The new live-action reboot of 1992 animated Disney classic Aladdin is taking the box office by storm, grossing an estimated $112.7m (£89m) in its first four days in US cinemas alone.
Those sizeable takings far exceed the studio’s predictions of between $75m (£60m) and $85m (£67m), CNN reports.
The film, starring Will Smith as the blue genie, made a global total of $207m (£164m) in the three days following its release on Friday, dominating movie theatres in Asia, Latin America and the UK.
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Yet as the Financial Times notes, the new Aladdin has “received a mixed response from critics, with a 58% rating on the review site Rotten Tomatoes”.
All the same, the movie’s indisputable financial success has seen Disney shares soaring by more than 20% year-to-date. So what else has the famous movie studio got in the pipeline for fans?
2019
Toy Story 4
Fans thought the beloved Toy Story franchise had come to an end with the 2010 release of Toy Story 3, which saw Woody, Buzz and the gang passed down from Andy to his younger sister as he departs for college.
But Disney had other ideas, announcing in 2014 that there would be a fourth installment in the series.
According to Rotten Tomatoes, the upcoming film “involves Woody reconnecting with his long lost love, Bo Peep”, who was given away, and also introduces a new character, Forky, who is a “non-traditional toy going through an existential crisis”.
Release date: 21 June
Stuber
Digital Spy reports that Stuber follows a mild-mannered Uber driver named Stu, voiced by The Big Sick star Kumail Nanjiani, who “picks up a passenger (Dave Bautista) who turns out to be a cop hot on the trail of a brutal killer”. Stu is then “thrust into a harrowing ordeal where he desperately tries to hold onto his wits, his life and his five-star rating”, says the entertainment news site.
Release date: 12 July
The Lion King
Another live-action remake of a 1990s animated classic, The Lion King will be directed by Jon Favreau, who was behind the 2016 reboot of The Jungle Book.
Beyonce Knowles, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Donald Glover are all confirmed to appear in the upcoming film.
Release date: 19 July
The Art of Racing in the Rain
The unusually named The Art of Racing in the Rain is a standalone film about a family dog, Enzo, who belongs to a race car driver named Denny Swift. Directed by Simon Curtis, the movie is based on the 2008 novel of the same name by author Garth Stein and stars Milo Ventimiglia and Amanda Seyfried, with Kevin Costner as the voice of Enzo.
Release date: 9 August
Ready Or Not
Digital Spy describes Ready or Not as “one of the most traditionally un-Disney releases of the year”. The horror thriller follows a young bride-to-be who meets her new in-laws only to drawn into a lethal game where everyone must fight for their survival.
Release date: 23 August
Ad Astra
Originally scheduled for a May release, Ad Astra is being held back until later in the year to avoid clashing with Aladdin.
The sci-fi film stars Brad Pitt as an astronaut “who travels to the outer edges of the solar system to find his missing father and unravel a mystery that threatens the survival of our planet”, according to Deadline.
Release date: 20 September
The Woman in the Window
Based on the 2018 novel of the same name by pseudonymous author A.J. Finn, The Woman in the Window stars Amy Adams as a psychologist who witnesses a crime while spying on her new neighbours. Julianne Moore and Gary Oldman co-star.
Release date: 4 October
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
Four years after Maleficent raked in $758m (£600m) at the global box office, Angelina Jolie and Elle Fanning are returning for a follow-up that will also feature appearances from Michelle Pfeiffer, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Ed Skrein, Juno Temple and Harris Dickinson, reports Time.
The magazine says the sequel “will see Maleficent (Jolie) and Princess Aurora (Fanning) find new alliances along with enemies as they fight to protect their enchanted forest kingdom and everything that lives within it”.
Release date: 18 October
Ford v. Ferrari
James Mangold directs Matt Damon and Christian Bale as a “team tasked with building a brand new Ford automobile that will be capable of beating the dominant Ferreri car at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France in 1966”, says Cinema Blend.
Release date: 15 November
Frozen 2
As Rotten Tomatoes says, fans “haven’t been able to let the first movie go since its 2013 release, so it’s safe to expect an avalanche of box office support when the Frozen sequel finally hits the theatres”.
Details of the plot remain under wraps, but the film is believed to follow Elsa the Snow Queen and her sister Anna as they embark on an adventure far away from the kingdom of Arendelle.
Release date: 22 November
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Yet another Star Wars movie is on the way. Little is known about the upcoming release, but Digital Spy reports that the franchise will “no longer be directed by Jurassic World's Colin Trevorrow – he left the project over creative differences - and The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams is back”.
Release date: 19 December
Spies In Disguise
The last film of 2019 from Disney will be Spies in Disguise, a fully animated family film about a superspy, Lance Sterling (Will Smith), who is turned into a pigeon by scientist Walter Beckett (Tom Holland) in order to go undercover.
Release date: 25 December
2020
Underwater: 10 January
Untitled Live Action Movie: 14 February
Untitled Kingsman Movie: 14 February
Onward: 6 March
The New Mutants: 3 April
Mulan: 27 March
Untitled Marvel Movie: 1 May
Artemis Fowl: 29 May
Untitled Pixar Animation: 19 June
Free Guy: 3 July
Bob’s Burgers: 17 July
Jungle Cruise: 24 July
The One And Only Ivan: 14 August
Death on the Nile: 9 October
Ron’s Gone Wrong: 6 November
Untitled Animated Movie: 25 November
West Side Story: 18 December
Cruella: 21 December
2021
Untitled Marvel Movie: 12 February
Nimona: 3 March
Untitled Live Action Movie: March 12
Untitled Marvel Movie: 7 May
Untitled Live Action Movie: 28 May
Untitled Pixar Animated Movie: 18 June
Untitled Indiana Jones sequel: 9 July
Untitled Live Action Movie: 30 July
Untitled Live Action Movie: 8 October
Untitled Marvel Movie: 5 November
Untitled Animated Movie: 24 November
Avatar 2: 17 December
Untitled Live Action Movie: 22 December
2022
Untitled Star Wars Movie: 16 December
2023
Avatar 3: 22 December
2024
Untitled Star Wars Movie: 20 December
2025
Avatar 4: 19 December
2026
Untitled Star Wars Movie: 18 December
2027
Avatar 5: 19 December
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