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Post-traumatic stress disorder has certainly not been a topic that has been under-discussed within American war cinema. Nevertheless, it is rarely the focus of an entire film. Recently acclaimed films about modern warfare, such as “The Hurt Locker” and “American Sniper,” shifted focus on the debilitating consequences of Ptsd within their third acts in order to indicate that the battle waged on the battlefield was only part of the fight that every soldier experienced. However, a majority of soldiers’ lives are spent not in active service, as Ptsd is a reality that many have to simply live with. Even if this doesn’t result in haunting nightmares regularly, the most minor of incidents can end up resurfacing memories of their service, and all the hardship that it entails.

My Dead Friend Zoe” (2025) is a conscious effort to paint a more holistic view of military service and is able to refreshingly...

Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ 2024 drama comedy, My Dead Friend Zoe is a heartfelt film about two women who served in the army together. The film makes us privy to how difficult it is to battle one’s internal demons, accept the changes in life that come after serving in the army, and most of all, find something to look forward to in life in order to survive and thrive. So, without further ado, let’s explore the events of My Dead Friend Zoe and take a look at the true story that inspired its narrative.

Spoiler Alert

Is the film based on a true story?

It can be said that My Dead Friend Zoe is inspired by real-life events that Kyle Hausmann-Stokes experienced when he served in the US army. He dedicated the film to two of his colleagues, Luis Ramirez-Jimenez and Boris Ventura, who served in the army with him. Both...

One would be hard-pressed to find a person who hasn’t seen Natalie Morales grace their screen at least once.

Dating back to 2006, the 40-year-old actress and director has worked on a wide variety of TV shows including Dead to Me, Abby’s, Santa Clarita Diet, White Collar, Parks and Recreation, The Grinder, The Newsroom and The Morning Show — just to name a few.

Last summer it was announced that Morales would be joining Grey’s Anatomy in a reoccurring role after having previously guest starred on the long-running ABC medical drama. “I had never played a doctor before, so I really wanted to do that part right,” Morales tells The Hollywood Reporter about her experience on the show.

Morales is also starring in the recently released film, My Dead Friend Zoe, which made its SXSW debut in 2024. In the movie, the actress plays the titular Zoe, the late friend and consistent...

In a sit-down conversation with uInterview, actress Sonequa Martin-Green revealed what she learned from acclaimed actor Morgan Freeman while filming the dark comedy My Dead Friend Zoe, which follows Merit (Martin-Green), a U.S. veteran who is haunted by the ghost of her best friend who died in combat. When her estranged grandfather (Freeman) is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Merit must care for him while she tries to get herself back on her feet. Martin-Green enthusiastically shared her experience working with Freeman on set with uInterview founder Erik Meers: “Well, I tell you, Morgan came in and snapped right to it, right, he came in and kind of razzed everybody, and I think it was good for us, because I think we needed to settle down a little bit, you know, and not be so caught up in the fact that, ‘Oh my goodness, it’s Morgan Freeman.’ I...

Sonequa Martin-Green stars in the new dramedy 'My Dead Friend Zoe' alongside Natalie Morales, Morgan Freeman, and Ed Harris. She spoke with Bianca Piazza of MovieWeb about the film, its roots in the veteran community, its exploration of Ptsd, and what she wants to do now that her big TV franchises ('The Walking Dead' and 'Star Trek: Discovery') have come to an end.

In 'My Dead Friend Zeo,' Merit is a U.S. veteran who keeps seeing the presence of Zoe, her best friend who died in combat. When her estranged grandfather is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, she decides to become his caretaker while also trying to heal herself. The film was released into theaters on Feb. 28, 2025. Find showtimes and more information through the link below:

https://www.mydeadfriendzoemovie.com/...

When a TV show has been on the air for, like, a millennium, keeping things fresh and introducing new characters is the only way to keep even die-hard viewers glued to their screens. Considering ABC's Grey's Anatomyhas captivated prime-time viewers since 2005 (being a staple series in the Shondaverse), it has mastered the art of perfect comfort television via impressive character development and juicy storylines involving imperfect but sexy doctors.

