It's the superhero-free movies to get excited about in 2019 list!
If you have superhero fatigue or just like to spread your hard-earned money around, there are movies to get excited about in 2019 from big-time directors, Indie auteurs, and everyone else.
I can’t stress enough how eventful 2019 is going to be at the movies, and not because the sequel to Avengers: Infinity War — Avengers: Endgame — is hitting theaters in April. There are a slew of (hopefully) great movies releasing in 2019 that are worth getting excited about and marking your calendar for now.
Here’s a catch to this list: Not one of these films is from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, DC Universe, or features a superhero of any fashion. That’s right, this is the non-superhero movie list of 2019 movies. Its focus is on the other movies you should be excited about because love needs to be shown to more than men, women, aliens, and others with supreme or other-worldly abilities.
(If you just want to focus on superheroes, head over to the list of superhero movies that are hitting theaters in 2019.)
Grab your calendar app and start making your movie watching plan for 2019 to include these 23 non-superhero movies.
1. The Kid Who Would Be King - January
I like to think of The Kid Who Would Be King as Goonies set in medieval times. That’s not why it’s an exciting 2019 movie release, although I do love a retelling of King Arthur in any fashion. The Kid Who Would Be King is writer/director Joe Cornish revisiting a classic tale and putting his modern spin on it — as he did with the alien invasion movie in Attack the Block. I can’t wait to see what he does with a group of kids who have to take down the evil Morgana (Rebecca Ferguson), likely with the help of Merlin (Patrick Stewart).
2. Velvet Buzzsaw - February
Netflix has not announced a theatrical run for Velvet Buzzsaw but it is premiering at the Sundance Film Festival. Well, on February 1, it hits the streaming platform and we should all watch it immediately. Why? It’s writer/director Dan Gilroy of Nightcrawler back in Los Angeles with cinematographer Robert Elswit, plus Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, and John Malkovich leading the cast.
Elswit made Los Angeles an unforgettable character in Nightcrawler and Gilroy’s screenplay revealed the beauty, danger, and hypnotic force the city can have on a person. What they do with the Los Angeles art world in Velvet Buzzsaw is for us to discover in this Netflix original movie.
3. What Men Want - February
I’m a big fan of Taraji P. Henson — her comedic timing is impeccable, even in dramas. She’s taking on the female version of Mel Gibson’s Nick Marshall in What Women Want in What Men Want. It’s not a remake of What Women Want but the premises are quite similar. But What Men Want may prove to be a very pro-women in a man’s world story. It’s also likely hilarious since we’ll be hearing the thoughts of men, not women, and I can only imagine what prime scenes will develop out of Tina Gordon Chism’s script.
4. How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World - February
Pixar gets all the love when it comes to building buzz around an upcoming animated film. Dreamworks Animation deserves much love, too, especially its How to Train Your Dragon series. Coming off its 10-year anniversary, Dreamworks Animation is releasing The Hidden World in February 2019, providing more stunning animation and, as is likely, a well-written story that focuses on loyalty and friendship. Plus: Dragons!
5. Where’d You Go, Bernadette - March
Richard Linklater knows how to write deeply affecting relationship-focused dramatic comedies. See Boyhood and the Before Sunrise series. He’s back with Where’d You Go, Bernadette, starring Cate Blanchett, Judy Greer, Kristen Wiig, and Billy Crudup. The story focuses on a 15-year-old searching for her rogue mother while discovering secrets of her past. It sounds like a perfect comedic drama to add to the list of fantastic movies from one of the best Indie auteurs ever, Richard Linklater.
6. The Dirt - March
Mötley Crüe fans, this movie is for you. For the rest of us, The Dirt will share how Nikki Six, Tommy Lee, and the rest of Mötley Crüe came to be one of the most well-known heavy metal bands in history. There’s likely a lot of rock and roll drama and sex and drugs thrown in, too. Make sure your Netflix subscription is active because The Dirt is a Netflix original movie that won’t be in theaters.
7 - 9. Disney's Live-Action Movies
Disney has had success with live-action versions of classics like Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, and in 2019 there are three Disney live-action movies hitting theaters. Tim Burton’s Dumbo, Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin, and Jon Favreau’s The Lion King. I don’t think anything more has to be said to convince you why each of these films is worth adding to your 2019 movie watching calendar.
