Once again, Disney and Pixar's Toy Story franchise is on the right track with director Andrew Stanton's Toy Story 5, a beautiful return to characters we've come to know and love. Joan Cusack brings heart and nuance to Jessie, while a new setting creates an entry that feels unique in unexpected ways. It doesn't quite hit the highs of previous iterations, but it's a fine, moving, and often funny comeback on its own merits.

Pixar's Toy Story franchise is one of the most iconic in animation history. By giving toys emotions, fans were brought into the world of something almost everyone has deep childhood experiences of. Meanwhile, the toys have to deal with complex emotions: a child who’s outgrown them struggles with purpose, finding love, and letting go of the past.

The second and third films somehow improved on the first, with Toy Story 3 winning the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for its harrowing rescue story. The movie cemented the first three Toy Story films as a near-perfect trilogy, one of the finest in both animation and film history. Toy Story 4 came out nine years later, reuniting Woody (Tom Hanks) with his love, Bo-Peep (Annie Potts). 

Toy Story 4 gave us interesting sides of beloved characters, but it didn’t quite reach the heights of the original trilogy, despite being a perfectly charming film on its own merits. In 2022, the franchise made perhaps its only true blunder with Lightyear, an exploration of the lore embedded in the Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) character’s universe rather than a Toy Story film following Buzz Lightyear the toy. Toy Story 5 may have an uneviable set of tasks to accomplish, but it's a stellar entry in the series with ample heart to boot.

Toy Story 5 is embracing the popcorn bucket craze, sparking major excitement among diehard Pixar fans, collectors, and families across the United States. The emergence of popcorn buckets has allowed moviegoers to bring home tangible souvenirs while watching a movie, and Toy Story 5 aims to deliver that by offering some of the most interactive and nostalgia-packed collectibles the format has ever seen. The Toy Story franchise has always been about toys coming to life, and these popcorn buckets extend that magic beyond the screen. 

Toy Story 5 continues the franchise's heartfelt exploration of friendship and purpose as the toys face their greatest challenge yet with the arrival of a frog-shaped tablet named Lilypad that starts to pull Bonnie's attention away from traditional toys, prompting Jessie, Woody, and Buzz to map out a plan to prove that toys still have a place in a world dominated by technology. 

Toy Story 5 will premiere in theaters on Friday, June 19. 

Five weeks after its theatrical release in May, Obsession is taking one major box office crown from Avengers: Endgame. Directed by Curry Barker and starring Inde Navarrette, the completely original horror Obsession quickly became 2026's biggest box office surprise on a budget of just $750,000, a far cry from the Marvel Studios blockbuster's almost $400 million price tag, 23 movies of MCU build-up, and decades of comic history. Of course, Endgame and Obsession aren't exactly comparable; the Marvel Studios sensation finished at $858.37 million domestically and $2.8 billion worldwide (after a re-release) while the One Wish Willow's horrors have thus far brought in $188.38 million in the U.S. and $286.49 million globally.

In its recent fifth weekend (June 12-14), Obsession grossed an impressive $19 million domestically, beating out the $17.2 million that Avengers: Endgame earned at that same point in its domestic box office run. The Curry Barker-directed flick's victory over the highest-grossing Marvel Studios blockbuster in 18 years is just the latest showcase of Obsession's truly historic box-office performance. 

Paramount's Call of Duty movie reportedly has its sights on an unsurprising A-lister to star: Mark Wahlberg. Over a decade after Activision started cooking up plans for a Call of Duty movie, a big-screen adaptation of the first-person-shooter franchise is finally moving full steam ahead at Paramount Pictures. The blockbuster video game adaptation is dated for June 30, 2028, with Hancock director Peter Berg directing and co-writing the screenplay with the undisputed cornerstone of Paramount's TV empire, Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan.

According to a post on Patreon from scooper Daniel Richtman, Paramount's upcoming Call of Duty movie is eyeing Mark Wahlberg for a role in the video game adaptation that is targeting an early 2027 production start. The Boston-born A-lister is best known for Ted, The Fighter, Daddy's Home, and Uncharted.

Disney's 2026 Moana movie confirmed to bring back a major actor reprising his animated role in live-action. The upcoming musical adventure film serves as a reimagining of the 2016 animated film, with the story largely following the original, as Moana sets out to restore the heart of Te Fiti and save her people from an environmental disaster. While the film embraces a live-action treatment, Disney's latest Moana retains some of the actors from the animated original, most notably Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as the demigod Maui, but he isn't the only returning actor. 

