The Look Ahead: July 2025

New Superman, Adam Sandler swings the hockey stick again, and ScarJo fights dinos

The Look Ahead: July 2025

July goes big. Dinosaurs crash back into theaters, Adam Sandler resurrects a 90s icon, and Lena Dunham returns to TV with something messy, funny, and possibly great. There’s a new Superman from DC, a bold take on The Fantastic Four from Marvel, and a COVID-era Western from Ari Aster that already split Cannes in two. As always, we’re ranking the month’s film and TV by escalating hype:

🎈 Mildly curious
👀 Okay, now you have my attention
😳 Now wait a second here…
🚨 Need this yesterday
🍿 I’m already sat

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🎈 Mildly Curious

July 2 – Jurassic World: Rebirth (Theaters)
Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, and some scientifically unsound new dinosaur hybrids walk into a franchise reboot that’s desperately looking for some freshness, hoping Gareth Edwards (The Creator, Godzilla) can provide it. There’s promise of practical effects and no legacy baggage, but let’s be real: odds are this plays it too safe.

July 2 – Heads of State (Prime Video)
John Cena is the U.S. president and Idris Elba is the British PM in this $70M straight-to-streaming buddy action comedy. Those stars, plus Ilya Naishuller, director of the underrated Nobody, helm this, which offers a modicum of hope for an otherwise lame-looking affair.

July 17 – Untamed (Netflix)
Mare of Easttown meets Yellowstone? That’s the hope for this 6-episode limited series from Mark L. Smith, starring Eric Bana as a special agent for the National Parks Service investigating a brutal murder within Yosemite. Sam Neill also stars.

July 2 – 40 Acres (Limited Theaters)
Danielle Deadwyler stars in this high-concept post-apocalyptic thriller about a matriarch trying to protect her family and land in the famine-stricken near future. Written and directed by R.T. Thorne, the film, which premiered to acclaim at TIFF last year, promises big ideas and style.

July 18 – I Know What You Did Last Summer (Theaters) Is it groan-worthy that a pretty middling horror film from 1997 gets a legasequel? Yes, but c’est la vie, and hopefully this reboot from Jennifer Kaytin Robinson (Do Revenge) has some surprises yet. The cast is led by Madelyn Cline and Chase Sui Wonders, with Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt returning.

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👀 Okay, Now You Have My Attention

July 25 – Oh, Hi! (Theaters)
Oh, Hi features two young stars of the moment, Molly Gordon and Logan Lerman, in a rom-com about a new couple going on their first romantic getaway together. If the chemistry is strong and the tone is right, this could be a low-key winner.

Want to keep going? There are 10 more entries you need on your radar.
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