, and William Sadler, reprising
his role as Death from the second film. Bill & Ted Face the Music was originally slated
for theatrical release on August 21, but it will now release to a very limited number
of theaters on August 28, and simultaneously on video-on-demand platforms.
Disney's live-action Mulan remake endured multiple delays before the studio settled
on using its streaming service, Disney+, to bring the $200 million picture into American
homes. While the film will still receive a traditional release in overseas markets where
that's possible, stateside viewers who are subscribed to Disney+ will be able to view
the flick at home on September 4 for a premium $29.99 fee. They will then have access to
it permanently, as long as they remain subscribers.
Disney was just pushing out its massive marketing campaign for Mulan when COVID-19 threw a wrench
into its plans. While the Mouse House insists that this is a one-time deal, and is not indicative
of a potential new release strategy for future titles, industry analysts will be watching
the film's performance very, very carefully. Mulan stars Liu Yifei in the title role, with
a supporting cast that includes Donnie Yen, Jet Li, Rosalind Chao, and Jason Scott Lee.
I'm Thinking of Ending Things, adapted from Iain Reid's 2016 novel of the same name, is
a Netflix original, and is the first live-action film from idiosyncratic filmmaker Charlie
Kaufman in over a decade.
The movie is ostensibly the story of a man named Jake bringing his girlfriend to his
childhood home to meet his parents. Where it goes from there, we can't be certain, but
knowing Kaufman's style, we're pretty sure that things will not be what they seem, and
that we'll be left wondering what the heck we just watched. Starring Jesse Plemons, Jessie
Buckley, David Thewlis, and Toni Collette, I'm Thinking of Ending Things hits Netflix
on September 4.
Liosngate's supernatural horror film Antebellum was slated for release in April of 2020 before
being pushed back to August, then finally secured a video-on-demand release for September.
The film stars Janelle Monáe as Veronica Henley, an author who inexplicably finds herself
transported to the mid-1800s.
Antebellum is the debut feature from short film and video directors Gerard Bush and Christopher
Renz. In addition to Monáe, it stars Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Kiersey Clemons, and Jack
Huston. Look for it on all of your favorite video-on-demand platforms beginning on September
18.
Take Henry Cavill as Sherlock Holmes, add in Millie Bobby Brown as Sherlock's little
sister, and you've got Enola Holmes, based on the Edgar Award-winning book series by
Nancy Springer.
The British mystery film was scripted by Jack Thorne, the writer behind the BBC miniseries
His Dark Materials, and directed by Harry Bradbeer, who was at the helm of the widely
acclaimed second season of Fleabag. Originally pegged for a theatrical release, the film's
stateside distribution rights were acquired by Netflix in April of 2020. It will hit the
streamer on September 23.
Although the film was originally intended for theaters, Netflix scooped up writer-director
Aaron Sorkin's historical drama The Trial of the Chicago 7 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The film focuses on the court proceedings of seven individuals charged with various
crimes during the period of civil unrest which accompanied the 1968 Democratic National Convention.
You can expect plenty of Sorkin's characteristic rapid-fire dialogue, delivered by a cast of
consummate professionals including Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Eddie Redmayne, Yahya Abdul-Mateen
II, Mark Rylance, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Jeremy Strong.
It was of utmost importance to the filmmakers that the politically charged film get the
widest possible audience ahead of the 2020 presidential election, which led to the deal
with Netflix. The Trial of the Chicago 7 will make it onto the streamer in just the nick
of time: it's expected to drop on October 16.
The tale of a home-schooled, wheelchair-using teenager who begins to suspect that her mother
is harboring a dark secret, Run was intended to make its theatrical debut in advance of
Mothers' Day weekend in 2020. Alas, it was not to be, but the thriller will soon be available
on Hulu, hopefully in time for Halloween.
Writer-director Aneesh Chaganty is responsible for the 2018 screen-centric thriller Searching,
and star Sarah Paulson knows a thing or two about bringing the scares, thanks to roles
on American Horror Story and the upcoming Netflix series Ratched. In announcing the
move to Hulu, Chagnaty observed,
"The film is about a girl who's been quarantined at home her whole life. Watching it the same
way should be a fitting experience in 2020."
The film's streaming date has yet to be announced.
Coming from director Shana Feste, Run Sweetheart Run centers on a young woman named Cherie,
who agrees to a blind date with a guy named Ethan. When Cherie realizes that Ethan has
sinister intentions, she's forced to try to make her way home on foot through the dark
streets of L.A., with her "date" close behind.
Starring Ella Balinska and Pilou Asbæk, the impressive supporting cast includes the likes
of Betsy Brandt, Aml Ameen, and Clark Gregg. Stateside rights to the film were acquired
by Amazon in May, but the streamer has not yet announced a release date.
The 1877 novel Black Beauty: His Grooms and Companions, the Autobiography of a Horse by
Anna Sewell has been adapted for film many times. But the tale of a young girl coping
with the loss of her parents by bonding with the titular horse is a timeless one, and the
latest update on the classic story will arrive packed with talent.
The cast includes Mackenzie Foy in the lead role of Jo, along with Claire Forlani, Iain
Glen, and as Black Beauty's inner voice Kate Winslet. Originally slated for a theatrical
release, the family film was acquired by Disney to bolster the library of Disney+. The company
has yet to announce a release date, but we expect to see Black Beauty hit the streamer
before the end of the year.
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