Following the release of a new trailer, Disney officially confirmed the return of Jemaine Clement in the 2026 Moana movie, with the actor reprising his role as the voice of Tamatoa, the glitz-obsessed crab who served as one of Maui's rivals. Clement joins Dwayne Johnson as the only two actors reprising their animated roles in live-action. 

The mouthwatering cast confirmed for Dune: Part Three will play some of the strongest characters Frank Herbert ever put on the page, with each one carrying a different kind of power into the final chapter of Denis Villeneuve's trilogy. The film features at least 10 powerful characters. Some are warriors raised in the deep desert, while others bend politics, religion, and prescience to their will. A few of them are so close to godhood that the rest of the empire trembles at the mere mention of their name.

Set 17 years after Dune: Part Two, Dune: Part Three adapts Dune Messiah and arrives in theaters on December 18. Timothee Chalamet's Paul Atreides now rules as Padishah Emperor, and his Holy War has stretched across the known universe. Around him is a tangle of allies, plotters, and family members with interesting and unique abilities that make them extremely formidable. 

Ranking the 10 Strongest Dune 3 Characters by Power

The fantasy genre is making its grand return to the forefront of Hollywood's movie and TV slate in 2026 and beyond. In an age before the MCU and superhero blockbuster supremacy, the fantasy genre was all the rage in Hollywood, driven in part by many studios' desire to replicate Warner Bros.' Harry Potter success. While Peter Jackson began charting his journey through Middle-earth and J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings before the Wizarding World ever came to screens, ventures like Fox's Percy Jackson and Disney's Narnia were driven by hopes of finding the next young adult fantasy phenomenon.

One could argue that 16 years ago, around 2010-11, marked the culmination of Hollywood's fantasy craze, as the two-part Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows finale landed in theaters in back-to-back years. While Fox hoped to ride on its coattails with Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, that would never truly get off the ground, and Disney called it quits with The Chronicles of Narnia after Voyage of the Dawn Treader. However, the genre lived on in some ways from 2011, when Peter Jackson began filming The Hobbit trilogy, a prequel to The Lord of the Rings, and Game of Thrones launched its eight-season HBO run.

Fast forward 16 years, and the Hollywood landscape has evolved drastically, with superhero fatigue setting in to cause problems for Marvel and DC. As studios scramble for the next big thing, many are instead returning to something old, as four upcoming fantasy adaptations harken back to this forgotten time...

Disclosure Day director Steven Spielberg confirmed that the 2026 sci-fi movie is part of a bigger trilogy, and his reasoning makes sense. Spielberg's long-standing fascination with extraterrestrial life has shaped several of his films across the decades, most of which are contained in a single film, such as 1964's Firelight and 2005's War of the Worlds. Universal Pictures' latest film draws on modern UFO discussions, government secrecy, and whistleblowers, making it a unique entry in Spielberg's roster of extraterrestrial movies, as it prioritizes information dissemination over full-blown spectacle. Aside from its standout story, Spielberg's latest comments revealed that Disclosure Day is actually part of an unexpected trilogy. 

Speaking with ScreenRant, Steven Spielberg confirmed that Disclosure Day is an unofficial sequel to his previous movies, Close Encounters of the Third Kind  and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, acknowledging that the said films are the first two parts of a larger story while embracing the idea that the 2026 science fiction film is the "summation film" of this trilogy: 

Steven Spielberg: "It was a very well-kept secret. But with the whistleblowers that came forward starting in 2017 and even before that, with all the testimony about people saying things are happening, and whoever has the archive of the truth is not disclosing it to anybody, I started getting really interested in what I would call my summation film. 

Disney has lifted the lid on its next Pixar film after Toy Story 5, and it's confirmed to feature two Marvel stars. In March 2027, the studio will release Gatto, a feline-focused tale with a revolutionary new art style for Pixar. Gatto has been kept in the shadows for months, but the first teaser has revealed some of the characters in the new animated film, along with the voices behind them.

The first teaser for Gatto confirms the Pixar film's Italian setting, with the action taking place in the iconic canals of Venice. The film also leans heavily on Italian mob iconography, with the teaser using a rendition of The Godfather's theme and following an interrogation scene in the Venetian underground.

Pixar confirmed with its release of the Gatto trailer that Mark Ruffalo will voice the black cat, Nero, and he'll be joined by fellow MCU star Laurence Fishburne as the cat mob boss, Rocco. In the trailer, Nero and Rocco team up to interrogate another cat about the missing tuna, with Rocco acting as an intimidating, ruthless interrogator while Nero is distracted by the dangling light above. Eventually, the interrogation dissolves into chaos as all three cats are taken in by the swinging light. 