Season 20 of the five-time Emmy-winning medical drama saw Natalie Morales guest star as pediatric surgeon Dr. Monica Beltran, who's more interested in being a great doctor than getting buddy-buddy with her Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital colleagues. After appearing in six episodes of Grey's Anatomy Season 20, Morales officially joined Season 21 as a recurring cast member.

Morales spoke with MovieWebahead of the theatrical release of her film My Dead Friend Zoe, discussing what made her come back to Grey's for another handful of episodes as the no-nonsense Dr.

Playing a deceased character in a movie might seem to be one of the easiest roles an actor could take on. After all, what is there to do but lie around and be… well, deceased?

Not so for Natalie Morales, who plays the title character in the moving, funny, and very human new film My Dead Friend Zoe. At the start of the film, Zoe is just a figment of her best pal Merit's (Sonequa Martin-Green) memory and imagination, razzing her at a meeting for military veterans one minute, and then jazzing along with her to their favorite tunes on a drive. But as the movie unfolds, we learn more about the pair, who became close while serving overseas in the Army — and we learn what Zoe was like when she was still in the present tense.

"I think of it as like three different versions of Zoe," Morales tells Gold Derby.

Conventional wisdom suggests that studios should not open their newest movies or tentpoles on Oscars weekend. Wouldn’t you rather wait until the weekend after the industry has finished celebrating the year’s best movies before promoting a new one?

But historically, that hasn’t necessarily been the case, especially when compared to something like Super Bowl weekend. So, with studios largely avoiding major new releases, this weekend had the unfortunate effect of being the lowest weekend at the overall domestic box office during the Oscars in at least 15 years.

Seems like the real winners were onstage on Sunday. The widest release from a major distributor this week was “Last Breath,” the deep-sea diver thriller starring Woody Harrelson and Simu Liu. It opened on over 3,000 theaters and pulled in $7.8 million, finishing No. 2 in the domestic top 10 behind “Captain America: Brave New World” in its third week of release. It made...

Ne Zha 2 from Cmc Pictures is no. 7 this weekend, its third consecutive in the top ten, on 600 screens with a domestic gross of $2.9 million and a cume of $17.95 million, an impressive feat. While an India film occasionally does two weeks at the top it’s highly unusual for any foreign film stick around for three. The Chinese New Year title has become the top animated film globally and the highest grossing film ever from a one country (China).

Paul Dergarabedian, senior analyst for Comscore North America, calls the performance “remarkable,” representing “a rare example of a non-u.S. film holding steady in the domestic Top 10 for multiple consecutive weeks” and another example of how a film can transcend borders and cultures to become a phenomenon on the big screen” — with a cume at or near $2 billion, a record for an animated film.

Oscar nominated shorts and Best Pictures contenders...

Starring co-leads Natalie Morales and Sonequa Martin-Green as well as Ed Harris and Morgan Freeman, Kyle Hausmann-Stokes' semi-autobiographical war dramedy My Dead Friend Zoefollows the trials and tribulations of U.S. Army veteran Merit Charles (Martin-Green) as she battles a burdensome sense of guilt and Ptsd. As she isolates herself and navigates her daily life, Merit sees visions of her dead friend Zoe (Morales), whom she served with in Afghanistan. While Dead Zoe offers comfort and companionship in Merit's reclusive world, her presence is also a manifestation of her cryptic guilt and pain, keeping her stuck in the past.

The film also features Afghanistan-era flashbacks, showcasing intimate and sometimes confrontational conversations between the two women while they served in the Army. In an interview with MovieWeb, Natalie Morales spoke about balancing the slight differences between flashback Zoe and Dead Zoe, not to mention balancing humor and toxicity. More specifically, MovieWebquestioned her...

I’m going to start today by asking for a show of hands. Who here has seen a film where the twist ending was one of the characters was secretly dead the whole time? Ok, keep them up. One, two — hey you on your phone, are you raising your hand or saying hi to somebody? Ok, that’s three … roughly three hundred million! Great!

“My Dead Friend Zoe” is not one of those movies. Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ debut feature stars Sonequa Martin-Green (“Star Trek: Discovery”) as Merit, an Army veteran struggling with Ptsd. Her best friend Zoe — spoiler alert for anyone who hasn’t read the title — is dead, but still with Merit at all times. She’s played by Natalie Morales (“No Hard Feelings”) and despite the whole “being dead” thing she’s actually quite lively, providing a running commentary on Merit’s life and anxieties.

