Top 10 Most Anticipated Movies of 2026: Results & Releases

Hook Introduction

In early August 2026, Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey delivered the highest-earning domestic weekend in box office history, according to CNN Business — beating even the previous record set by Avengers: Endgame.

Most of 2026’s most anticipated films have already hit theaters, and the results have been genuinely historic. Here’s exactly how the year’s biggest releases have performed so far, verified against multiple current trade sources, plus the two remaining tentpoles set to close out the year on the very same day.

Key Highlights (Quick Facts)

• Spider-Man: Brand New Day broke Avengers: Endgame’s all-time domestic opening weekend record, earning a confirmed $360 million domestically (versus Endgame’s $357.1 million) and roughly $927–932 million globally in its opening weekend, depending on the reporting outlet and rounding — the second-biggest global opening ever, behind only Endgame’s $1.223 billion.
• 2026 had produced five billion-dollar worldwide releases by early August — Toy Story 5, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Michael, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey — compared with only three such releases across all of 2025, according to Rotten Tomatoes’ box office desk.
• Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Messiah (also marketed as Dune: Part Three) are both scheduled for December 18, 2026, a same-day clash confirmed across multiple trade outlets as recently as a few weeks before this writing, though exhibitors note the exact date has occasionally been reported with minor variation, so it’s worth double-checking closer to release.
• The Odyssey is reported to be the first movie shot entirely on Imax film cameras, and its extended theatrical run has been described as historic for the Imax and 70mm exhibition format specifically.
• The Mandalorian and Grogu, released May 22, 2026, was the first Star Wars theatrical release since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker.
• Supergirl, DC Studios’ second film in its rebooted universe, received more mixed reviews than several other 2026 tentpoles upon its June 2026 release; exact box office totals vary by source and should be checked against a current tracker like Box Office Mojo for the latest figure.
• Domestic ticket sales from May through early August 2026 reportedly reached $3.579 billion, according to Rentrak data cited by Variety, putting the industry on a strong recovery pace.
• Tom Holland and Zendaya are reportedly married, according to statements from Zendaya’s longtime stylist and widespread 2026 entertainment media coverage — though neither actor has personally confirmed this directly, so it’s best described as a reported claim rather than a formally announced fact.

A Note on Where We Are in the 2026 Release Calendar

As of this writing in August 2026, most of this year’s most-anticipated films have already opened, several with genuinely historic results. That means this list functions partly as a scorecard — how did the year’s biggest bets actually perform — and partly as a preview of what’s still to come, since Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Messiah remain the two biggest tentpoles left on the calendar.

Because box office figures continue to update daily while a film is still in theaters, and because even release dates for major films have shifted before (Doomsday itself moved from May to December), we’ve flagged where a number is a still-climbing total versus a final figure, and recommend checking a live tracker like Box Office Mojo, The Numbers, or Comscore for the most current data before citing any specific figure from this article.

The Top 10 Most Anticipated Movies of 2026

1. Avengers: Doomsday (Scheduled December 18, 2026)

Avengers: Doomsday remains the single biggest question mark left on the 2026 calendar. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and featuring a sprawling ensemble that includes Robert Downey Jr. (returning as Doctor Doom), Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Florence Pugh, and Sebastian Stan, it’s positioned as a major test of Marvel’s ability to recapture its Endgame-era cultural dominance after a mixed post-Endgame stretch.

The film was originally set for May 1, 2026, but was delayed to December 18 — a date multiple trade outlets confirm it now shares directly with Dune: Messiah, setting up a genuine head-to-head box office event fans have nicknamed “Dunesday.” As of this writing, reports also indicate Dune: Messiah secured an exclusive Imax window for that shared opening weekend, meaning Doomsday’s Imax availability may be more limited in some markets.

Status: Not yet released. Scheduled release date: December 18, 2026 (verify closer to release, as dates have shifted before). Director: Anthony and Joe Russo.

2. Dune: Messiah (Scheduled December 18, 2026)

Dune: Messiah, the third film in Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novels, follows Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) as he grapples with the consequences of the holy war fought in his name in Dune: Part Two. Florence Pugh returns as Princess Irulan, making her one of the few actors appearing in both of December’s dueling tentpoles.

Its shared release date with Avengers: Doomsday has already generated significant fan discussion online, and multiple entertainment outlets have covered the scheduling standoff between Disney and Warner Bros. as neither studio has publicly signaled a willingness to move.

Status: Not yet released. Scheduled release date: December 18, 2026. Director: Denis Villeneuve.

