With the Oscar movies out of the way, the first round of trailers for films that will mark the new year are appearing left and right. Of course there’s a last-minute red band trailer for the latest Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt collaboration, but the rest are for movies that will hit theaters in 2016. There’s the My Big Fat Greek Wedding sequel that comes almost 15 years after the original (because, sure), a Finding Dory teaser, and two other features that are sure to bring crowds to theaters. Check 'em out.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
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Genre: Comedy
Director: Kirk Jones
Stars: Nia Vardalos, John Corbett, Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine
Release Date: March 25, 2016
Aunt Voula is back, ya’ll! Almost 15 years after we were introduced to the wacky Portokalos family in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, they’ve returned for another loud, Greek, controversial wedding. The trailer, which features almost all of the original cast, including the windex-obsessed family patriarch Kostas "Gus" Portokalos played by Michael Constantine, promises some of the hilarity that made the original so great, but with a few pivotal updates. For one, Toula (Vardalos), who is happily married to her non-Greek husband Ian (Corbett), has a teenage daughter, who, following in the footsteps of her mother, is embarrassed by her Greek heritage. But she’s not the one getting married. The trailer reveals/spoils that Toula’s parents, Maria and Gus, were in fact never legally married. Drama. Another highlight is a couple of great one-liners by Aunt Voula, Toula’s sharp-witted aunt whose confusion over a bundt cake in the first movie has since been immortalized.
Triple 9
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Genre: Drama, Thriller
Director: John Hillcoat
Stars: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kate Winslet, Woody Harrelson
Release Date: February 19, 2016
John Hillcoat, best known for The Road and Lawless, returns with Triple 9, a heist drama featuring a pretty impressive cast. The film follows corrupt cops and criminals who face serious trouble from the Russian mob, led by Kate Winslet in her second performance in a year using an Eastern European accent (Steve Jobs). In order to maneuver themselves out of it all, they hatch a dangerous plan: assassinating a newbie cop, played by Casey Affleck. It looks like a loud, wild, and perhaps too familiar of an adventure, but the strong ensemble cast should make it worth the watch.
Finding Dory
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Genre: Animated
Director: Andrew Stanton
Stars: Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, Diane Keaton, Eugene Levy
Release Date: June 17, 2016
After months and months of waiting, a first teaser trailer for Finding Dory, the sequel to Pixar’s beloved Finding Nemo has arrived. The film takes place six months after Nemo rebelled against his dad and found himself in a dentist’s fish tank in Sydney, Australia. Now, Dory, the loveable, but forgetful surgeonfish, is the one who has finding to do. The trailer, which only gives a glimpse at some of the familiar characters, finds Dory suddenly remembering things about her childhood. This prompts her, Marlin, and Nemo to seek out her parents, who we know will be voiced by Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy. Like the first film, it looks super sweet and super moving.
The Night Before
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Genre: Comedy
Director: Jonathan Levine
Stars: Seth Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anthony Mackie, Lizzy Caplan, Michael Shannon, Jillian Bell
Release Date: November 20th, 2016
Jonathan Levine is known for not only making funny movies, but good ones. He impressed with the cancer comedy 50/50, surprised with the tender Warm Bodies, and now returns with something a little raunchier, but hopefully still pretty decent. The Night Before stars Seth Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Anthony Mackie as three childhood best friends who decide to spend one last crazy Christmas Eve together before their lives go off in different directions. Roger’s character Isaac is having a child with his wife (played by the reliably hysterical Jillian Bell) and Mackie’s Chris is now famous. It looks pretty wild, and the supporting characters, which include drug dealer Michael Shannon, Chris’s mom played by Lorraine Toussaint, and a brief appearance from Broad City’s Ilana Glazer, make it all the better.
Miracles From Heaven
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Genre: Drama
Director: Patricia Riggen
Stars: Jennifer Garner, Martin Henderson, Queen Latifah
Release Date: March 18, 2016
If it weren’t a true story, Miracles From Heaven would seem like a pretty impossible premise. The film looks at the Beam family, a happy group living in Burleson, Tex. Out of nowhere, Anna, the 12-year-old daughter of Christy (Garner), contracts a mysterious illness that no doctor can diagnose. The trailer shows Garner’s character’s relentless as she tries to find a cure and a diagnosis for her daughter’s condition. As things continue to gross worse, Anna finds herself in an accident that almost kills her, but instead ends up curing her. The film is based off the real Christy Beam’s memoir that chronicles the miracle that saved her daughter’s life.
