Most Anticipated Movie Releases of 2017

Avery Deen, Reporter

2017 is going to be a big year for the film industry, it seems like it’s the year of long anticipated sequels. Here is a list of some of the movies that we are most looking forward to for this year.

Fans of Marvel are in for a superhero movie packed 2017 with a whopping three films coming out: “Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2,” “Thor: Ragnarok,” and “Spiderman: Homecoming.” All of which take place in the Avengers universe and will help tie up some loose story ends before “Avengers:  Infinity War Part 1” which is set to release in 2018 and will bring together many beloved characters for the big showdown between Captain America (Chris Evans) and Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.). If you aren’t caught up with all the latest Avengers films, now is the time. “Captain America: Civil War,” the last major film, just dropped on Netflix and is available to all to help fans catch up with— or relive— the fallout of the Avengers after the signing of the Sokovia accords. These new movies will introduce and flesh out newer characters to the franchise before adding them into the main conflict next year, and hopefully provide lots of laughter and heartbreak to all of us on both Team Cap, and Team Stark.

Star Wars also has another installment with the sequel to “Episode VII: The Force Awakens” releasing this year. Little has been released about Episode VIII, but it will be picking up exactly where Episode VII left off, according to director Rian Johnson, and will premiere on Dec. 15. Many questions about Carrie Fisher’s role as General Leia Organa in Episode VIII have arisen following her recent and sudden passing. It has been confirmed that she had finished filming all her scenes for Episode VIII, but it is unsure how they will handle the storyline of her character as she was supposed to have a pivotal role in Episode IX.

In addition to it’s Star Wars and Marvel franchise releases, Disney will also be continuing it’s trend of creating live-action versions of their classic animated films and adding “Beauty and the Beast” alongside “Cinderella” and “Maleficent.” The movie will star many big name actors such as Emma Watson (Belle), Dan Stevens (Beast), and Luke Evans (Gaston). Another film which they will be releasing in 2017 has recently piqued the interest of many by releasing its first teaser trailer. Very little is known about “Cars 3” other that that the trailer shows footage of main character Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) getting into a wreck, there has been a fair amount of speculation as to what this will mean for the film.

Another movie franchise which is receiving a third installment this year is “Pitch Perfect.” Much like Episode VIII, the plot details are still undisclosed as the movie won’t be coming out until Dec. 22, though the cast recently released photos from the set which quickly gained speed and were shared on many social media pages and news outlets. It appears that most all of the “Barden Bellas” will be returning for this movie, though it is unknown what new musical adventure they will embark on now that they have graduated from college and will be making lives for themselves.

Though not every anticipated movie has a far off release date, there are several films debuting in the next month or so that look brilliant as well. One of which is horror thriller “Split,” which follows the story of three girls who are kidnapped by a man with 24 personalities. Together they must try to find one of the personalities who will take pity on them and help them to escape or contact the authorities. This film is designed to keep viewers on edge, always waiting for his personality to shift, keep us waiting to see whether or not the girls succeed in getting free. This film will premiere on Jan. 20, and has so far earned much higher ratings than many other films in the genre.

On the lighter end of the spectrum, both “A Dog’s Purpose” and “The Space Between Us” are two more feel good movies debuting in January. “The Space Between Us,” which was released on the third, is a heartfelt romance story about a boy living on Mars falling in love with a girl on Earth whom he meets via the internet. The boy ends up deciding to travel to Earth and find the girl he loves and— hopefully— his father as well, even at the cost of his health.

“A Dog’s Purpose” is about just that, a dog going on a journey that spans multiple lifetimes to fulfill his true goal in life— bringing love and happiness to his master. Based on a bestselling novel which has warmed heart and made tails wag since 2012, this film adaptation will make you laugh and cry as you watch the courageous canine bond with countless humans and change several lives over the course of his long reincarnation cycle, all until he can make it back to his original owner and inspire him to live fully once again. You will never be able to look at your furry friend the same way after watching this movie, but in the best way possible.