3. Spider-Man: Brand New Day (Released July 31, 2026)

Spider-Man: Brand New Day delivered on years of pent-up anticipation following No Way Home’s 2021 cliffhanger ending, in which Tom Holland’s Peter Parker erased his identity from the world’s memory. The results were historic and confirmed across multiple outlets: a $360 million domestic opening weekend, breaking Avengers: Endgame’s previous domestic record of $357.1 million, and a global opening reported between $927 million and $932 million depending on the source and rounding — the second-biggest worldwide opening ever, trailing only Endgame’s $1.223 billion.

The film crossed $1 billion worldwide in roughly six days, reported by Variety as the second-fastest movie ever to reach that milestone, and held a 90% Rotten Tomatoes score with strong opening-weekend audience reception — a combination that suggested strong staying power through the rest of the summer.

Status: Released, box office totals were still climbing as of this writing. Domestic opening: $360 million (confirmed record). Global opening: ~$927–932 million. Director: Destin Daniel Cretton.

4. The Odyssey (Released July 17, 2026)

Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, an adaptation of Homer’s epic starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron, and Robert Pattinson, became a genuine box office and format phenomenon. It’s reported to be the first movie shot entirely with Imax film cameras, and its extended run in Los Angeles’s Alex Theatre was described by trade press as historic for 70mm exhibition, a format that theater reportedly hadn’t screened a new film in for decades.

As of this writing, multiple outlets reported its worldwide total in the range of $911 million to $921 million, with the film widely expected to become 2026’s fifth billion-dollar release as its international rollout continued in markets including South Korea, China, and Japan. Given the film was still in theaters, check a live box office tracker for its current total.

Status: Released, still in theaters and still accumulating box office as of this writing. Worldwide gross (still climbing): ~$911–921 million as last reported. Director: Christopher Nolan.

5. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (Released 2026)

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie became one of the year’s biggest box office successes, reportedly crossing the $1 billion worldwide mark and, for a period, holding the title of the year’s biggest movie debut before later releases surpassed it.

Its success reinforced Illumination and Nintendo’s continued box office partnership following the first Super Mario Bros. Movie’s massive 2023 performance, suggesting the sequel matched or exceeded the original’s commercial reach.

Status: Released. Worldwide gross: Reported at roughly $1 billion+; verify exact current total against a live tracker. Studio: Illumination/Universal.

6. Toy Story 5 (Released June 19, 2026)

Toy Story 5 brought Woody, Buzz, and the rest of Pixar’s beloved cast back for a story centered on Bonnie, now eight years old, becoming enamored with a new tablet toy called Lillypad — a plot device explicitly designed to explore modern kids’ shifting relationship with traditional play. Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, and Joan Cusack all reprised their roles.

The film reportedly crossed the $1 billion worldwide mark, making it one of 2026’s confirmed billion-dollar releases and reaffirming that the Toy Story franchise, now five films deep, retains enormous multi-generational box office pull.

Status: Released. Worldwide gross: Reported at roughly $1 billion+; verify exact current total against a live tracker. Studio: Disney/Pixar.

7. The Mandalorian and Grogu (Released May 22, 2026)

The Mandalorian and Grogu marked the first Star Wars theatrical release since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker, expanding Jon Favreau’s beloved Disney+ series to the big screen. Pedro Pascal returned as Din Djarin alongside Grogu, joined by Sigourney Weaver and Jeremy Allen White (voicing Rotta the Hutt).

Its release represented a significant strategic bet for Lucasfilm and Disney — translating a streaming-native property into a theatrical tentpole for the first time, after years of Star Wars content living primarily on Disney+ following the conclusion of the Skywalker saga.

Status: Released. Release date: May 22, 2026. Director: Jon Favreau.

8. Project Hail Mary (Released March 20, 2026)

Project Hail Mary, Amazon MGM Studios’ adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel starring Ryan Gosling as a reluctant astronaut tasked with saving humanity, became an early-year box office sensation. It opened to roughly $80 million domestically — reported as the biggest launch in Amazon Studios’ history at the time — before eventually crossing a reported $680 million-plus worldwide.

Its success was particularly notable for a mid-budget, non-franchise sci-fi film, suggesting original theatrical storytelling could still draw enormous audiences even amid a release calendar dominated by established franchises.

Status: Released. Worldwide gross: Reported at roughly $680 million+. Director: Phil Lord and Chris Miller.

9. Michael (Released 2026)

Michael, Antoine Fuqua’s biographical drama chronicling Michael Jackson’s rise from the Jackson 5 to global superstardom, became one of 2026’s notable box office performers, reportedly crossing the $1 billion worldwide mark — a result that, if confirmed against current trackers, would outpace typical expectations for a music biopic against a calendar full of established franchise tentpoles.

