Movies to watch out for in 2023 – Bears on cocaine, dinosaurs on Earth and Barbie

We check out the big movie blockbusters coming to the screen in 2023.

​Babylon (January)

Margot Robbie heads the cast of the new movie from Damien Chazelle (La La Land) set in the early heyday of Hollywood.

The movie traces the rise and fall of several characters in a time of decadence and depravity.​

Tar (January)

Cate Blanchett has been winning all the awards — and is favourite to pick up her third Oscar — for this music drama set around a top orchestra. She plays Lydia Tar, a conductor at the top of her career, whose life begins to unravel dramatically.

Magic Mike’s Last Dance(February)

Channing Tatum gets into the groove one more time in this sexy, fun and surprisingly sweet series. Left broke after a business deal fails, Mike heads to London with a wealthy socialite (Salma Hayek) who’s ready to make him an offer he can’t refuse…

Cocaine Bear(February)

You might think a movie about a bear who consumes cocaine and goes on the rampage couldn’t get any stranger.

But then Irish movie fans discovered that the movie was actually filmed in Ireland, with scenic Co Wicklow spots such as Powerscourt Waterfall standing in for US countryside.

The trailer for the movie — directed by Elizabeth Banks and starring the late Ray Liotta — caused quite a buzz for its depiction of a grizzly bear going on the rampage after ingesting cocaine.

It’s based very loosely on news reports of a bear who ate cocaine dropped from a plane in the US.

65 (March)

Adam Driver gets into full-on action mode in this sci-fi thriller.

He plays a pilot from another planet who survives an accident, only to discover he’s landed on a planet called Earth — 65 million years ago.

Creed 3(March)

Michael B Jordan returns to, and directs for the first time, the third instalment of this hit series.

The film focuses on Adonis Creed’s return to the ring to take on a former friend just released from prison and eager to prove he deserves a shot in the ring.

Sadly the iconic Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) will not be returning.​

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3(May)

The Marvel Universe’s favourite group of misfits gathers to take on another challenge against malevolent forces.

Following the dramatic events of the last film, Peter Quill and his team must not only defend the universe but one of their own in their most dangerous mission yet.

​Fast X (May)

The first of a two-part finale of the hit Fast and the Furious series speeds into cinemas as part of what’s likely to be an emotional goodbye.

Vin Diesel’s Dom returns along with Michelle Rodriguez and Charlize Theron as the baddie Cipher.

​Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse(June)

The sequel to the brilliant 2018 animated film Into the Spider-Verse reconnects us with Miles Morales and is set across a multiverse of alternate universes.

In the movie, Miles goes on a crime-fighting adventure with his new team of Spider-People, so well established in the first film.​

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny(June)

Though the plot is being kept strictly under wraps, a first trailer gave us an idea what to expect from Indy’s final adventure.

Harrison Ford has been de-aged for the movie, at least some of which is set during WW2. Phoebe Waller-Bridge plays his goddaughter Helene, in what is an intriguing piece of casting.

Mission Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Part One(July)

Arguably the best series of action movies returns with a new adventure, thankfully with action king Christopher McQuarrie at the helm again.

The first of a two-part instalment, Tom Cruise returns as the IMF agent Ethan Hunt. Rebecca Ferguson and Vanessa Kirby join him to kick some ass.​

Oppenheimer (July)

Our own Cillian Murphy (left) teams up again with director Christopher Nolan for this drama that revisits the events of the world-changing Manhattan Project.

The film is expected to tell the story of the development of the atomic bomb though the eyes of its title character.

Oppenheimer was a physicist who was key to the project and often described as the “father of the atomic bomb”. The cast includes Robert Downey Jr, Florence Pugh and Matt Damon.​

The Barbie Movie(July)

One of the most intriguing movies of 2023 is directed by Greta Gerwig (Ladybird) and stars Margot Robbie as the iconic doll and Ryan Gosling as her sidekick and boyfriend Ken.

The first trailer suggests it will be a highly satirical affair, with Gosling going full day-glo in stills from the film.​

The Marvels (July)

Brie Larson returns to play Captain Marvel — and is joined by two other superheroes — in a new addition to the Marvel Universe.

They are Monica Rambeau, who made her debut in the recent Wandavision, and Ms Marvel, who comes to big screen after appearing in her own TV series.​

Dune: Part 2 (November)

The second instalment of the sci-fi movie returns. It tells how Paul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen to avenge those who harmed his family. Denis Villeneuve returns to direct.

​Wonka (December)

The latest Willy Wonka focuses on the young Wonka and how he first met the Oompa-Loompas in the early days. The big name cast includes Timothée Chalamet, Olivia Colman and Sally Hawkins.