The topic of AI is deeply prevalent throughout much of society, and it's something director and writer Madeleine Rotzler has plenty to say about in O Horizon, which is playing in limited theaters. The story follows Abby, played by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's Maria Bakalova, a brilliant young neuroscientist who utilizes a new AI chatbot to recreate her recently deceased father.

The movie premiered at the 40th Santa Barbara International Film Festival on February 2, 2025, and is now in theaters. Alongside Bakalova, O Horizon also stars Adam Pally (Sam), David Strathairn (Warren), Maggie Grace (Evan), Alysia Reiner (Dr. Sandra Williams), and Ponies' Nicholas Podany (Anton).

The Direct sat down with Bakalova and Pally to discuss the movie's exploration of AI and how it can both help and hinder society.

A new announcement about Columbia Pictures' 24 Jump Street explains what happened to what would have been its predecessor, 23 Jump Street. Following a revival of 21 Jump Street in the early 2010s, starring Channing Tatum (Deadpool & Wolverine) and Jonah Hill (Superbad), chatter about a potential third movie lingered online for the better part of the next decade. 

On June 10, producer Neal H. Moritz announced that a third 21 Jump Street movie is in development. An Instagram post (captioned "A picture says a thousand words!") showed the script for the threequel and revealed that it will be titled 24 Jump Street. Under the title, the script also reads, "It took so long to make we had to skip one," jokingly admitting that the franchise moved past 23 Jump Street into 24 Jump Street.

Frozen 3 is quietly moving along, and an exciting update about the third Disney film has since come to light. Frozen is one of Disney Animation's biggest franchises of all-time, starring Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel as the princesses and sisters, Anna and Elsa. Disney has set a November 24, 2027, release date for Frozen 3, and with almost a year and a half to go, there's still a lot to learn about the threequel.

A new update from Josh Gad, the voice of Olaf, has given fans fo Frozen something to look forward to in the new sequel. Speaking to Good Morning America, Gad said that Frozen 3 is "the funniest of the three movies." However, Gad also provided an update on the film's music, which is a core part of Frozen's popularity. The star confirmed that he'd heard two of the songs and said "they're incredible," adding that "Bobby [Lopez] and Kristen [Anderson-Lopez] wrote the music again."

A new paranoia-fueled thriller dropping on June 12 is just around the corner with This Tempting Madness. The film follows Mia, played by Bridgerton's Simone Ashley, a woman involved in a violent incident that leaves her in a coma with serious injuries. When she awakes, Mia is confronted with memory gaps, leaving her unsure of what happened and clueless as to why her husband, Jake (Austin Stowell), was arrested. As she works to figure out the truth, it leads to nasty realizations and endless doubts about what is real around her.

The movie is directed by Jennifer E. Montgomery and also stars Suraj Sharma (Ajay), Mojean Aria (Tony), Amol Shah (Raj), Ms. Marvel's Zenobia Shroff (Lakshmi), and more. In an exclusive interview, The Direct sat down with Montgomery, where she revealed the true story behind This Tempting Madness.

This Tempting Madness' Tragic True Story

Death Boom is an eye-opening documentary directed by Jessica Chandler and produced by Eli Roth, who previously helmed fan-favorite horror films such as Thanksgiving. Death Boom offers an incredible glimpse into the death care industry, informing audiences about the many ways they can handle their remains after death and delving into the industry's challenges. One of those problems? It's not prepared for the impending 77 million baby boomer deaths. 

The Direct sat down with both Chandler and Roth to discuss the horror film Death Boom, their discovery of extreme embalming, and the issues plaguing the death care industry. For coverage on Roth's previous documentary, check out The Direct's interview with him about Let the Devil In.

Discovering Extreme Embalming, a Rare but Dangerous Process

Disney's legacy sequel The Devil Wears Prada 2 continues to make waves at the box office and has recently surpassed a DCEU milestone project. The Devil Wears Prada 2 has drawn huge crowds since its May 1st release, proving its relevance even 20 years after the original film. Disney placed a sizeable bet on the movie, boosting its budget and funding a major marketing campaign, and that effort has now paid dividends. 

Even five weeks after its release, The Devil Wears Prada 2 continues to perform at the box office, and its latest numbers have it surpassing a well-known DCEU title. The Disney film recently strutted past $448 million at the international (non-domestic) box office, meaning it is just shy of a major $450 million milestone. This also pushed it past $663 million worldwide, meaning it has officially surpassed the box office returns of the most expensive DCEU superhero film: Justice League. 

