26 Things to Look Forward to in 2026

 

Image Credit: Universal Pictures

Our current dystopian landscape isn’t near as cool as my favorite sci-fi storytellers always promised it would be, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still some things to be happy about and to look forward to. In the spirit of being a more optimistic person this year (don’t laugh) here are 26 things in the world of entertainment to look forward to in 2026.

 

The Rip – Netflix original films don’t have a stellar record so far, but this cop thriller starring Ben Affleck and Matt Damon and directed by Joe Carnahan looks promising and is slated to release Jan 16^th.

28 Years Later: Bone Temple – the fourth film in the zombie franchise. I have my doubts based on the last few minutes of the third film, but I’m holding out hope. It arrives in theaters on Jan 16^th.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms – HBO Max has been teasing this latest Game of Thrones spin-off series for a while now and it’s finally kicking off on Jan 18^th.

Ballad of the Bone Road – I fell for A.C. Wise’s shorter work in 2021 and now she has written a dark fantasy novel that promises paranormal investigators, ghosts, and fae. Coming out later this month.

Five Funerals – I’ve enjoyed Jeff’s novels, newsletter, podcast, and short stories for years. As mentioned in my year-end post, he has a new book arriving in Feb.

Survivor – The only reality TV I care about delivers Season 50 to CBS in late Feb and promises to not only feature some of our favorite players from past seasons, but fan input as well.

Jitterbug – Author Gareth L. Powell has a new novel coming out March 3^rd that tells a story of spacefaring bounty hunters and is being compared to The Expanse series.

Project Hail Mary – Based on a novel by Andy Weir, the author of The Martian, comes another man stranded in space adventure, this time starring Ryan Gosling and due on March 20^th.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man – One of Netflix’s best series has a big screen sequel that is due in theaters on March 6^th and hits the streamer on March 20^th.

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu – The big screen sequel to the Disney+ series The Mandalorian is scheduled to hit theaters May 22^nd.

Toy Story 5 – The first three films are absolute animation classics. The fourth…good, but maybe not great. Here is hoping the fifth film doesn’t wear out the toys’ welcome. Due in theaters June 19^th.

House of the Dragon – Season 3 of the Game of Thrones spin-off on HBO Max is expected this summer and promises more sex, violence, and of course, dragons.

The Odyssey – Directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Matt Damon, this film based on the epic poem by Homer promises to be one of the biggest releases of the year and is scheduled for July 17^th.

Spider-Man Brand New Day – I tend to skip most superhero movies, but the latest incarnation of the teen web slinger is fun. This fourth Tom Holland outing arrives in theaters July 31^st.

The Gentlemen – Season 1 of this Guy Ritchie spin-off series was a pleasant surprise and Netflix has announced the director is delivering Season 2 of the British gangster comedy later this year.

The Dog Stars – Based on a post-apocalyptic novel by Peter Heller, this upcoming film is directed by Ridley Scott so it’s bound to be good. Arrives in theaters on Aug 28^th.

Neuromancer – Based on William Gibson’s seminal cyberpunk novel that introduced me and a ton of others to the genre, Apple TV is set to deliver a series this Fall/Winter.

Blade Runner 2099 – Prime Video is working on a miniseries starring Michelle Yeoh that will expand the franchise based on Philip K. Dick’s classic sci-fi novel and my all-time favorite film due later this year.

Slow Horses – The best show streaming on Apple TV plans to roll out Season 6 of the British spy series starring Gary Oldman in late 2026.

Spider-Noir – This live-action series based on the Spider-Man spin-off character stars Nic Cage and will be released on Prime Video in late 2026.

The Talisman 3 – While still unconfirmed, rumor is that Stephen King is working on a sequel to his collaboration with the late Peter Straub on The Talisman and Black House due later this year.

The Adventures of Cliff Booth – This sequel to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood was written by Quentin Tarantino and is directed by David Fincher. Once again starring Brad Pitt, it’s due late in the year.

