Warner Bros.’ 2021 movies: What will debut on HBO Max and in theaters?
This year couldn’t get much worse, so Warner Bros. has decided to extend the fun into the next one, announcing Thursday that it will release its 2021 movie slate simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max, with only a 31-day run for the latter.
Buy yourself a new couch, kids, ’cause you ain’t getting up from it anytime soon.
The new release plan is thanks in part to AT&T’s 2018 purchase of the former Time Warner. The telecom giant now owns WarnerMedia — which in turn owns Warner Bros., HBO, HBO Max and more — allowing for coordinated release plans.
The studio had already announced a dual-release plan for “Wonder Woman 1984,” which is set to debut Christmas Day on screens big and small in the United States.
Warner Bros. says the plan is a response to the pandemic that has upended the traditional film distribution business.
“WW1984” had been scheduled for a June 2020 theatrical release but the pandemic changed that. Its small-screen run, like those of all Warner’s 2021 releases, will be only a month. The films will continue to run in theaters beyond that.
So what movies are on tap from Warner Bros. in 2021? Read on. All release dates are sourced from IMDb and subject to change.
‘Mortal Kombat’
Release date: Jan. 15
Starring: Jessica McNamee, Tadanobu Asano, Hiroyuki Sanada, Mehcad Brooks
FYI: The famous video game has been turned into a feature film.
‘The Little Things’
Release date: Jan. 29
Starring: Denzel Washington, Jared Leto, Rami Malek, Natalie Morales
FYI: Two cops track down a serial killer in this thriller helmed by “The Blind Side” director John Lee Hancock.
‘Tom & Jerry’
Release date: March 5
Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Michael Peña, Rob Delaney, Colin Jost, Ken Jeong
FYI: This semi-animated comedy-adventure see the classic Hanna-Barbera cat and mouse rivals palling up — and doing battle — in New York City.
‘The Many Saints of Newark’
Release date: March 12
Starring: Vera Farmiga, Jon Bernthal, Michael Gandolfini
FYI: This origin story follows the early days of gangster Tony Soprano, originally played by James Gandolfini and reprised here by his son, Michael. Director Alan Taylor helmed nine of the original “Sopranos” episodes.
‘Reminiscence’
Release date: April 16
Starring: Rebecca Ferguson, Hugh Jackman, Thandie Newton, Natalie Martinez
FYI: Written and directed by “Westworld” writer-producer Lisa Joy, this romantic thriller tracks a scientist who searches for a lost love using new technology that allows a person to relive the past.
‘Godzilla vs. Kong’
Release date: May 21
Starring: Julian Dennison, Alexander Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown
FYI: It’s a movie about monsters, people. Big, scary monsters.
‘The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It’
Release date: June 4
Starring: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Julian Hilliard
FYI: This story based on the experiences of paranormal researchers Ed and Lorraine Warren is the third installment in the “Conjuring” series. In it a murder suspect claims demonic possession.
‘In the Heights’
Release date: June 18
Starring: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Stephanie Beatriz, Jimmy Smits, Anthony Ramos
FYI: Jon M. Chu (“Crazy Rich Asians”) directs this film adaptation of Miranda’s Broadway musical, which is set in New York City’s Washington Heights neighborhood.
Lin Manuel-Miranda’s hit Broadway debut, “In the Heights,” is getting a movie makeover from Warner Bros. and “Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon M. Chu.
‘Space Jam: A New Legacy’
Release date: July 16
Starring: Sonequa Martin-Green, Don Cheadle, LeBron James
FYI: James joins the Looney Tunes gang in this sequel to Michael Jordan’s 1996 “Space Jam.”
‘The Suicide Squad’
Release date: Aug. 6
Starring: Margot Robbie, Taika Waititi, Joel Kinnaman, Sylvester Stallone, Idris Elba, Viola Davis
FYI: Robbie reprises quirky Harley Quinn in this movie directed by “Guardians of the Galaxy” auteur James Gunn.
‘Dune’
Release date: Oct. 1
Starring: Rebecca Ferguson, Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Jason Momoa, Josh Brolin
FYI: “Dune” is yet another adaptation of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi fantasy novel about a noble family and a desert planet, previously brought to the big screen in 1984 and 2000.
‘King Richard’
Release date: Nov. 19, 2021
Starring: Will Smith, Jon Bernthal, Dylan McDermott
FYI: No Shakespeare here — this is the story of how Venus and Serena Williams became the tennis stars they are after being coached by their father, Richard Williams.
‘The Matrix 4’
Release date: Dec. 22, 2021
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Jessica Henwick, Jonathan Goff, Carrie-Ann Moss, Priyanka Chopra
FYI: Lana Wachowski directs this return to the dystopian world created in 1999’s original “The Matrix.” Will you have a red pill or a blue pill?
‘Sherlock Holmes 3’
Release date: Dec. 22, 2021
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Jared Harris
FYI: Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective and his sidekick are back. Prepare to sleuth.
‘Cry Macho’
Release date: unknown
Starring: Clint Eastwood
FYI: A washed-up horse breeder teaches a young boy what it means to be a good man in this Eastwood-directed effort.
‘Judas and the Black Messiah’
Release date: unknown
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons, Martin Sheen
FYI: “Get Out” star Kaluuya anchors this story about a chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party and his betrayal by an FBI informant.
Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield star in director Shaka King’s “Judah and the Black Messiah,” a film about late Black Panther Party leader Fred Hampton.
‘Those Who Wish Me Dead’
Release date: unknown
Starring: Angelina Jolie, Jon Bernthal, Nicholas Hoult, Aidan Gillen
FYI: Twin assassins chase a teen murder suspect and his survival-expert companion through a raging forest fire.
‘Malignant’
Release date: unknown
Starring: Annabelle Wallis, Maddie Hasson, George Young, Michole Briana White
FYI: It’s a horror story directed by James Wan, who helmed “Aquaman.”
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