As summer winds down, and cinephiles migrate from Venice to Telluride to Toronto, it’s time to buckle up for prestige movie season. The fall slate — which we’re defining as post-Labor Day to pre-Thanksgiving — is packed with heavyweight auteurs and wannabe Oscar contenders. Whether it’s Tom Cruise undergoing a radical transformation in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Digger, Aaron Sorkin diving into the world of tech whistleblowers with The Social Reckoning, or Cannes Palme d’Or winner Fjord bringing emotional firepower, the season is shaping up to be a showcase of big swings, bold performances, and awards-worthy ambition.
Here are the 25 films we can’t wait to see.
Atonement (Sept. 7)
Director: Reed Van Dyk
Cast: Boyd Holbrook, Hiam Abbass, Kenneth Branagh, Gheed
Studio: Kino Lorber
Synopsis: Inspired by a New Yorker article, the drama centers on a U.S. Marine (Holbrook) whose split-second decision during a firefight in the early days of the Iraq War devastates an Iraqi family. Years later, with the help of a journalist, he attempts to reconcile with the woman and surviving members of the family. After premiering in Directors’ Fortnight at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, the film drew praise for its performances and Van Dyk’s direction. Kino Lorber is positioning the release for an awards run.
Hope (Sept. 9)
Director: Na Hong-Jin
Cast: Hwang Junh-min, Zo In-sung, Hoyeon, Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, Alicia Vikander, Michael Fassbender
Studio: Neon
Synopsis: In the remote South Korean village of Hope Harbor, police chief Bum-seok (Hwang Jung-min) and officer Sung-ae (Hoyeon) are called to investigate a mysterious creature wreaking havoc on the community. Meanwhile, a local hunting group led by Sung-ki (Zo In-sung) sets out into the nearby forest to track the beast, only to find themselves hunted instead.
When it comes to awards, the film won’t compete for Best International Feature, but distributor Neon is hoping for traction in craft categories. Hope has charted an unusual festival route, traveling from Cannes to San Diego’s Comic-Con, where director Na spoke to Gold Derby about his inspiration for making the sci-fi horror film 10 years after The Wailing. “I thought hard about what I wanted to do next, and my trail of thoughts ended up in space,” he said. “I thought that space was really fun, which led me to decide, ‘Let’s just do an alien movie.'”
Resident Evil (Sept. 18)
Director: Zach Cregger
Cast: Austin Abrams, Paul Walter Hauser, Zach Cherry, Kali Reis, Johnno Wilson
Studio: Sony Pictures
Synopsis: The thrilling — and terrifying — reinvention of the game-based franchise follows Bryan (Austin Abrams), a medical courier who unwittingly finds himself in an action-packed, non-stop race for survival as one fateful, horrifying night collapses around him in chaos.
Cregger’s follow-up to the Oscar-winning Weapons is a new take on his favorite video game series. As the filmmaker explained at Comic-Con, the premise is simple. “What I love about the games is the survival-horror aspect — the slow, creeping dread. I like the idea of one person moving on their feet from point A to point B, having to enter a gauntlet and go deeper and deeper into hell,” he explained. “The world just seems hell-bent on destroying you. You feel like you don’t have enough resources to survive, but you’ve got to figure out how to make it through.”
The Weight (Sept. 18)
Director: Padraic McKinley
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Russell Crowe, Julia Jones, Austin Amelio, Avi Nash, Lucas Lynggaard Tønnesen, Sam Hazeldine
Studio: Vertical
Synopsis: Set in Oregon in 1933, the drama follows widower Samuel Murphy, who is torn from his young daughter and sent to a brutal labor camp. When Warden Clancy (Crowe) offers him a chance at early release, Murphy must lead a crew of convicts on a perilous mission to smuggle stolen gold through the Pacific Northwest wilderness. Confronting unforgiving terrain, hostile bandits and mounting tensions within the group, he fights to survive—and reunite with his child. The film received a warm reception at Sundance, where Ethan Hawke arrived fresh off his Best Actor Oscar nomination for Blue Moon.