Dune: Prophecy – Season 2 of the HBO Max sci-fi prequel series is slated to arrive later in 2026. I wasn’t enamored with the antagonist of the first season, but the Bene Gesserit are as intriguing as always.

Jumanji 4 – The final adventure of Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Karen Gillan, and Kevin Hart’s characters in the family-friendly film franchise is due in theaters on Dec 11^th.

Dune: Part Three – The final part of the sci-fi film trilogy is again directed by Denis Villeneuve and it’s based on author Frank Herbert’s novel Dune Messiah. It graces theaters on Dec 18^th.

Werwulf – Robert Eggers’ has proven himself one of the most interesting directors in horror with The Witch and Nosferatu. Now he’s taking on the classic wolfman in a film due on Christmas.

My Favorite Things in 2025

 

Photo Credit: Matt Handle

I gave thanks for my favorite things in both 2015 and 2020 so it seems appropriate I do it again five years later in 2025. Time flies, doesn’t it? Politically the good ol’ USA is shittier than ever, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take joy in the arts. The continued consolidation of media ownership means every year we get less originality and more regurgitated IP slop, but a few gems always manage to find a way to our screens and shelves and the truth is, even some of the slop is entertaining if you don’t mind turning off your brain for a bit and just enjoying the ride. So, let’s set aside concerns about the pending sale of Warner Bros. Let’s try to forget Trump has plastered his name in front of Kennedy on our center for the arts and let’s instead chat about some of the stuff that made 2025 worthwhile.  

 

The movie business still hasn’t recovered from COVID 19 and I’m not sure it ever will. Streaming continues to be king so I’ll start with it. Disney+ delivered the second and final season of Andor which for my money, is the best thing produced in 2025. It’s Star Wars for adults: dark, political, and far superior to their more childish streaming series. Netflix gave us two of the best movies of the year. The third installment of the Knives Out series starring Daniel Craig as detective Benoit Blanc, Wake Up Dead Man wasn’t quite as fun as the first two films, but it provides some interesting commentary on religion. If you haven’t watched it yet, I recommend you give it a try. Director Guillermo del Toro delivered the latest version of the classic gothic tale of Frankenstein and while it took a few liberties with the details, I thought it hewed closer to the book than any other version I’ve seen and it was beautifully done with some solid performances from Oscar Issac, Jacob Elordi, Christoph Waltz, and Mia Goth. Netflix also delivered my favorite mini-series of the year, Black Rabbit. Jude Law and Jason Bateman play restauranteur brothers who get in over their heads with gangsters. It’s eight hours of story that kept me thoroughly engaged throughout. Writer Neil Gaiman was revealed to be a sexual predator which put a damper on the release of the final season of Netflix’s The Sandman, but that didn’t stop it from being a strong completion to a series I enjoyed. The final season of Stranger Things includes some questionable writing, but has still been a fun way to finish out the holiday season even if it did leave us with a cliffhanger until 12/31. The fifth season of Apple TV’s Slow Horses made a few questionable plot choices as well, but the characters are still as amusing as ever. Prime Video’s Fallout was a pleasant surprise last year and its second season is now underway and off to a great start. Hulu gave us Alien: Earth. Personally, I think it would be even stronger if it were a standalone series that didn’t involve Executive Producer Ridley Scott’s famous sci-fi creature, but it's still an interesting run through what can go wrong when futuristic defense industry corporations insist on valuing profit over people. Hulu also released Predator: Killer of Killers, a fun animated film expansion of the world of Predator.

One of the biggest theatrical releases of the year was the final Mission Impossible film. At almost three hours long, I thought it spent too much time on exposition, but the action scenes were as great as always. The biplane and submarine sequences are worth the price of admission alone. F1: The Movie was similarly a little long, but the racing scenes are exciting and Brad Pitt remains as watchable as ever. The best original film of the year for me was Sinners. Ryan Coogler’s take on the vampire genre has a great setting and strong lead in actor Michael B. Jordan. The Accountant 2 wasn’t as good as the first, but watching Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal kick ass is still a nice way to spend a couple hours. I also enjoyed Caught Stealing, 28 Years Later, One Battle After Another, the latest Jurassic Park movie, and Black Bag.

