Now that 2025 is in full swing, we must acknowledge that this will be the most jam-packed year for both movies and television the current decade has seen. The film release date calendar is stacked, starting out with Leigh Whannell’s Wolf Man this January and leading into Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Brave New World, Disney’s live-action Snow White remake, Bong Joon-ho’s Mickey 17, and A Minecraft Movie, all throughout the year’s first quarter. Then, Summer 2025 will pit Jurassic World: Rebirth, James Gunn’s Superman, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps against each other. These three blockbusters boast their own extremely dedicated fanbase, but only one can dominate the box office as they all premiere in July 2025.
Finally, this will culminate with Zootopia 2, Wicked: For Good, and Avatar: Fire and Ash, spreading out what is looking to be a very healthy Holiday 2025 movie season. Moving into TV and streaming, the release schedule is just as fiercely packed, with Stranger Things Season 5, Andor Season 2, Squid Game Season 3, You Season 5, and Cobra Kai Season 6 Part 3 bringing these massive shows to a bittersweet end. But that’s not all, as The Last of Us Season 2, Wednesday Season 2, Gen V Season 2, and Peacemaker Season 2 will also be making their way to screens after some long waits.
We haven’t even gotten into Hollywood’s plans for the future, as the 2026 and 2027 slates are already stacking up with highly-anticipated projects like Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey and HBO/DC’s Lanterns series. This is to say that 2025 will surely be unforgettable for Hollywood, making it the perfect time to list our 10 biggest TV and movie predictions of the year. What will dominate pop culture and shape the zeitgeist? What might disappoint or even shock some moviegoers? Check out our top 10 movie and TV predictions for 2025 below!
Top 10 TV and Movie Predictions for the Year 2025
1. YouTube Directors Bring Minor Box Office Hits
The topic of social media influencers working in Hollywood has proven to be divisive, whether it’s their role in press tours or actually making appearances in projects on-screen. Heated discourse over the last few years has struggled to define the true roles that influencers play in the entertainment industry. This year, though, two popular YouTubers are pushing forward with their own feature-length horror movies that fans are already obsessing over.
Mark “Markiplier” Fischbach and Chris Stuckmann are highly regarded within their own content fields on YouTube. Markiplier is perhaps one of the oldest and most adored gaming YouTubers and, to this day, still pulls an average of 2-3 million views per video. Stuckmann, on the other hand, is one of the most respected voices in the online film community, having regularly posted movie reviews and other types of analyses since 2009. Both YouTubers have features complete and ready for distribution in 2025: Markiplier’s Iron Lung, based on the horror video game of the same name, and Chris Stuckmann’s Shelby Oaks, a supernatural horror movie based on an original script written by him and his wife, Samantha Elizabeth.
Last year, Longlegs and Anora distributor NEON grabbed the theatrical rights to Shelby Oaks. With how cunning NEON’s indie marketing efforts have proven to be — the studio’s finger usually being right on the pulse of what younger moviegoers want to see — Stuckmann’s film could certainly break similar box office ground as Longlegs did. Iron Lung doesn’t have a distributor yet; however, Markipler has confirmed that he’s received offers but will not budge on a theatrical release. He’s determined to celebrate Iron Lung on the big screen, and fans would undoubtedly not only flock to see it in theaters but also push word of mouth to formidable levels.
It’s only a matter of time until an indie distributor comes along and banks on the mass potential associated with Markiplier’s name alone. Horror films thrive at the box office every year; combine that with a beloved YouTuber, and you get a recipe for guaranteed success.
2. Netflix Pivots Weekly For Stranger Things Season 5
Those with any financial investment in Netflix are in for a thrilling 2025. Happy Gilmore 2, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, Squid Game Season 3, Wednesday Season 2, the end of Cobra Kai and You — all of this merely scratches the surface of what the Netflix streaming service has planned in 2025. This doesn’t even include what could be their most profitable original of the year: Stranger Things Season 5.
It’s a no-brainer that Netflix will aim to maximize profits with the final season of Stranger Things. There is arguably no other “television event” like this long-awaited conclusion set to hit small screens this year. With Stranger Things Season 4, the streamer split it up into two parts over the span of a month, which has since become common practice with their tentpole original shows. However, it’s easy to imagine that Netflix would want to approach the last season’s rollout differently.
Arcane recently rolled out its final season across three consecutive weeks. Although Riot Games and Netflix did the same with the first season in 2021, it would not be surprising if the Netflix streaming platform attempted a similar weekly strategy for Stranger Things Season 5, given the increased viewer engagement opportunity. The more likely scenario we get is Netflix drops the first 3 episodes one week, followed by the next 3 episodes the consecutive week, and then the final two episodes after that in a sort of grand finale.