Primetime (Sept. 25)
Director: Lance Oppenheim
Cast: Robert Pattinson, Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo, Phoebe Bridgers, Matthew Maher, Bokeem Woodbine, Anna Faris
Studio: A24
Synopsis: Inspired by the real-life To Catch a Predator, the film follows a Dateline NBC correspondent determined to make television history by exposing online child predators.
Though he has not seen the film, real-life host Chris Hansen recently questioned the project — and Pattinson’s casting — on the Serialously podcast. “I’ve been busy being the real Chris Hansen, so I don’t have a lot of time to focus on the fake Chris Hansen,” he said. Whether his public skepticism affects the film’s Oscar prospects, or Pattinson’s awards chances, remains to be seen as it heads to the Venice Film Festival.
Digger (Oct. 2)
Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Cast: Tom Cruise, Sandra Hüller, Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Michael Stuhlbarg, Jesse Plemons, Sophie Wilde
Studio: Warner Bros.
Synopsis: Tom Cruise stars in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s highly anticipated comedy as Digger Rockwell, an aging, corpulent energy tycoon whose actions trigger an impending apocalyptic disaster — and who must find a way to stop it.
Set for an Oct. 2 release at the start of awards season, Digger arrives with major Oscar expectations. Iñárritu previously guided Leonardo DiCaprio to his first Best Actor win for The Revenant, and the high-concept satire could offer Cruise — a recent Honorary Oscar recipient and four-time nominee—a path to his first competitive victory.
Fjord (Oct. 9)
Director: Cristian Mungiu
Cast: Renate Reinsve, Sebastian Stan
Studio: Neon
Synopsis: Cristian Mungiu’s Fjord won the Palme d’Or at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, immediately emerging as a major awards contender. Starring recent Oscar nominees Renate Reinsve and Sebastian Stan, the drama follows a devout Romanian Evangelical family that relocates to a remote Norwegian town. After a disciplinary incident prompts local child services to remove their children on allegations of abuse, the family’s lives are shattered and the community fractures around them.
Backed by Neon’s formidable Academy Awards track record and two acclaimed leads, Fjord is poised to be a top-tier player this season.
Misty Green (Oct. 9)
Director: Chris Rock
Cast: Rosalind Eleazar, Chris Rock
Studio: A24
Synopsis: Chris Rock’s latest directorial effort is set to make its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. According to A24’s official logline, Misty Green follows “a talented actress whose career has stalled years after her Hollywood breakthrough as she fights for her second act.”
While Rock has earned multiple Emmy Awards for his television work, his feature directorial projects have yet to break into the Oscar race. However, Misty Green’s examination of the struggles within the creative community could strike a chord with Academy voters.
The Social Reckoning (Oct. 9)
Director: Aaron Sorkin
Cast: Mikey Madison, Jeremy Allen White, Jeremy Strong, Wunmi Mosaku, Betty Gilpin, Billy Magnussen, Bill Burr
Studio: Columbia Pictures
Synopsis: Aaron Sorkin revisits the world of The Social Network with The Social Reckoning, a companion piece to his Oscar-winning 2010 film about Facebook’s rise. Written and directed by Sorkin and inspired by The Wall Street Journal’s “The Facebook Files,” the drama follows engineer-turned-whistleblower Frances Haugen (Madison) as she partners with reporter Jeff Horwitz (White) to expose the company’s most closely held secrets. Jeremy Strong plays Mark Zuckerberg.
Other Mommy (Oct. 9)
Director: Rob Savage
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Jay Duplass, Arabella Olivia Clark, Dichen Lachman, Arian Moayed, Karen Allen
Studio: Universal Pictures
Synopsis: If trailers could win Oscars, Other Mommy‘s jump-scare preview that debuted in front of The Odyssey would be on the shortlist. Based on Josh Malerman’s bestselling novel Incidents Around the House, director Rob Savage’s supernatural thriller centers on 8-year-old Bela (Arabella Olivia Clark), whose family home becomes haunted by a sinister entity that takes the physical form of her mother.