Joss Whedon's Justice League was released in 2017 and was the culmination of four years of storytelling in the DCEU, combining the stories of Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, Cyborg, Aquaman, and the Flash for the first time in live-action. The reported budget for Justice League was $300 million, making it the most expensive of the DCEU films, and it ended up grossing just over double that, with $661 million worldwide. Internationally, it made $432 million.

Fans have an update for the next big Disney movie coming after Toy Story 5. Disney and Pixar are set to return to theaters with the release of Toy Story 5 on June 19, reuniting Tom Hanks and Tim Allen for the first time since 2019 (although neither of their characters will be the main hero). However, as is usually the case with Disney, more exciting adventures are on the way in the near future.

The first trailer for the new Disney animated movie Hexed has reportedly been rated. According to Hollywood Handle on X, the trailer is ready to be released, with a runtime of 2 minutes and 20 seconds. 

This was further evidenced by insiders like Daniel Richtman, who teased that Disney would release multiple trailers this week (June 8). After trailers for The Dog Stars on June 8 and Whalefall on June 9 debuted, the expectation is that the Hexed trailer will drop later this week.

Once again, Steven Spielberg is imploring us to look up at the stars in sci-fi outing Disclosure Day, the esteemed director's latest exploration of the social implications of alien revelations. Here, the scale is far larger (genuinely worldwide by the end), allowing ample space for discussion of themes around disclosure, faith, and human culture, which are handled well in this material.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind was an incredible look at the cosmos in 1977, beautifully capturing the awe and wonder of a first encounter with aliens. Only five years later, we saw a bond between an adorable boy and an equally adorable alien in 1982's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. The first of these films captured awe, wonder, and the complexities of interstellar communication, while the latter highlights the extent to which government forces would go to control alien encounters. Both films are arguably masterpieces.

The sci-fi thriller War of the Worlds is an underrated, pessimistic outing that's only undone by a subpar ending shared with the source material. Finally, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is, well, not great by Indiana Jones standards (but that's a high bar). It still has its moments. In a way, Disclosure Day is an amalgamation of these elements. It proves a capable reengagement with both the themes of the former masterpieces, while retaining the action and hastened pace of the latter pair. 

The Beatles biopics actor Adam Pally revealed an exciting detail about Sony Pictures' multi-movie project. Skyfall and 1917 director Sam Mendes is in the midst of shooting his towering next project, The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event, in the UK. The four movies each center on a different member of the legendary band: Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr. The four-film event has been touted as the "first bingeable theatrical experience" and will arrive in April 2028.

Beyond its four Beatles actors, Mendes' movies will feature other big names like Saoirse Ronan, Anna Sawai, Aimee Lou Wood, James Norton, David Morrissey, and Adam Pally, who plays Allen Klein, the band's fast-talking, aggressive manager from 1969 to 1973. The actor is best known for his roles in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, The Mindy Project, and Happy Endings. 

The Direct spoke exclusively with Adam Pally while he was promoting O Horizon, and, naturally, the topic turned to Sam Mendes' The Beatles saga. While the actor kept things vague, he said that all four chapters are "totally different" in a way that "reflects each Beatles' tone:"

Jumanji: Open World finally has an official logo after the trailer's private debut. Seven years, one pandemic, and two major Hollywood strikes after Jumanji: The Next Level, the franchise is finally returning on December 25 with Open World. Franchise lead Dwayne Johnson (who plays Dr. Smolder Bravestone) confirmed that the beloved franchise will end this year with the release of Open World, promising to wrap things up in a "beautiful grace note" of a climactic chapter. 

The official documentation for Sony Pictures' latest investor presentation unveiled a brand-new logo for Jumanji: Open World. The threequel's logo maintains a similar style to Welcome to the Jungle and The Next Level, but is considerably less vibrant and three-dimensional than its predecessors. 

The post-credits scenes in Masters of the Universe perfectly lay the groundwork for the introduction of a new villain in the sequel. The Amazon MGM film stars Nicholas Galitzine as Adam Glenn, aka He-Man, who returns from Earth to his homeworld of Eternia to save it from the clutches of the evil Skeletor (Jared Leto). Masters of the Universe is based on the Mattel property that spanned animation and toys, and is now moving into what could be a huge film franchise.

Warning - This article contains spoilers for Masters of the Universe.

After Adam and Teela (Camila Mendes) confront Skeletor and Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie) at Greyskull in the finale of Masters of the Universe, they successfully vanquish the skull-faced villain to nothing but, well, a skull (which is also the film's popcorn bucket).