I read 10 novels this year, only one of which was published in 2025. Pennies by Lora Senf is a well-told prequel to her Blight Harbor trilogy. If you enjoy middle-grade or know someone who does, check out all four of her books in this series. She does a great job of getting the reader emotionally invested in her characters and immersed in the fantastic world she builds around them. The best adult fare I read this year was Heat 2 by Michael Mann and Meg Gardiner and William Gibson’s Idoru. The former acts as both a prequel and a sequel to Mann’s 1995 crime film Heat and it’s got me hyped for the planned film version even if all the parts have to be recast. The latter is one of Gibson’s better 90s cyberpunk efforts, an author who never fails to entertain me with his vision of the near future. A book released this year that I haven’t read yet but look forward to is Thomas Ha’s collection of short stories, Uncertain Sons and Other Stories. Ha has published stories in just about every speculative magazine I aspire to sell a story to and for good reason. He’s fantastic at telling compelling tales in imaginative settings. And finally, one of my favorites, author Jeff Somers has a new novel coming out soon entitled Five Funerals.

Music continues to make me miss the songs of my youth, but that’s not to say all of the newer stuff sucks. 2025 releases I enjoy include new music from older acts like the latest album by Garbage, “Let All That We Imagine Be the Light,” the TRON: Ares soundtrack by Nine Inch Nails, and Guns N’ Roses new single “Nothin’.” Newer artists did some good work too. “Secrets” by Miley Cyrus is a beautiful song that reminds the listener of Fleetwood Mac thanks to the contributions of both Lindsey Buckingham on guitar and Mick Fleetwood on drums. Wolfgang Van Halen continues to churn out great tunes like “The End” under the band name Mammoth (and makes a cool nod to Michael Jackson's Thriller in the video). “The Fate of Ophelia” is another irresistible bop from Taylor Swift and it’s difficult not to reminisce about my clubbing days when I hear “yes baby” by Madison Beer.

I don’t know what 2026 will bring, but I hope all of us experience our share of happiness and success along with another slate of entertaining art. Cheers!

Top 10 Film Trilogies

 

Image Credit: Netflix

After watching the latest Knives Out movie from Netflix last night – Wake Up Dead Man, I got to thinking… what are my all-time favorite Top 10 film trilogies? I enjoyed all three of detective Benoit Blanc’s cases, but did they rank that high? Sounds like an excuse for another blog post. Note, so many great series have gone beyond three films, often hurting their overall legacy. None of those are included on my list no matter how much I enjoyed the first three films. You won’t find The Matrix movies, or Indiana Jones, Bourne, Toy Story, Ocean’s, Mad Max, Lethal Weapon, or John Wick. Nope, three and out. Those are the rules. So, without further ado from #10 to #1, here are my all-time favorite film trilogies.

Chronicles of Riddick

I’m going to justifiably catch some shit on this one, but I love Pitch Black. To me, it’s one of the most original sci-fi horror movies out there. No, it might not rival Alien, but it is still highly rewatchable. The two sequels don’t quite measure up, but they’re still entertaining in their expansion of Riddick’s universe. Rumor is, star Vin Diesel is planning a fourth entry in this franchise so I’m going to let these films enjoy their spot on this list while they’re still eligible.

The Equalizer

John Wick might not be allowed on this list, but Robert McCall is just as much of a badass. Denzel Washington is one of the best in the business and I love him in this role. His ability to communicate deadly intent with just a look in his eyes or twitch of his mouth helps this action franchise rise above just about all others. Unusual for a trilogy, I think the third film is actually the best of the bunch.

28

I have to admit I’m not a fan of the last five minutes of the latest entry in this series which might not bode well for the next planned installment, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, but every other minute of the three current zombie films is a blast. Before director Danny Boyle delivered 28 Days Later in 2002, zombies basically shuffled along the streets and weren’t hard to outrun. No longer. Now they’re fast and so much scarier.

