If like us, you've spent the majority of this year burning through the best Netflix movies and streaming everything else you can get your hands on, you're probably wondering what else will be worth watching this year. Netflix has already finished filming its 2020 line-up of original movies – so it's still got plenty of films in the can, even while many of its 2021 TV shows have been slowly getting back to production (The Witcher season 2 and Sex Education season 3 for example).
Meanwhile, theaters still face an uncertain future. Tenet may have released around the world to steady box office returns, but the second half of the year is still unpredictable, with a recent Deadline report noting that movies like Dune and Wonder Woman 1984 may be moved back to 2021 and November respectively (though this hasn't been officially announced).
That means Netflix is still your certain, go-to destination for new movies this year. And some of the streamer's upcoming originals look pretty great – below, we've picked out 5 movies that are worth adding to your watch list before 2020 is over. They include a crowd-pleasing blockbuster, a new movie from master filmmaker David Fincher and a remake of a classic Hitchcock picture.
Enola Holmes
After the pandemic kicked into high gear, Netflix acquired this movie from Warner Bros that was originally intended for a theatrical release. Starring Millie Bobby Brown as Sherlock Holmes' younger sister – with Henry Cavill as Holmes himself and Sam Claflin as Mycroft – Enola is in search of her mother (Helena Bonham Carter), who vanished on the day she turned 16.
In trying to track her down, Enola uncovers a much larger mystery. On paper, you might be dubious about another version of a young Sherlock Holmes-like story, but critics are actually raving about this film. At the time of writing, it's got 91% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. If nothing else, it'll be worth checking out just to enjoy the handsome sight of Henry Cavill in a suit and tie.
Streaming on Netflix from September 23
Mank
Strangely, it's been six years since Fight Club and The Social Network director David Fincher's last movie, Gone Girl. In the meantime, he did make two ludicrously good seasons of Mindhunter for Netflix – but still, it's a massive event when the director releases a new film. Fincher is one of the living greats, and not just because of his baseball cap-related dunk on Ben Affleck on the Gone Girl commentary.
His next picture, Mank, definitely seems more like a passion project than a mass market movie – which seems to be the sort of movie that attracts a lot of great filmmakers to Netflix. Fincher's late father actually wrote the script, which is about alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz finishing the script to Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, while offering a sideways glance at the machinations and culture of 1930s Hollywood. Gary Oldman and Amanda Seyfried star in this black-and-white film.
Release date TBA, though expect it in either October or November
Rebecca
Ben Wheatley (High Rise) directs this new adaptation of the novel by Daphne du Maurier, famously adapted into a film by Alfred Hitchcock in 1940. It stars handsome mannequin-come-to-life Armie Hammer, Lily James (Baby Driver) and Kristin Scott Thomas.
If you're not familiar with the original film, it's about a wealthy widower who brings his wife to his estate, only for her to discover that she's living in the shadow of her new husband's deceased wife. An intimidating housekeeper (Thomas), meanwhile, helps keep the specter of her master's former spouse alive. Expect a visually resplendent thriller that borders on horror.
Streaming on Netflix from October 21
The Boys in the Band
Produced by Ryan Murphy (American Horror Story, The Politician on Netflix), The Boys in the Band is an adaptation of the Broadway play that represented a milestone in gay popular culture in the 20th century. Featuring a cavalcade of actors you'll recognize, including Jim Parsons, Matt Bomer, Andrew Rannells and Zachary Quinto, it's about a birthday party in 1968 that takes an abrupt left turn when the host's potentially closeted former college roommate turns up.
Streaming on Netflix from September 30
The Devil All The Time
Probably the highest-profile movie on this list – likely because it has the double header of featuring current Spider-Man and Batman actors Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson in the same film – The Devil All The Time comes from director Antonio Campos (Christine). It's a grim-looking drama about a young war veteran (Holland), who seeks to keep the corrupt residents of his Ohio hometown at bay from his family. The ensemble cast here is very impressive: Jason Clarke, Riley Keough, Sebastian Stan and Eliza Scanlen also feature.
Streaming on Netflix from September 16
To cap things off, here's one new movie coming to Netflix in 2020 we're less sure about...
Hubie Halloween
Our usual instinct with Adam Sandler movies on Netflix is to assume they'll be broad, mostly bad comedies and move on – but then occasionally he'll really surprise you with an unbelievably good performance in Uncut Gems, or The Meyerowitz Stories (both of which are also on Netflix). This one, from Little Nicky director Steven Brill, looks like it'll fall into the former camp based on the trailer, but we're prepared to be surprised, simply because little else is coming out in October.
Streaming on Netflix from October 7
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