3. Spin-off Galore from Netflix
Continuing on the topic of Netflix, prepare to hear announcements on more Squid Game and Stranger Things spin-offs in 2025. Since these two tentpole titles are ending, the streamer will want to build them out further as expansive franchises to retain subscribers. A Stranger Things animated series is already in production, and Netflix would be wise to launch the show in 2026 to prove to audiences that the franchise is still alive. Similarly, Netflix has likely added a tease of the upcoming “Squid Game America” spin-off show to the third and final season of the main Korean drama series to persuade people to stay on board as subscribers.
Realistically, fans should expect Netflix to lean into spin-offs for each of their major shows. Peaky Blinders reportedly has Netflix spin-offs in development as well, as the long-awaited feature film continuation, written and directed by series creator Steven Knight, wrapped shooting in December 2024. More from the Outer Banks franchise would be another no-brainer. Production costs are rising on Wednesday and will continue to do so, to the point where that series probably ends around seasons 4 or 5. This means the rumored Uncle Fester spin-off could get the official green light in 2025, or an Addams Family spin-off (minus Jenna Ortega’s Wednesday), given how Netflix is trialing Morticia and Gomez Addams as series regulars for Wednesday Season 2
As Netflix has grown over the last decade, the streaming giant has become more aware that it cannot be super reliant on studios licensing content to them. As 2025 marks the end of multiple of its marquee brands, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Netflix play all their cards in spin-offs and sequels, putting far more into production than competitors like Disney.
4. James Mangold’s Star Wars Movie Moves Forward at Lucasfilm
As we steamroll towards Star Wars Celebration 2025, taking place in April in Japan, Lucasfilm has Andor Season 2 and The Mandalorian & Grogu near completion and ready for public eyes. Ahsoka Season 2 is somehow the only other live-action Star Wars project nearing the start of production. To say the least, Lucasfilm desperately needs to deliver concrete announcements at Star Wars Celebration Japan and firm up their slate for both movies and TV.
To give Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy some credit, a new Star Wars movie finally got off the ground in 2024. The Mandalorian & Grogu is set to hit theaters on May 22, 2026, although I suspect that Disney will want to push it back to December 2026. As of now, Lucasfilm is looking to repeat the exact same mistake they made in 2018 — when Solo: A Star Wars Story flopped at the box office since it only premiered two weeks after the phenomenon that was Avengers: Infinity War. Solo‘s box office potential was severely hurt, and the same could happen with The Mandalorian & Grogu, as it’s set to debut a few weeks after the hotly-anticipated Avengers: Doomsday.
Lucasfilm did previously have a Star Wars feature planted on December 18, 2026, which was heavily rumored to be director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s movie focused on Daisy Ridley’s Rey, set years after the events of The Rise of Skywalker. Unfortunately, Disney has swapped that date for Ice Age 6, putting the Rey movie on the back burner after losing screenwriters Damon Lindelof and Steven Knight after two different script drafts. While it’s totally possible the Rey film could turn itself around and prepare for a December 2027 slot, Lucasfilm might switch gears and speed up progress on James Mangold’s ambitious “Jedi Origins” movie in 2025.
James Mangold’s previous blockbuster, Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny, was one of 2023’s biggest box office bombs. But that disaster arguably had less to do with Mangold’s direction and more with the lessened interest in the Indiana Jones IP. Having just made a quick turnaround with his Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, Mangold’s odds at getting a project actually made at Lucasfilm are quite strong. On top of earning a slew of accolades for star Timothée Chalamet, bolstering him in the ongoing Oscars race for Best Actor, A Complete Unknown has become one of Searchlight’s highest-grossing box office hits. Considering all of this, it’s safe to say that Mangold is safe in Disney’s good books.
When you throw in a screenplay written by Andor writer Beau Willimon, who’s already a proven success within Lucasfilm, that puts James Mangold’s Star Wars film in a healthy position to move forward at Lucasfilm after The Mandalorian & Grogu. Mangold recently said the story is set 25,000 years before the Skywalker Saga, centered on the “Dawn of the Jedi” without any restrictive ties to the rest of the franchise. Public comments as promising as these are another strong indicator that this project could head into the early stages of production this year for an estimated December 2027 premiere.
5. The Next DCU Film after James Gunn’s Superman will be Luca Guadagnino’s Sgt. Rock
Outside of James Gunn’s Superman, the DCU begins to take its first real steps toward franchise expansion in 2025. Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow (June 26, 2026) and HBO’s Lanterns (Summer 2026) are heading into production this year. Just last month, James Gunn and DC dropped some new release dates, too. These include an untitled project marked for May 29, 2026 and a solo Clayface movie pinned on September 11, 2026.