Quiet Place

Like Pitch Black, what makes these films so good is their original concept. An invasion of aliens that hunt and kill based on sound is so innovative and makes for such natural tension that it’s difficult not to get caught up in the difficulties the characters face in their fight for survival. One could argue that the second and third films don’t tread much new ground, but they’re still worthy extensions of the original movie.

Mexico

I might not have ever watched the low-budget El Mariachi if it weren’t for the sequel, Desperado and the third movie in this trilogy, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, but those latter films are some of my all-time favorites. Modern westerns filmed with director Robert Rodriguez’s dark humor and over-the-top style, they made stars of lead actors Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek.

Dollars

What Rodriguez is to modern westerns, Sergio Leone is to classics. His Dollars trilogy released in 1964, 1965, and 1966 set the gold standard for post-John Wayne western movies. The anti-hero lead played by Clint Eastwood might have changed names in each film, A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, but the audience recognized him every time as the scowling gunslinger you absolutely did not want to mess with.

Dark Knight

If you’ve read many of my earlier posts, you know I’m not much of a superheroes fan, but Batman is the exception to that rule. Christopher Nolan’s trilogy raised the bar for what comic book movies could be and Heath Ledger’s performance as Joker in the second film, The Dark Knight, deserved the best supporting actor Oscar it received. I’m not sure any superhero movie in the future will ever touch it.

Godfather

No, I don’t like the third film any more than you probably do, but the first two movies are such classics, this trilogy ranks third among the all-time best anyway. Al Pacino, Marlon Brando, James Caan, Robert Duvall, so many great actors and performances in these movies. Writer Mario Puzo’s story of a family’s generations rising from poverty in Italy to the top of organized crime in America is mesmerizing.

Lord of the Rings

Before director Peter Jackson came along, many thought it was impossible to do author J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic fantasy trilogy justice on the big screen. He proved them wrong. The Lord of the Rings movies were so well made, with such amazing special effects, solid writing, and dedicated performances, they won a total of 17 Oscars, made truckloads of money, and turned a whole new generation into fans of the books.

Star Wars (Original Trilogy)

Say what you will about the prequel and sequel trilogies that came along decades later, but in my opinion, the original Star Wars trilogy released in 1977, 1980, and 1983 is the best of all time. I watched Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Darth Vader on the big screen as a young child and I’ve been hooked on sci-fi ever since. It’s hard to describe to younger generations just how groundbreaking these movies were in their day and they still hold up despite the antiquated effects technology. There’s a reason why George Lucas and now Disney have sold 50 years of toys and series based on these characters and their universe. They’re simply the best.

 

Rian Johnson’s Knives Out trilogy doesn’t quite reach the heights these other trilogies do, but all three movies are still a fun watch. Daniel Craig never fails to hold the viewer’s attention and in the most recent entry, Josh Brolin and Glenn Close in particular are great foils against his detective’s powers of deduction. Wake Up Dead Man began streaming on Netflix last night so check it out.

Visiting Charleston

 

Image Credit: Matt Handle

If you’ve checked out many of my previous travel posts, you know I have a penchant for visiting historic / haunted places. In June of 2024 and again last week in October 2025 I had the opportunity to explore Charleston, SC. Founded in 1670, Charleston features about as much history as you’re going to find in a country as new as the USA. My occult detective Jack Strange, protagonist of the short story “Strange Rituals”, as well as a yet-to-be-published follow-up and a shelved novel, hasn’t ventured to South Carolina yet, but based on all the interesting stuff I’ve seen there, I think a trip might be in the cards for my one-day-hopefully-famous private dick. It isn’t much of a stretch to imagine Jack running into some ghostly stuff in this charming old place. To whet your appetite for that potential strange case, here are some photos I took while wandering the streets, alleys, and swamps of the colonial city once known as Charles Town.