10. Captive State - March
It’s been 10 years since an extra-terrestrial force occupied Earth and things are about to get crazy when the Phoenix rises and the people resist. Just watch the trailer below and prepare to be captivated by Captive State.
11. Missing Link - April
Stop-motion animation studio Laika is back with Missing Link, directed by visual maestro Chris Butler who knows how to write a great story (ParaNorman, Kubo and the Two Strings). Stop-motion animation is always worth getting excited about but Missing Link looks like an Indiana Jones-inspired adventure. Cue the silly giggles of joy.
12. The Hustle - May
If you’re going to remake Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, you better not screw it up. Director Chris Addison is using the original screenplay by Stanley Shapiro, Paul Henning, and Dale Launer, plus additions/changes by Jac Schaeffer for The Hustle, starring Anne Hathaway, Tim Blake Nelson, and Rebel Wilson. It could definitely suck but we have to see for ourselves whether a stake and a match are needed.
13. Godzilla: King of the Monsters - May
Can Godzilla be our friend? Can we depend on him to save us from Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah? Or, do we deserve to be annihilated and the God-sized monsters are here to do just that. There are many questions surrounding Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ plot but it doesn’t matter, anytime Godzilla makes an appearance onscreen is worth the price of admission.
14. Rocketman - May
It doesn’t matter whether you want to know about Elton John’s rise to fame, as Rocketman shows, it’s the music that will make this a movie not to be missed. Just watching the trailer will have you singing “Rocket Man” all day (maybe longer).
15. Toy Story 4 - June
We thought the emotional wreckage of Toy Story 3 was the end of Woody and Buzz’s story. We were wrong. Toy Story 4 is coming and the gang is going on a road trip. On your trip to the cinema, pack a great deal of tissues — you will likely need them.
16. Child's Play - June
True story: A Chucky impersonator once jumped out of a dark doorway at me on Hollywood Boulevard around one in the morning. He had a knife. I haven’t watched a Child’s Play movie since but I will show up for this cult horror flick reboot. Odds are, you’ll want to see how Chucky is doing, too.
17. Ford v. Ferrari - June
After Logan’s meticulous direction and perfect script, Director/Writer James Mangold has a lot to live up to with Ford v. Ferrari. He can likely get by just on the true story of a 24-hour car race. There’s more to the story, though, and that’s why you need to see Ford v. Ferrari, starring Christian Bale and Matt Damon.
18. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - July
Quentin Tarantino’s Charles Mason/Sharon Tate murder movie that’s not a Charles Manson/Sharon Tate murder movie has been causing a raucous since its announcement. Sharon Tate’s murder by Charles Manson’s gang of lunatics is sensitive territory. It’s also a story people are still fascinated with today. Regardless of what Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is about, we all have to see just how Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio aren’t or are involved in Tate’s murder.
19. Artemis Fowl - August
In need of a new book series to fall in love with because “Harry Potter” is over? That’s “Artemis Fowl.” Read the first book and you’ll know why this is a must-see movie in 2019. It also has Judi Dench with pointy ears, if that helps.
20. Gemini Man - October
Ang Lee never fails to deliver a great movie, even when you don’t expect his name attached, like Taking Woodstock. In Gemini Man, Lee takes on science fiction, directing Will Smith as an over-the-hill hitman who’s nemesis is a younger cloned version of himself. Sound intriguing? Yea, I thought so.
21. Zombieland 2 - October
I hope there’s still plenty of Twinkies for the zombie-fighters in Zombieland 2. They need something to look forward to since they killed Bill Murray. For us, there better be lots of hilarity like Zombieland.
22. Untitled Terminator Reboot - November
You may be tired of Terminator movies but you shouldn’t be rolling your eyes at the 2019 Terminator movie — Linda Hamilton is back. That’s more than enough to make this a must-see movie in 2019. If you need more, Arnold Schwarzenegger makes an appearance, too.
23. Frozen 2 - November
It’s the sequel to Frozen. Enough said.
That does it for the non-superhero movies releasing in 2019 to get excited about. To see every movie hitting theaters in 2019, check out the Movies Coming Soon page.