According to these latest DC updates, the untitled film set for May 2026 will be the next theatrical chapter in the DCU after Superman and right before Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow in June. James Gunn and his DC Studios Co-CEO Peter Safran have been secretive about what other big-screen adaptation could possibly be ready in less than two years, but the answer may lie in a recent Deadline report. Acclaimed filmmaker Luca Guadagnino is said to be developing a Sgt. Rock movie, reuniting with star Daniel Craig and Challengers and Queer screenwriter Justin Kuritzkes. For those unaware, Sgt. Rock is a patriotic, gruff, and seasoned WWII commando who made his “Silver Age” DC Comics debut in 1959.
Deadline was coy with details in their report, yet clarified that Sgt. Rock is expected to be Luca Guadagnino’s next venture before his much-talked-about remake of American Psycho. Guadagnino could absolutely turn out a Sgt. Rock film at a mid-range budget for May 2026. The director has kept an extremely consistent and impressive output over the last decade, and his next movie, After the Hunt, is, believe it or not, already deep in post-production. While it may not seem wise to put an obscure and niche DC adaptation like Sgt. Rock against The Mandalorian & Grogu, Avengers Doomsday, and Steven Spielberg‘s next blockbuster (May 15, 2026), it’s the most realistic option to make that confirmed summer release.
6. Marvel Studios Finally Figures Out How To Make a Blade Movie
By the end of 2025, fans will finally be able to get ready for Marvel Studios’ Blade… in the following year, that is. It’s no secret that Blade has publicly been Marvel’s most tumultuous production, from almost starting principal photography once to then losing multiple directors and writers over the course of a few years. The project is currently back to square one, with many fans in despair that it might either get canceled altogether or lose Oscar-winning actor Mahershala Ali (Moonlight, Green Book) in the titular role.
On the flip side, the billion-dollar box office success of Deadpool & Wolverine as an R-rated effort, as well as the attention that Hollywood icon Wesley Snipes received for his reprisal of Blade, could result in Marvel accelerating development on their own Blade movie. With Marvel having such a tight schedule as it is, Mahershala Ali’s Blade wouldn’t be properly introduced in the MCU until after Avengers: Doomsday and Spider-Man 4. This would make it ideally fit in Marvel’s November 6, 2026 slot, which is at this moment still for an untitled film.
There is a sense of urgency within Marvel Studios to finally get Mahershala Ali’s Blade onto the big screen, especially since Marvel Animation had hoped the character would be introduced by now. In the upcoming Marvel Zombies animated series, due October 2025 on Disney+, there is a version of Blade that operates as a variant of Moon Knight. To say the least, it would not be a good look for that show to roll around without there being any public updates on Ali’s live-action Blade film.
7. Disney Wins Big with Live-Action Lilo & Stitch but Loses with Pixar’s Elio
Disney is currently in the middle of its mega-marketing campaign for its live-action Lilo & Stitch remake. Initially, it was set to be a Disney+ original until Bob Iger came back as Disney CEO and put a stop to dumping all big-budget movies on streaming. That strategy so far has been met with mixed results. Haunted Mansion (2023) was a critical and box office failure. In contrast, the decision to turn Moana 2 from a Disney+ show into a feature-length film is reaping huge benefits, with it quickly approaching $1 billion worldwide.
Director Dean Fleischer-Camp (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) has already overcome the first colossal hurdle towards making this remake a hit by making Stitch look familiar enough and adorable in photorealistic CGI. When you add the character’s extreme popularity and everlasting appeal, this particular live-action remake feels like a certified win for Disney. By all means, Paramount Pictures should be worried and consider moving Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning away from releasing on the same day as Lilo & Stitch on May 23, 2025.
Lilo & Stitch certainly won’t be Disney’s only success in 2025. Yet, it still feels like 2025 has some unfortunate bombs in store for Disney. Pixar should be riding high after the gargantuan $1.7 billion earnings of Inside Out 2. Instead, doom looms on the horizon for the famed animation studio’s latest original film, Elio, which is slated to open on the same day as Universal’s promising How to Train Your Dragon live-action remake (June 13, 2025). Elio was supposed to premiere on March 1, 2024, but was delayed by more than a year due to the historic SAG and WGA strikes.
In addition to Elio‘s unique concept of a young boy being thrust into space with a bunch of colorful aliens and being mistakenly identified as Earth’s ambassador being a bit of a tougher sell, the How to Train Your Dragon remake has received far more excitement and attention in its lead-up. Moreover, this kind of competition wouldn’t be so heated if one of the movies wasn’t a nostalgic remake of a modern animated classic. On the note of possible flops, Tron: Ares must be in the discussion as well. Once the disastrous trailer that was shown at last year’s D23 Expo debuts on the internet, much of the good faith surrounding the sequel will be lost.