Love, Death & Robots - Season 4

 

Image Credit: Netflix

The fourth season of Netflix’s animated series Love, Death & Robots was released yesterday and while its lack of a truly stand-out episode means that it doesn’t hold up quite as well as previous seasons, I still found it entertaining. If you keep up with this blog you know I wrote about seasons one, two, and three in the past so continuing the tradition feels like a natural. Like previous seasons there are several big names involved in the writing, direction, and acting in these 10 episodes including David Fincher, John Scalzi, Tim Miller, and John Oliver, some more successful in their contributions than others. The episodes are short enough that watching all 10 in a single sitting is easy enough, but if you want to cherry pick, I’ve written brief descriptions of each episode below in my order of best to worst.

 

The Screaming of the Tyrannosaur

This episode seems to be catching some static based on the fact it features the voice talent of Mr. Beast, but I really enjoyed this one. The story itself isn’t all that original, but the setting, the characters, the animation, and the action make it my favorite 15 minutes of the season.

How Zeke Got Religion

This is one of those shorts that is so good, you wish it were longer. Watching the WWII aerial crew set out on a mission only to find themselves beset by flying demons bent on killing them all mid-flight, I loved the gory action. I just wish I had more time to get to know the crewmembers before the action kicked in.

For He Can Creep

This historic fantasy tale of a cat that is dead-set on protecting a poet locked up in an insane asylum from Satan himself is lots of fun. It’s the last episode of the season and ensures the season goes out on a high note. I hope to see more like this one if Netflix makes a Season 5.

400 Boys

I love the animation style in this short and it does a nice job of painting a set of unique characters in minimal time. The first two thirds of the story warrant consideration for being the best of the season. The let-down is its choice of villain. The ending falls short of the set-up.

Spider Rose

I loved the animation in this sci-fi horror short, but the story didn’t do much for me. Character motivation was odd and the ending left me unsatisfied. I rank it in the middle of the pack because it feels like it has plenty of potential. It just could have used a good rewrite.

Smart Appliances, Stupid Owners

Easily the funniest episode of the season, this 8-minute short provides the perspective of increasingly unfortunate appliances who have to deal with humans and their oblivious behavior. It features well known comedic voice talent including Kevin Hart, Melissa Villasenor, and Amy Sedaris.

The Other Large Thing

This amusing episode features the voice acting of Chris Parnell and has a satisfactory ending, but I’m not a fan of the over-the-top caricatures and animation style that represent the human bad guys that the feline and robot main characters must defeat.

Golgotha

This one is actually live action so it’s a departure from the series norm, but it’s one of the weaker episodes in this season. I liked the human characters and the alien villain well enough but the punchline of an ending felt too abrupt.

Close Encounters of the Mini Kind

I didn’t like the miniatures when they did it with zombies last season and this version with aliens isn’t any better. I know it’s supposed to be humorous, but it just feels lazy to me. This is an unoriginal story without any character development or even a unique gimmick.

Can’t Stop

David Fincher has directed some great films. Why he agreed to direct a marionette concert video of the band Red Hot Chili Peppers is anyone’s guess. This might have made a decent extra clip for a band documentary, but it’s the weakest episode this series has produced so far.

Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld

 

Image Credit: Disney

May the 4th Be With You! In celebration of Star Wars Day, Disney+ released a new six-episode animated show entitled Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld. While I haven’t jumped on the latest few Star Wars offerings, this one is right up my alley. My favorites in the Star Wars universe have always been the rogues, the criminals, and the bounty hunters and that’s what this mini-series is all about. In particular, the show splits three episodes each between former Sith apprentice and assassin Asajj Ventress after she leaves the employ of Count Dooku and an origin story for bounty hunter and crime boss Cad Bane. The episodes are short so binge-watching is easy and if you’re a Star Wars fan like me, I highly recommend them. The animation is excellent, as is the voice-acting, and I’d put the scripts above most of Star Wars’ recent streaming shows. Below are my brief descriptions of each episode.

 

A Way Forward

While trying to lie low from Imperial forces, Asajj Ventress runs across a young Jedi who she ends up protecting and then joining on a search for The Path for Jedi trying to escape Order 66.