While Oscar doesn’t traditionally do scary, recent genre juggernauts Sinners, Frankenstein, and Weapons proved that Academy voters are increasingly opening their doors to prestige horror. If Other Mommy delievers on its creepy premise, expect Academy favorite Chastain to emerge as a dark-horse contender in the Best Actress race.
Sense and Sensibility (Oct. 16)
Director: Georgia Oakley
Cast: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Esmé Creed-Miles, Caitríona Balfe, Frank Dillane, Herbert Nordrum, Bodhi Rae Breathnach, George MacKay, Fiona Shaw
Studio: Focus Features
Synopsis: Thirty years after Ang Lee’s Oscar-winning adaptation, Georgia Oakley brings a fresh take on the Jane Austen’s classic, which follows sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood who are forced to leave their family estate after the death of their father. Moving to a modest cottage with their mother and younger sister, the Dashwoods must navigate the complications of love, heartbreak, money, and social expectations.
La Bola Negra (Oct. 16)
Directors: Javier Calvo, Javier Ambrossi
Cast: Guitarricadelafuente, Miguel Bernardeau, Carlos González, Milo Quifes, Lola Dueñas, Penélope Cruz, Glenn Close
Studio: Netflix
Synopsis: The drama arrives with major awards momentum after its world premiere in competition at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, where it won Best Director and received a reported 16- to 20-minute standing ovation. Addressing the crowd afterward, the filmmakers invoked Federico García Lorca, who was killed by fascists 90 years ago because he was gay: “To everyone who thinks that we are gonna step back in our LGBT rights, we have bad news. Because we are here to stay.”
With a Special Presentations slot at the Toronto International Film Festival — and supporting star Penélope Cruz set to receive a Special Tribute Award at the TIFF Tribute Awards — La Bola Negra shapes up as a formidable contender in the international feature, directing and acting races.
The Only Living Pickpocket in New York (Oct. 23)
Director: Noah Segan
Cast: John Turturro, Giancarlo Esposito, Tatiana Maslany, Steve Buscemi, Jamie Lee Curtis
Studio: Sony Pictures Classics
Synopsis: Written and directed by Noah Segan, The Only Living Pickpocket in New York stars John Turturro as Harry Lehman, an aging petty thief in the Bronx forced to make ends meet while caring for his disabled wife. Harry unwittingly swipes a valuable data stick from the wrong mark, sparking a high-stakes, borough-hopping race across the city.
Despite memorable turns in classics like Barton Fink, Miller’s Crossing, and Quiz Show, Turturro has never received an Oscar nomination — the kind of overdue narrative that is catnip to Academy voters. With Sony Pictures Classics giving the film a prime fall release date and critics hailing it as a late-career showcase for the veteran actor (the movie boosts a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes), The Only Living Pickpocket in New York lands as a potential Best Actor campaign to watch.
Wildwood (Oct. 23)
Director: Travis Knight
Cast: Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Awkwafina, Angela Bassett, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day, Amandla Stenberg, Jemaine Clement, Maya Erskine, Tantoo Cardinal, Tom Waits, Richard E. Grant
Studio: Laika
Synopsis: Based on Colin Meloy’s bestselling novel, the epic stop-motion fantasy follows headstrong teenager Prue McKeel (Lee), who ventures into the enchanted Impassable Wilderness outside Portland after a murder of crows abducts her baby brother. Joined by classmate Curtis (Tremblay), she enters a hidden realm of talking animals, warring factions and dangerous magic in a desperate bid to bring him home.
Wildwood is already generating early Best Animated Feature Oscar buzz, bolstered by Laika’s formidable track record: every feature in the studio’s history — including Coraline, ParaNorman, and The Boxtrolls — has received an Academy Award nomination.
Fatherland (Oct. 29)
Director: Paweł Pawlikowski
Cast: Sandra Hüller, Hanns Zischler, August Diehl, Devid Striesow, Anna Madeley
Studio: Mubi
Synopsis: Set in the summer of 1949, at the height of the Cold War, Fatherland follows Nobel Prize-winning writer Thomas Mann and his daughter Erika — an actress, writer and rally driver — on an emotionally charged journey across a war-ravaged Germany. Traveling in a black Buick from U.S.-controlled Frankfurt to Soviet-controlled Weimar, they confront a divided homeland and the fractures within their own family.
