10. First Man (Damien Chazelle)
After his amazing success of 'La La Land' (2016), Damien Chazelle has another iron in the fire. His next project is a biopic of astronaut Neil Armstrong, adapted from the biography 'First Man: A Life Of Neil A. Armstrong'. This movie marks the second collaboration between the director and Ryan Gosling. The screenplay is written by Oscar winner Josh Singer, who won the trophy for 'Spotlight' (2015), and the movie will be released in October 2018.
9. If Beale Street Could Talk (Barry Jenkins)
Other than Chazelle, Barry Jenkins is the shooting star of the directing sphere of Hollywood in 2017. His second feature film, 'Moonlight' (2016), gained him an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay and it was a massive success. His next production is an adaption of the 1974 novel 'If Beale Street Could Talk' by James Baldwin. Jenkins wrote the screenplay during his work on 'Moonlight', a time he obviously was in a brilliant state of creativity.
8. Pinocchio (Guillermo del Toro)
In 2012, the Mexican director announced his take on the classic novel 'Pinocchio' by Italian author Carlo Collodi. Firstly adapted by Walt Disney in 1940 into a child-friendly fairy tale, del Toro’s approach is much more true to the original book. He describes it as 'much more strange and disturbing'. In the past, del Toro has proved his unrivaled ability of transferring fairytale-like stories on the big screen with his 2006 movie 'Pan’s Labyrinth'
7. Roma (Alfonso Cuarón)
'Roma' not only marks the director’s first movie after his 2014 science fiction movie 'Gravity' and his Oscar for Best Director, but his first movie set in his homeland Mexico after 2001’s 'Y Tu Mamá También'. Less is known about the narrative except that the story will be constructed around a year in the life of a middle-class family in Mexico in the early 70s.
6. The Girl In The Spider’s Web (Fede Alvarez)
After the sudden death of Swedish author Stieg Larsson in 2004, his planned 10-book series about hacker Lisbeth Salander and journalist Mikael Blomkvist could only count three installments. 'The Girl in the Spider’s Web' is the first novel in Larsson’s universe that isn’t written by him but by David Lagercrantz. In 2018, the series gets a new installment by acclaimed director Fede Alvarez. Regarding the director’s capability to create fright and tension on screen, the movie may fill the 2011 version’s shoes. There’s no cast confirmation yet.
5. The House That Jack Built (Lars von Trier)
Lars von Trier’s work is a cinematic ode to the dark realms of the human soul. Suffering from depression, the Danish director made himself a name with movies about addiction, madness, loss and nihilism. Originally developed as a television series, his upcoming movie 'The House That Jack Built' visualizes the story of an extremely intelligent serial killer over the course of 12 years, who celebrates every murder as a work of pure art. The production on the film has been completed, the cast being excellent with Matt Dillon, Uma Thurman, Bruno Ganz and Riley Keough.
4. Mad Max: The Wasteland (George Miller)
After the huge success of 'Mad Max: Fury Road' (2015) and six Oscar nominations, it was just a matter of time until a new installment of the legendary action saga went in production. George Miller confirmed the fact that there will be numerous 'Mad Max' movies to come. The screenplays for two follow-ups are written and Tom Hardy had already signed for his return as the franchise’s hero. Regarding the huge impact of 'Fury Road', it will be challenging for the production team to move up the vast success.
3. Dune (Denis Villeneuve)
The Canadian director’s sixth big budget production confirms his trend of specializing in science fiction. After 'Arrival' (2016) and the upcoming 'Blade Runner 2049', this is his third contribution to this genre. Aside from the director’s huge kudos, it’s the highly painted past of Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel and diverse ambitions of transferring it into a cinematic narrative, making this production one of the most anticipated science fiction movies of the near future. Regarding the highly mixed past of its adaptations, the cinema circles are excited to see the world of 'Dune' coming to life in Villeneuve’s modern trademark style.
2. The Irishman (Martin Scorsese)
The man behind 'Mean Streets' (1973), 'Goodfellas' (1990) and 'Casino' (1995) returns in the mafia genre with 'The Irishman'. The $100 million production turned down by Hollywood studios, is now funded by the giant Netflix. Martin Scorsese’s new movie might be the most ambitious production on this list. The acting ensemble is a sublime mixture of Scorsese veterans such as Robert De Niro and Harvey Keitel, alongside Bobby Cannavale, Ray Romano and, in addition, Al Pacino.
1. Untitled Movie About Manson Family Murders (Quentin Tarantino)
After 'Django Unchained' (2012), Quentin Tarantino mentioned his will of making a family movie in numerous interviews. Back then, no one could imagine what the director, known for his explicit visualization of violence and dialogues, meant by that. There are no final acting confirmations but Brad Pitt, Jennifer Lawrence, Samuel L. Jackson and Margot Robbie are under the names linked to the project. The beginning of shooting is scheduled for 2018. For a controversial filmmaker like Tarantino, the highly disturbing and common events from Charlie Manson might be an explosive combination.