2023 hasn’t been anything short of an interesting year in film. So far, we’ve seen wildly entertaining sequels like John Wick: Chapter 4, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. We’ve also witnessed strange concepts like Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves that turned out to be pretty awesome. And in between the sequels and oddball concepts have been some great biopics like Blackberry, Tetris, and Reality.

While the top half of the year has been interesting, the back half looks to turn up the heat with pictures from directors like Wes Anderson, David Fincher, Martin Scorsese, Greta Gerwig, and Denis Villeneuve. Here are my most anticipated films for the second half of the year.

The Killer (David Fincher)

There’s definitely some bias here because David Fincher is my all-time favorite director, but The Killer looks unreal. It’s Fincher collaborating with actors he’s never worked with like Michael Fassbender, Tilda Swinton, and Charles Parnell. What intrigues me about this release more than anything is that Fincher has been cold on the movie front the last few years. Mank in 2020 kind of stunk and Gone Girl (a banger) came out in 2014. He still has great content in him because he showed that in Mindhunter, but now I need another great movie. The Killer gives me a lot of hope because it feels like he’s going back to his thriller roots with Andrew Kevin Walker.

Killers of the Flower Moon (Martin Scorsese)

What’s there not to be excited for with Killers of the Flower Moon? It’s close to three and a half hours, it’s Martin Scorsese directing, and it’s a cast of Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, Brendan Fraser, Lily Gladstone, and John Lithgow. The trailer to this looked like a jam packed film with ominous tension and shady violence. I’m banging my credit card on the table telling Scorsese to take my money.

No Hard Feelings (Gene Stupnitsky)

I have a lot of concerns for No Hard Feelings, but also some decent expectations. It’ll be exciting to see Jennifer Lawrence in a raunchy comedy, but I’m also concerned that she’s only doing a movie like this to seem like a “cool” or “hip” actress. Where I am most intrigued is that Gene Stupnitsky is directing the film. Stupnitsky directed one of the funnier comedies of the 2010s with Good Boys and is looking to expand from that. All in all, I’m looking forward to a potentially hilarious comedy, but I will go in with skepticism due to a possibly problematic relationship.

Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan)

Much like Killers of the Flower Moon, what is there not to be excited about with Oppenheimer. Christopher Nolan is shucking CGI to the side and plans to make you feel like you’re experiencing an atomic bomb first hand. Nolan’s cast consists of Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Benny Safdie, Rami Malek, and Gary Oldman. It feels like absolutely no way that this movie doesn’t slap and feels like it’s meant to be seen exclusively on the big screen.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (Christopher McQuarrie)

One of the many movie franchises my dad and I have bonded over is the Mission: Impossible franchise. With how many there are, they never seem to repeat each other. The only constant is Tom Cruise pushing the limit of his stunts and we will see that with Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One as there’s a scene where Cruise drives a dirt bike off a cliff and then jumps off it into a free fall. That alone makes me want need to see this in theaters.

Barbie (Greta Gerwig)

Battling Oppenheimer on July 21st is the highly anticipated Barbie. There’s a ton to unpack with Barbie because there’s a lot to be excited for. We can all be excited to see Greta Gerwigs third feature film, especially with how good Lady Bird and Little Women were. Then, there’s the cast. We’re getting Ryan Gosling, Margot Robbie, Michael Cera, John Cena, Will Ferrell, Emma Mackey, and Rhea Perlman acting together. BOOM, YES! And then we have the factor of not fully knowing what this movies about. A lot is hanging in the air on the plot and that just builds my need to see it.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (James Mangold)

Certain movie franchises hold a special place in people’s hearts. For me, the Indiana Jones franchise was a staple of my childhood. I’ll be completely honest with you and remarkably hypocritical: I am going to say that this movie is at least good. Not great (unless it is), but I do not intend on bashing Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. I think James Mangold is a fabulous director and now we’re pairing Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones with a villainous Mads Mikkelsen as a villain. I’m pumped.

Talk To Me (Michael Philippou, Danny Philippou)

In no way, shape, or form do I fancy myself a horror fan, but Talk To Me looks legit. When A24 acquires the rights to horror films, it is traditionally worked out when you look at Pearl, Hereditary, Midsommar, and The Lighthouse. I do find myself a bit skeptical as it’s difficult to have success making a teen horror film nowadays, but Talk To Me has a very original feel to it. It’s not a cheesy slasher or trumped up possession flick. It’s a spirit conjuring, supernatural horror flick.

MaXXXine (Ti West)

Last year, Ti West and Mia Goth didn’t miss. They dropped both films in the Pearl/Maxine Minx saga with X and Pearl and this year we are getting an addition to the series with MaXXXine. MaXXXine serves as the third film in the series following Mia Goths character Maxine Minx after the farm massacre in X and her aspirations for becoming an actress. The cast for MaXXXine is stacked up with Mia Goth, Kevin Bacon, Bobby Cannavale, Halsey, and Gustavo Fring Giancarlo Esposito. With how good X and Pearl were, I have high expectations for MaXXXine.

Ferrari (Michael Mann)

Michael Mann is best known for movies like Heat, Thief, and Miami Vice, but he has a new biopic that will (possibly) release this year. Filming wrapped on his biopic Ferrari in October of 2022 and stars Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari. The films premise on Wikipedia is “Italian driver and entrepreneur Enzo Ferrari deals with family problems, while preparing for the 1957 Mille Miglia.” Where I have a lot of interest is that this film has been worked and reworked since 2000. Mann was originally in talks with Sydney Pollack, then production went cold. Then in 2016, filming began with Christian Bale who ended up dropping out of the film before Hugh Jackman began negotiating for the role. Now, it seems like we’re actually going to get Ferrari with Adam Driver in the lead.