Through their journey, Pawlikowski explores identity, guilt, exile and the elusive meaning of home. The film made a major impact at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where he won Best Director in the main competition.
Wild Horse Nine (Nov. 6)
Director: Martin McDonagh
Cast: John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi
Studio: Searchlight Pictures
Synopsis: Oscar-winning filmmaker Martin McDonagh returns with Wild Horse Nine, a darkly comic, politically charged thriller starring John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell, and Steve Buscemi. Set in the lead-up to Chile’s 1973 coup, the film follows two CIA agents whose mission begins to unravel at a remote outpost.
McDonagh’s recent work makes the film an immediate awards contender: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and The Banshees of Inisherin earned 16 Academy Award nominations combined, including acting wins for Rockwell and Frances McDormand. With an ensemble led by Oscar winner Rockwell, two-time nominee Malkovich and Emmy winner Buscemi, Wild Horse Nine arrives with high expectations on the awards circuit.
Godzilla Minus Zero (Nov. 6)
Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Cast: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe
Studio: Toho/GKIDS
Synopsis: Godzilla Minus One director Takashi Yamazaki is back with this sequel, which picks up in 1949 — two years after the harrowing events of its predecessor. The film finds postwar Japan struggling to rebuild and reclaim a hard-won peace. Just as ordinary life begins to resume, the Shikishima family and a recovering nation are plunged into chaos once again when an all-new threat strikes.
The film will have its world premiere at next month’s New York Film Festival. Shot specifically for Imax, the highly anticipated monster feature carries immediate awards buzz to repeat its predecessor’s historic success, becoming the first Godzilla movie to win an Oscar, taking the statuette for Best Visual Effects.
Club Kid (Nov. 6)
Director: Jordan Firstman
Cast: Jordan Firstman, Reggie Absolom, Cara Delevingne, Diego Calva, Kirby Howell-Baptiste
Studio: A24
Synopsis: Comedian and internet personality Jordan Firstman makes his feature writing and directing debut with Club Kid, an acerbic yet heartfelt comedy-drama set in New York City’s hedonistic queer nightlife. Firstman stars as a burned-out party promoter whose chaotic nocturnal existence is thrown into disarray when he learns he has a 10-year-old son from a long-forgotten encounter.
After a buzzworthy Un Certain Regard premiere at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where A24 quickly acquired the film, Club Kid heads into the fall with strong indie momentum. Produced by Alex Coco (Anora) and co-starring Cara Delevingne and Diego Calva, it is positioned as a potential breakout in the original screenplay and acting races.
I Play Rocky (Nov. 13)
Director: Peter Farrelly
Cast: Anthony Ippolito, Matt Dillon, AnnaSophia Robb, P.J. Byrne, Jay Duplass, Tracy Letts
Studio: Amazon MGM Studios
Synopsis: Ippolito stars as Sylvester Stallone in the dramatized true story behind the making of 1976’s Rocky. The project lands with built-in awards pedigree on both sides of the camera: Farrelly previously helmed Green Book, which earned five Oscar nominations and three wins — including Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay — while the original Rocky secured 10 nominations and three Oscars (including Best Picture). With voters’ love for movies about Hollywood and underdog stories, Farrelly’s latest has the hallmarks of a contender.
Paper Tiger (Nov. 13)
Director: James Gray
Cast: Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, Miles Teller
Studio: Neon
Synopsis: With an Oscar-nominated cast and well-regarded writer-director at the helm, James Gray’s Paper Tiger is expected to be a major player in the upcoming awards conversation. The film reunites Marriage Story co-stars Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, this time playing in-laws rather than husband and wife. Set in 1986, the story finds New Jersey father Irwin (Miles Teller) turning to his former-cop brother, Gary (Driver), in the hopes of making some quick money in a scheme that involves cleaning up Brooklyn’s Gowanus Canal and the Russian mob.