Jaafar Jackson, Michael Jackson’s real-life nephew, stars in the title role, adding a layer of authenticity that appears to have resonated with audiences.

Status: Released. Worldwide gross: Reported at roughly $1 billion+; verify exact current total against a live tracker. Director: Antoine Fuqua.

10. Supergirl (Released June 26, 2026)

Supergirl, James Gunn and DC Studios’ second film in the rebooted DC Universe following Superman, stars Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El alongside Jason Momoa as Lobo. Directed by Craig Gillespie, it followed Kara on an interstellar journey of vengeance and justice alongside an unlikely ally.

Unlike several other 2026 tentpoles on this list, Supergirl’s reception was more mixed, with reviews more divided than the largely positive response to films like Toy Story 5 or Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Specific box office figures for the film vary across sources and haven’t been consistently verified across multiple current trackers at the time of writing, so we’d recommend checking Box Office Mojo or a similar live source directly for its confirmed total rather than relying on any single cited figure — but the general trade consensus is that it performed more modestly than the year’s biggest hits.

Status: Released. Release date: June 26, 2026. Director: Craig Gillespie.

Important Statistics Table

Rank	Movie	Status	Worldwide Gross (as last reported)	Release Date
1	Avengers: Doomsday	Upcoming	—	Dec 18, 2026 (scheduled)
2	Dune: Messiah	Upcoming	—	Dec 18, 2026 (scheduled)
3	Spider-Man: Brand New Day	Released, still in theaters	$1B+ (reached in ~6 days)	Jul 31, 2026
4	The Odyssey	Released, still in theaters	~$911–921M (still climbing)	Jul 17, 2026
5	The Super Mario Galaxy Movie	Released	~$1B+ (verify current total)	2026
6	Toy Story 5	Released	~$1B+ (verify current total)	Jun 19, 2026
7	The Mandalorian and Grogu	Released	Not independently confirmed here	May 22, 2026
8	Project Hail Mary	Released	~$680M+	Mar 20, 2026
9	Michael	Released	~$1B+ (verify current total)	2026
10	Supergirl	Released	Reported more modest; verify directly	Jun 26, 2026

Sources: Variety, Deadline, CNN Business, CNBC, The Hollywood Reporter, Rotten Tomatoes box office desk — reporting from 2026. Figures for films still in active theatrical release will continue changing; always check a live box office tracker for the current total before citing a specific number.

Step-by-Step: How to Read Box Office “Anticipation” Numbers

1. Distinguish opening weekend from lifetime total. Spider-Man: Brand New Day’s $360M domestic opening is a single-weekend figure; its eventual lifetime gross will be considerably higher as it continues its run, and any figure cited today may already be outdated.
2. Separate domestic from global figures. A film’s domestic (US/Canada) number and worldwide total are frequently cited together but measure different things — always check which one a headline is referencing.
3. Check whether a figure is a “first estimate” or a “final actual.” Studios often report Sunday estimates that get revised — sometimes up, sometimes down — once Monday’s confirmed numbers arrive, which is why you’ll see slightly different totals for the same weekend across different articles.
4. Watch for format-specific milestones separately from overall box office ranking. The Odyssey’s Imax and 70mm achievements reflect format-specific records, not simply its position on the all-time worldwide chart.
5. Track “time to $1 billion” as a genuine anticipation signal, but confirm it against more than one outlet, since exact day-counts can vary slightly by source depending on when international rollout figures are included.
6. Remember reviews and box office don’t always align, and don’t assume a “mixed reviews” film necessarily bombed financially — always check the actual reported gross rather than assuming poor reviews mean poor box office, or vice versa.

Pros and Cons Table

Movie	Pros	Cons
Avengers: Doomsday	Massive ensemble cast, high built-in anticipation	Delayed from May to December; now faces a same-day clash and reported Imax disadvantage
Dune: Messiah	Critically respected franchise, strong returning cast	Shares its release date with a major Marvel tentpole
Spider-Man: Brand New Day	Broke the confirmed all-time domestic opening record	Extremely high expectations to sustain through a long run
The Odyssey	Historic format achievement, strong critical reception	Limited 70mm/Imax screen availability constrains some markets
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie	Reportedly massive family-audience crossover appeal	Exact current total should be independently verified
Toy Story 5	Multi-generational nostalgia, proven franchise strength	Fifth entry raises “franchise fatigue” questions long-term
The Mandalorian and Grogu	First Star Wars theatrical release since 2019	High pressure to justify streaming-to-theatrical transition
Project Hail Mary	Proved original sci-fi could still open huge	Non-franchise films remain a harder sell industry-wide
Michael	Reportedly a genuine surprise hit for the biopic genre	Reported billion-dollar total should be independently verified
Supergirl	Ambitious rebooted DC Universe entry	More mixed reviews and reportedly softer results than 2026 peers

