After nine months of live-action remakes, amazing superhero blockbusters and contemporary horror classics, film releases this year show no signs of slowing down.

The last three months of the release calendar often hold some of the best movies of the year, and I want to highlight some of the ones I’m looking most forward to.

“Frankenstein”

Release: Oct. 17 (theatrical), Nov. 7 (Netflix)

Maybe my most anticipated movie of this year, “Frankenstein,” is the newest movie from iconic director Guillermo Del Toro.

Del Toro has been talking about adapting Mary Shelley’s pivotal novel since 2008, and was finally given the chance to do so by Netflix after the success of his “Pinocchio” adaptation.

The director has been waiting to do an adaptation that does justice to its source material, that “reconstructs the whole world of the book.

He called James Whale’s movies “Frankenstein” and “Bride of Frankenstein” very influential on his adaptation. He specifically said that Boris Karloff’s performance as Frankenstein’s Monster was inspirational to him.

“Since I was a kid, I never quite understood the saints,” Del Toro said. “And then when I saw Boris Karloff on the screen, I understood what a saint or a messiah looked like.”

The film is set to star Oscar Isaac as Dr. Viktor Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as the Monster, along with Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz, Charles Dance and Ralph Ineson. 

“Frankenstein” is set to hit theaters this October, but the wide release will be in November on Netflix. Whether it’s in the cinema or on Netflix, I would highly suggest making this movie a priority on your 2025 movie watchlist.

“Predator: Badlands”

Release: Nov. 7 (theatrical)

The newest entry in the “Predator” series is set to hit theaters this November, helmed by Dan Trachtenberg.

After directing the previous two entries in the series, 2022’s “Prey” and this year’s “Killer of Killers,” Trachtenberg is bringing to the screen a story focused on the titular creatures of the franchise.

The series’s aliens are known as Yautja, and they’ve been the key villains of the franchise since its inception. But now, for the first time since 1987, a Yautja is going to be the protagonist.

Trachtenberg has gone to great lengths to make the world of the Yautja feel real. He and the producers worked with Britton Watkins, who used the fragments used in previous movies in the series to make a fully fleshed-out language.

“We insanely decided to treat [the language] properly like [Elvish] for Lord of the Rings or [Dothraki] for Game of Thrones, except for those there’s more precedent,” Trachtenberg said to Bloody Disgusting.

As a fan of the “Predator” franchise, I’m so unexplainably excited for this movie. Especially after Trachtenberg’s outstanding work on his previous two entries in the series.

“Prey” revived the franchise four years after the 2018 disaster—“The Predator”—that could’ve killed the franchise forever. Directed by Shane Black, “The Predator” tried to bring an MCU-type feel to the series, which failed spectacularly. Trachtenberg’s 2022 brought a new audience to a franchise that’s been struggling to produce good movies since 1987.

“Killer of Killers” was a fantastic animated anthology that was able to tell some amazing stories from the universe. So, with those two films under his belt, along with his directorial debut “10 Cloverfield Lane,” I trust Trachtenberg to do this movie well.

Whether you’re a newcomer to the franchise or a long-time fan, I expect the movie will be an amazing time.

“The Running Man”

Release: Nov. 14 (theatrical)

Ben Richards joins a game show where contestants are allowed to go anywhere in the world to evade people hired to kill them.

The film is based on Stephen King’s 1982 novel, making it the fourth adaptation of a King novel this year. It’s also the second adaptation of the book, the first one being a 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger film, by the same name.

“The Running Man” boasts a stacked cast, with stars Glen Powell as Ben Richards, as well as Lee Pace, Michael Cera, Emilia Jones, Josh Brolin and Colman Domingo, all directed by experienced filmmaker Edgar Wright.

Wright has a hugely successful filmography, having directed movies like “Shaun of the Dead,” “Baby Driver,” and “Last Night in Soho” among others. 

With a cast of stars, a stellar director, and a strong source material, “The Running Man” will definitely be worth a watch.

“Hamnet”

Release: December 12 (theatrical)

Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s novel of the same name, “Hamnet” is the newest creative venture from “Nomadland” director Chloe Zhao.

It follows William Shakespeare and his wife, Agnes, after their 11-year-old son Hamnet dies tragically. The novel, and subsequently the movie, is a fictional tale based on the true story that inspired Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.”

“Chernobyl” actress Jessie Buckley will join “Gladiator II” star Paul Mescal as Agnes and William Shakespeare. They’ll act alongside Joe Alwyn and Emily Watson.

After directing “Eternals,” Zhao took a break from filmmaking for four years, but she returned to direct “Hamnet” because of its stars. She met Mescal and thought, “I felt like if he plays young Shakespeare, maybe (“Hamnet” is) something I could do.”She elaborated, saying that there were “sparks everywhere” in his chemistry test with Buckley.

Zhao said that she didn’t really understand “Hamlet” until she read O’Farrell’s novel.

“(Hamlet) talks a lot about the very difficult human experiences this young person went through,” she said. “I never really understood it the way I did when I read Maggie’s novel.”

“Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery”

Release: November 26 (theatrical), December 12 (Netflix)

Gentlemen Detective Benoit Blanc returns in the third movie in the “Knives Out” series, which is set to have a limited theatrical release in November and a large release on Netflix in December.

As a huge fan of the first two movies, and all of director Rian Johnson’s work, this is one of my most anticipated movies of the year.

The cast is absolutely stacked, starring Jeremy Renner, Cailee Spaeny, Andrew Scott, Mila Kunis, Josh Brolin, Glenn Close, Thomas Haden Church, Kerry Washington, Josh O’Connor and many more.

Daniel Craig’s performance as Benoit Blanc is already legendary, so I’m excited to see him return to the role. 

Steve Yedlin, a long-time collaborator of Johnson’s, is returning as director of photography for “Wake Up Dead Man” after shooting the first two films. Yedlin’s cinematography is truly gorgeous in all of his work, leaving me with no doubt about how great the movie’s visuals are sure to be.

Whether in theaters or on Netflix, make sure to see the master of mystery’s newest film.

Honorable Mentions:

For this article, I wanted to include a mix of the movies I’m the most excited for and movies that I think not enough people know about.

But I’m too excited for too many things, so I wanted to give a small list of honorable mentions.

• “Bugonia” – October 31 (theatrical)
• “Die My Love” – November 7 (theatrical)
• “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t” – November 14 (theatrical)
• “Keeper” – November 14 (theatrical)
• “Wicked: For Good” November 21 (theatrical)
• “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” – December 5 (theatrical)
• “Avatar: Fire and Ash” – December 19 (theatrical)
• “Marty Supreme” – December 25 (theatrical)