Being Heumann (Nov. 13)
Director: Sian Heder
Cast: Ruth Madeley, Ali Stroker, Judy Greer, Daniel Durant
Studio: Apple Original Films
Synopsis: Based on the memoir by disability rights advocate Judy Heumann, Being Heumann chronicles her groundbreaking journey as a leader in the disability rights movement and a driving force behind the historic 1977 504 Sit-in. Directed by Oscar winner Sian Heder (CODA), the biographical drama brings major awards pedigree to Apple’s fall slate. Being Heumann will open the 51st edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, and with Heder’s proven track record, the film is expected to compete across screenplay, directing, and acting categories.
Madden (Nov. 18)
Director: David O. Russell
Cast: Nicolas Cage, Christian Bale, Kathryn Hahn, John Mulaney, Sienna Miller, Shane Gillis
Studio: Amazon MGM Studios
Synopsis: Five-time nominee David. O. Russell takes on the larger-than-life story of football icon John Madden, with Nicolas Cage starring as the legendary coach, broadcaster, and video game pioneer. The film chronicles Madden’s unlikely rise from Super Bowl-winning head coach of the Oakland Raiders to one of the most recognizable voices in sports and, eventually, the face of the massively successful Madden NFL video game franchise.
Amazon MGM decided to skip a wide theatrical release for the film, opting instead for a limited qualifying run before streaming Nov. 18 on Prime Video. With the combined force of Cage (a two-time nominee and Best Actor winner for Leaving Las Vegas), Bale (a four-time nominee and Best Supporting Actor winner for The Fighter), and Russell (a five-time Oscar nominee for writing and/or directing The Fighter, Silver Linings Playbook, and American Hustle), this biopic about an historic broadcaster and a gaming legend seems ready-made for Oscar season.
Josephine (Nov. 20)
Director: Beth de Araújo
Cast: Mason Reeves, Channing Tatum, Gemma Chan, Philip Ettinger
Studio: Sumerian Pictures
Synopsis: Inspired by writer-director Beth de Araújo’s own childhood experiences, Josephine centers on 8-year-old Josephine (Reeves), who witnesses a violent crime in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. As she struggles to process the trauma and begins acting out, her parents (Tatum and Chan), clash over how to help her heal.
The film swept top honors at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, becoming the first film since CODA to win both the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award, and will play in TIFF’s Special Presentations section. With that pedigree, Josephine should figure prominently in the awards race.
Elsinore (Nov. 20)
Director: Simon Stone
Cast: Andrew Scott, Olivia Colman, Billie Piper, Johnny Flynn, Monica Dolan, Peter Mullan, Juliet Stevenson, Joe Locke
Studio: Focus Features/StudioCanal
Synopsis: Andrew Scott stars as acclaimed Scottish actor Ian Charleson in the final chapter of his life, as he prepares to reprise his celebrated Hamlet at London’s National Theatre while privately battling AIDS. The intimate drama launches with an impressive festival run, premiering at Telluride before screenings in Toronto and as the opening-night selection of the 70th BFI London Film Festival in October.
Focus Features will release Elsinore in U.S. theaters on Nov. 20, placing it squarely in the heart of awards season. With Scott earning early Oscar buzz for a career-defining performance — and Colman adding further awards pedigree — the film appears particularly well positioned in the Best Actor race.
The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth (Nov. 25)
Director: David Fincher
Cast: Brad Pitt, Timothy Olyphant, Elizabeth Debicki, Scott Caan, Carla Gugino, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Holt McCallany, Peter Weller
Studio: Netflix
Synopsis: Directed by David Fincher from a script by Quentin Tarantino, the follow-up to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood catches up with stuntman Cliff Booth (Pitt) in 1977. Set roughly a decade after the 1969 events at Rick Dalton’s mansion, the story follows Cliff as he navigates a new series of Hollywood-adjacent mishaps alongside a colorful cast of small-time crooks.
The high-profile sequel lands on Imax screens on Nov. 25 for an exclusive two-week engagement before streaming on Netflix on Dec. 23. Positioned as a major late-year contender, the film looks to replicate the awards success of its predecessor, which earned 10 Oscar nominations and netted Pitt his first acting Academy Award.