8. The Fantastic Four: First Steps Wins the Summer 2025 Box Office War
One of the hottest 2025 box office stories will be the summer competition between Jurassic World: Rebirth, Superman, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps… plus a new animated Smurfs musical film starring superstar Rihanna that Paramount is boldly sending into the middle of that hurricane. Warner Bros. is sure to be high with hope at the moment with the records broken by the Superman trailer, but the real job will be converting those online views into ticket buyers come July 2025.
Despite being smudged right in the smack middle of Jurassic World and Fantastic Four, I think Superman will be propelled by enough energy to end up as a box office hit. Warner Bros. is savvy enough to build a compelling marketing campaign, rekindling general audiences’ love for Superman in the process. Additionally, James Gunn is more than qualified to win over the diehard DC fans and critics alike. Superman will probably earn somewhere between $600-$700M — a solid start for the new DCU.
Every box office pundit is predicting Jurassic World: Rebirth to be a global juggernaut. There’s valid reasoning behind that: every Jurassic World film has passed $1 billion regardless of critical reception. People yearn for dinosaurs! Fan-favorite director Gareth Edwards (Rogue One, 2014’s Godzilla) and a strong cast led by Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey, and Mahershala Ali further solidify Jurassic World: Rebirth‘s imminent success. But it won’t touch $1 billion. The Jurassic World franchise is suffering from diminishing returns already, even when Jurassic World: Dominion heavily relied on nostalgia. With the marketplace so heavily stacked this year, some moviegoers might be keen to skip Rebirth in theaters, leaving the final box office hovering around the $750M-$800M mark.
That leaves us with The Fantastic Four: First Steps, a blockbuster that flaunts all the perfect elements of a billion-dollar smash. Firstly, it has an all-star cast featuring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn. Secondly, its retro-futuristic, ’60s-inspired throwback premise looks like it will deliver a story that’s atypical of the usual Marvel formula. Last and most importantly, it has the entirety of August to stretch out and flourish its box office legs, with the only competition being mid-sized potential successes like The Bad Guys 2, Freakier Friday, and Nobody 2.
9. The Two Biggest Movie Stars of 2025 Will Be…
Pedro Pascal and Glen Powell! The two stars are on a very similar trajectory that will have them at the center of 2025’s pop culture spectrum.
1. Both Pedro Pascal and Glen Powell will be leading major blockbusters. Pedro Pascal will star as Reed Richards in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and Glen Powell will lead writer-director Edgar Wright’s big-budget remake of The Running Man, set for a November 7, 2025 debut.
2. Both Pedro Pascal and Glen Powell are starring in A24 films. Pedro Pascal is one part of the all-star ensemble cast of Eddington, a new Western thriller from Hereditary and Midsommar director Ari Aster. Eddington will also feature the always-great Emma Stone, Austin Butler, and Joaquin Phoenix. Meanwhile, Glen Powell stars in Huntington, a new black comedy thriller from rising director John Patton Ford (Emily the Criminal).
3. Both Pedro Pascal and Glen Powell will be admired faces on television. Pedro Pascal returns as Joel in season 2 of HBO’s The Last of Us, the role for which he won a SAG Award for Best Male Actor in a Drama Series. Glen Powell, on the other hand, has devised his own Hulu comedy series about a failed college quarterback called Chad Powers.
The Biggest 2025 Box Office Winner and Loser Will Be…
Winner: Zootopia 2. It would have been easier to name James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash, which will likely be another $2 billion hit. However, I think Zootopia 2 will hit a similar box office figure as Inside Out 2, coming around $1.6-$1.8 billion. The merchandise sales alone are worth considering Zootopia 2 as an incoming enormous win for Disney, more so than Avatar 3.
Loser: Tron: Ares. The threequel is facing an uphill battle in every sense. Its spot on October 10, 2025, unluckily, forces it to compete with Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson biopic, Mortal Kombat 2, and The Black Phone 2. Plus, 2010’s Tron: Legacy topped at a decent $400 million. Sadly, Tron: Ares feels like a lesser sequel in almost every way. I don’t see how it comes close to that.
Another believable disappointment could be Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning. After Dead Reckoning got its box office results hammered by the Barbenheimer phenomenon, pitting the finale chapter in the franchise against two live-action remakes, Lilo & Stitch and How To Train Your Dragon, and the legacy sequel Karate Kid: Legends is far from wise. Obviously, this kind of competition doesn’t take away from the adult demographic that Mission: Impossible caters to, but it will certainly eat away at how many theater screens The Final Reckoning can keep hold of.
