We may still be deep in the 2025 awards cycle for a few more months, but that’s no excuse for looking into the deep blue yonder at some of the cinematic delights that may be bobbing to the surface in the coming weeks and months. Here we present to you part one of our round-up of potential cinematic delights, all the things we’re looking forward to this years, from new works by arthouse favourites to innovative blockbusters and everything in between. The industry is in the midst of a period of violent flux right now, so hopefully our 2027 preview list won’t just be 100 films all from the same giant production house. Watch this space!
1. I Want Your Sex (Gregg Araki)
January 2026 (Sundance Première)
It’s been 22 years since Gregg Araki’s Mysterious Skin, a film whose raw depiction of queer adolescence remains as devastating and radical as the day it was made, and the director’s new erotic thriller sounds like a deliberate return to his sweet spot. When Elliot (Cooper Hoffman) lands a job with artist Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde), he’s drawn into her world as a sexual muse. If nothing else, expect neon-drenched excess and a refusal to behave daintily. Anna Stafford
2. The Moment (Aidan Zamiri)
January 2026 (Sundance Première)
Aidan Zamiri has spent the last decade shaping pop’s visual language from behind the camera, directing videos for FKA twigs and Billie Eilish. In his feature film debut The Moment, Charli XCX steps into full pop-feral auteur mode. It’s a mockumentary fever dream where fame becomes both a mask and a meltdown, with its star spinning an apparently self-scalding portrait of stardom eating itself in real time. AS
3. Send Help (Sam Raimi)
January 30, 2026 (UK)
The great horror auteur Sam Raimi finally returns to horror from a little break in the blockbuster hills, harking back to his gleefully gory opus Drag Me to Hell from over a decade ago. His new film strands two colleagues (Rachel McAdams and Dylan O’Brien) on a remote island and asks, what could possibly go wrong? (Answer: everything). If he leans into the nastier edges, this could be a welcome reminder of how much fun Raimi has when he’s being bad. Set to be splattered with his trademark slapstick terror, January already seems like a less boring prospect. AS
4. We Bury The Dead (Zak Hilditch)
February 5, 2026 (Australia/New Zealand)
Okay, we have fingers and toes crossed that British actor Daisy Ridley scores a post Star Wars hit with this upcoming zombie survival thriller by Australian filmmaker Zak Hilditch. The bad faith posting army seemed to have it in for her from the off, and if nothing else, it would be great if she were able to prove her talents to the haters just to shut them up for a bit. The film premiered at South By Southwest in March of 2025 and received warm reviews, so things are looking good so far. David Jenkins
5. The Chronology of Water (Kristen Stewart)
February 6, 2026 (UK)
We were pleasantly surprised when we caught The Chronology of Water at the Cannes Film Festival back in May 2025. Kristen Stewart’s feature directorial debut is a rousing adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s ferocious memoir of the same name. Tackling abuse, addiction and the female body as both battleground and refuge, Stewart delivers an uncompromising debut. AS