Friends

Asajj Ventress decides her best option for obtaining information regarding The Path is to help an old acquaintance pull off a heist but things don’t go as planned.

One Warrior to Another

Following the information received at the end of the heist, Asajj Ventress ends up on a desert planet where she and her young friend get caught between a former Imperial officer and the locals in a battle for control of a dwindling water supply.

The Good Life

Cad Bane is just a young street rat who survives by stealing from unsuspecting citizens alongside his best friend when they get recruited to help a violent gangster named Lazlo.

A Good Turn

Years later, Lazlo gets killed and Cad Bane goes to even the score despite his female companion’s objections. When he arrives, he is surprised to meet up with his old street rat friend who is now a lawman.

One Good Deed

Cad Bane and his gang get revenge for Lazlo which leads to a standoff between Bane and his old friend. By the time the proverbial smoke clears Bane learns a secret that contributes to his notoriously bitter disposition.

The Next James Bond

 

Image Credit: IMDb

After waiting years to hear what’s next for the James Bond franchise after the end of Daniel Craig’s run as our favorite British spy in 2021’s No Time To Die, the news today is that Amazon has taken control of the franchise rights from longtime owners Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson for the cool figure of $8.5 billion. If you’ve read many of my posts over the years, you know I’m just a bit of a James Bond fan. I’ve ranked the films. I’ve ranked the theme songs. I’ve even suggested artists for the next theme song. Now I’m going to weigh in on who I think should be cast as the next James Bond. I don’t hold out much hope Mr. Bezos and his Amazon minions will heed this advice, after all this is the same corporation that delivered the tepid spy thriller All the Old Knives (2022) but cancelled The Peripheral (2022) after just one season, but a fanboy can dream, can’t he? Note, James Bond is typically cast in his mid to late 30s in order to give him both the proper amount of veteran presence while also enough time to do three to five films before he ages out of the role. This almost assuredly rules out favorites like Tom Hardy (48), Michael Fassbender (48), and Idris Elba (53). So, who’s left? Here are five top candidates:

Image Credit: Longines

Henry Cavill

Cavill is now 41 so the James Bond opportunity may have passed him by, but he’s definitely got tall, dark, handsome and British down pat. He’s also played Superman, the Witcher, Sherlock Holmes, and a host of other major roles. My guess is that he’s too obvious of a pick, but might he play England’s greatest spy next?

Image Credit: Shayan Asgharnia/For The Times

Theo James

At 40, James might also be a few years too old to get the nod, but if you’ve watched Guy Ritchie’s spinoff Netflix series The Gentlemen (2024), you probably know he can pull off the suave, dangerous Brit-type. He’s got plenty of experience, but he’s still enough of an unknown, he could be a good pick to follow in Craig’s footsteps.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Nicholas Hoult

Hoult is 35, English, and he’s been starring in films since he was a kid including About a Boy alongside Hugh Grant in 2002. More recently he’s starred in Nosferatu (2024), Renfield (2023), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) and several of the X-Men movies. He’s got the talent and the action chops to play the part, but he still strikes me as more of sidekick than a leading man.

Image Credit: Pascal Le Segretain for Getty Images

Jack Lowden

Lowden stars as River Cartwright in the excellent Apple TV+ series Slow Horses. The 34-year-old Scotsman has proven he can play a convincing (though much less intimidating) British spy in that series, but his resume might be a bit light for the part. Would Lowden put enough butts in seats to satisfy what will surely be a massive budget for the next film? I’m not convinced. 

Image Credit: Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

Aaron Taylor-Johnson

A year ago, I thought 34-year-old Taylor-Johnson was as close a thing to a shoe-in to be the next James Bond as we’re likely to find. Then he starred in Kraven the Hunter (2024), an absolute stinker of a comic book movie. Will that dud keep him from landing the part? We should find out soon. Based on his work in films like Bullet Train (2022) and Savages (2012) I still think he’s the top contender.