In a new video, Marco Risch from Nerdkultur takes a look at the film year 2026. He explains which movies you should have on your radar.
Who is Marco Risch? Since 2015, Marco Risch has been covering news, analyses, reviews, and interviews about current films and series on his YouTube channel Nerdkultur.
Additionally, he meets weekly with his colleague Yves Arievich to chat in the Nerd & Kultur Podcast about pop culture film topics like Star Wars, Marvel, and DC.
Both the YouTube channel and the podcast are part of the Webedia network, which also includes MeinMMO.
In a new YouTube video, Marco deals with the film year 2026. He presents the 10 movies he is most looking forward to and that have great potential.
You can see his list here:
Horror Icons, Sci-Fi, and… Sheep?!
Before Marco begins his rankings, he talks about one of the biggest blockbusters of the year: Avengers: Doomsday. Although this movie and The Mandalorian & Grogu make him feel more “curious than thoughtful,” the 3rd teaser thanks to the X-Men still got him excited. But there are also 9 more movies.
In 9th place, Marco talks about The Bride by Maggie Gyllenhaal, which starts on March 5. The first information and trailers for the reinterpretation of Frankenstein’s Bride are compared by Marco to Bonnie and Clyde, but he also mentions modern versions of the characters like in Creature Commando or Poor Things, which have shown how well an adaptation can be. He also admits that he is biased because he personally knows the second camera assistant, Conny Klapper.
Steven Spielberg also returns in 2026 and is in 8th place on Marco’s list with Disclosure Day . The first trailer already reminds him of the “best times” of M. Night Shyamalan. The sci-fi film will hit theaters on June 11, 2026, hinting that we will get a different perspective on an alien invasion.
A completely different kind of film awaits viewers in 7th place on Marco’s list: The Sheep Detectives (or in German: Glennkill – A Sheep Mystery). This crime film is based on a German bestseller and is essentially a classic detective story – only in this case, the sheep are the investigators. Starting May 7, you can watch the film, which not only features many stars, but also has Craig Mazin as a screenwriter, who previously worked on Chernobyl and The Last of Us.
Time Travel Action, a Powerful Cousin, and Tom Cruise
Compared to Sheep Detectives, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die in 6th place is quite a contrast. Director Gore Verbinski returns 9 years after A Cure for Wellness and showcases Sam Rockwell as a homeless man trying to warn humanity about the future.
Marco seems to be looking forward to his 5th place more than to Doomsday: Supergirl. In line with James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, director Craig Gillespie seems to focus on a relaxed mood and a strong soundtrack in this superhero film. On June 25, audiences in Germany can find out for themselves.
Even though little is known about his 4th place: Digger, the film already excites Marco. Director Alejandro Iñárritu is known for Birdman and The Revenant, and the quote “comedy of catastrophic proportions” along with the main cast featuring Tom Cruise promise great potential, even if it is still unclear when the film will be released.
Legends in Space and Mythology
The biggest competition for Doomsday is in 3rd place on Marco’s list. Dune – Part Three is set to release on December 17, simultaneously with Doomsday, the next installment of the sci-fi epic. Just the previous films are enough, even without prior trailers, to build anticipation for the next saga of the desert planet.
Things could be even more spectacular in The Odyssey by Christopher Nolan. In second place on Marco’s list, the film features numerous movie stars. The film was completely shot in IMAX as “the first feature-length film in film history.” You can see the adaptation of one of the world’s oldest legends in theaters on July 15.
In first place on Marco’s list is Project Hail Mary (in German: The Astronaut). In the sci-fi film, based on a novel by Andy Weir (The Martian), Ryan Gosling must save the world. As with The Martian, the source material is hard sci-fi
, but the soundtrack already promises Marco a good direction:
But maybe I’m also driven by Oasis with their ‘Champagne Supernova’. Exactly the euphoric, hopeful undertone that the acclaimed source material – this year as a whole – could really use.
But what do you think? What are you most looking forward to in theaters this year? Feel free to write it to us in the comments. If you still want to catch up on some things from 2025, you can check out Marco’s list from last year: Film expert says: These 10 movies you must see in 2025