Comparison Table: Biggest Movie by Category

Category	Leading Film	Why
Biggest confirmed opening weekend (domestic)	Spider-Man: Brand New Day	$360M, confirmed to have broken Avengers: Endgame’s previous record
Fastest to $1 billion (as reported)	Spider-Man: Brand New Day	Reported by Variety at roughly 6 days, second-fastest ever
Biggest format/technical achievement	The Odyssey	Reported as the first film shot entirely on Imax film cameras
Most anticipated remaining release	Avengers: Doomsday / Dune: Messiah	Both scheduled for December 18, 2026, in a direct clash
Weakest relative performance (reported)	Supergirl	More mixed reviews and reportedly softer box office than year’s other tentpoles
Biggest single collective weekend in history	Spider-Man: Brand New Day + The Odyssey	Reported by CNN as the highest-earning domestic weekend of all time

2026 News and Trends

The clearest 2026 storyline is a genuine post-pandemic box office resurgence. Rotten Tomatoes’ box office desk reported that 2026 had already produced five billion-dollar worldwide releases by early August, compared with only three across all of 2025 — a meaningful acceleration, even if it hasn’t yet matched 2019’s specific pre-pandemic peak of nine billion-dollar films.

The Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey release window produced what CNN Business described as the highest-earning domestic weekend in box office history, surpassing the previous record set by Avengers: Endgame’s 2019 opening. Domestic ticket sales from May through early August 2026 reportedly reached $3.579 billion according to Rentrak data cited by Variety, contributing to industry optimism about a potential return toward $10 billion in annual domestic revenue for the first time since 2019.

Looking ahead, all eyes are on the December 18 scheduled clash between Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Messiah — a scheduling collision industry watchers have already nicknamed “Dunesday,” drawing comparisons to 2023’s “Barbenheimer” phenomenon. Florence Pugh’s presence in both films adds an unusual wrinkle, and how the two very different franchises split audiences and premium-format screens will be one of the year’s final major box office stories — assuming neither studio shifts its date before then.

Original, non-franchise films have had a notable year too — Project Hail Mary in particular crossed an impressive box office threshold without relying on decades-old franchise recognition, a modestly encouraging sign for original theatrical storytelling even in a release calendar still dominated by sequels and established properties.

Conclusion

Most of 2026’s most anticipated movies have already delivered on their hype in a genuinely notable way — Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey alone produced what’s been reported as the biggest domestic box office weekend ever recorded, and the year has already produced more billion-dollar films than any year since the pre-pandemic peak of 2019. The final chapter is still ahead: Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Messiah are scheduled to land on the exact same December day, setting up one last major box office showdown to close out the year — assuming the dates hold.

References

1. CNN Business – ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Soars to $927 Million Worldwide, the Second-Highest Debut Ever: https://www.cnn.com/2026/08/02/business/spider-man-opening-box-office
2. CNBC – ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Beats Out ‘Avengers: Endgame’ for Highest Domestic Opening Ever: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/03/spider-man-brand-new-day-debut-360m-highest-domestic-opening-ever.html
3. Forbes – ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Tops ‘Avengers: Endgame’ for Biggest Box Office Debut Ever: https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacharyfolk/2026/08/03/spider-man-brand-new-day-tops-avengers-endgame-for-biggest-box-office-debut-ever/
4. The Hollywood Reporter – Spider-Man: Brand New Day Opening Beats Endgame for Box Office Record: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/spider-man-brand-new-day-opening-record-endgame-box-office-1236662986/
5. Variety – ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Hits One Billion Dollars in Six Days: https://variety.com/2026/film/box-office/spider-man-brand-new-day-billion-dollars-six-days-1236826658/
6. Rotten Tomatoes – Weekend Box Office: Spider-Man: Brand New Day Scores the Biggest Opening Weekend in History: https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/weekend-box-office-spider-man-brand-new-day-climbs-to-spectacular-355-million-debut/
7. AceShowbiz – Dune: Messiah Release Schedule Has Been Adjusted Without Date Change in US: https://www.aceshowbiz.com/news/view/00259973.html
8. The Independent (via AOL) – Avengers: Doomsday Now Set to Be Released on the Same Day as Dune: Messiah: https://www.aol.com/avengers-doomsday-now-set-released-081245075.html
9. People – Zendaya and Tom Holland Are Married, Stylist Law Roach Claims: ‘You Missed It’: https://www.aol.com/articles/zendaya-tom-holland-married-stylist-011337865.html

FAQs