The film reveals Zoe...

Kyle Hausmann-Stokes enlisted in the army shortly after 9/11 and spent five years in Iraq as a paratrooper. He’s spent the time since his military experience working on furthering veterans’ lives by spreading awareness about their issues through commercial work. Nearly twenty years later, he’s shifted his focus to the narrative filmmaking world, creating My Dead Friend Zoe, a sweetly funny film about post-military life.

My Dead Friend Zoe Review

Hausmann-Stokes first feature stars Sonequa Martin-Green as Merit, a young woman whose experience back at home is rocked by a severe case of post-traumatic stress disorder. As the title suggests, her dead friend, Zoe (No Hard Feelings‘s Natalie Morales), plays an integral part as her imaginary friend — a familiar coping device in dramedies like this. As she navigates her life through the Va, her dying grandfather, and a new relationship, she learns to persevere.

It’s a pretty...

My Dead Friend Zoe, directed by Kyle Hausmann-Stokes and co-written with A.J. Bermudez, is more than just your average military-based drama. Using his own personal experience during and after serving in the Army as a Bronze Star combat veteran, Hausmann-Stokes manages to interweave a relatable story that deals with complex themes of trauma, self-sabotage and maintaining a willfulness for life and love through human connection. “Veterans are more than our stereotype,” the filmmaker told Deadline. “We veterans don’t own Ptsd. Anybody can experience hard stuff. This film is not [just] for veterans. It’s about veterans, but it’s for everybody.”

Starring Sonequa Martin-Green and Natalie Morales in the lead roles, the film centers around a female veteran named Merit (Martin-Green) who can’t quite deal with the weight of carrying the leftover Ptsd after leaving the war. Making matters worse is the fact that her traumas manifest in the...

If you’re not rushing out to catch Oscar nominees before Sunday’s ceremony there are more new films in theaters now than there have been in weeks. Anora, The Brutalist, A Complete Unknown, Wicked and more are still out there but screens have opened for a crop of moderate releases.

Grindstone and Roadside Attractions open dysfunctional family crime comedy Riff Raff on just over 1,000 screens. The film by Dito Monteil, which was warmly received at its TIFF 2024 premiere (see Deadline review), was adapted by John Pollono from a stage script from a 1995 production of the same name written by actor Laurence Fishburne.

The ensemble cast features Jennifer Coolidge, Ed Harris, Gabrielle Union, Lewis Pullman, Pete Davidson, Bill Murray, Miles J. Harvey and Emanuela Postacchini.

The story follows Vincent, an ex-criminal seeking a normal life and a nice weekend at a winter cabin with his wife Sandy and their son...

Ed Harris has had a long and storied career as an actor, earning high praise for his roles in Westworld, Snowpiercer, The Abyss, and The Truman Show. But he's also an accomplished director, having helmed and starred in the incredible Pollock (2000) about famed painter, Jackson Pollack, and Appaloosa (2008). Harris has been trying to get his next film off the ground, and recently spoke with Collider about its multi-year delay.

While promoting My Dead Friend Zoe, Harris explained the difficulties of getting his next movie, The Ploughman, made. He spoke about how tough it is to find money for an indie film, explaining:

"I haven't been able to get the financing together. It's an indie film that probably costs more than it should, and I’ve been trying to slash the budget down, but I don't want to make it on a shoestring because it deserves certain production values, so I don't know.

Former Army paratrooper and Iraq veteran Kyle Hausmann-Stokes co-writes and directs a staggeringly impactful South by Southwest premiere about military veterans dealing with Ptsd. My Dead Friend Zoe, adapted from the filmmaker’s short, Merit x Zoe, is inspired by two of Hausmann-Stokes' platoonmates: Luis Ramirez-Jimenez and Boris Ventura. Suffice it to say, My Dead Friend Zoe is an immensely heavy dedication to the soldiers who wrestle with post-traumatic stress, so compassionately told by Hausmann-Stokes alongside co-writer A.J. Bermudez and co-storyteller Cherish Chen. There are veterans behind the camera, veterans in front of the camera, and veterans on the minds of everyone involved in this project — Hausmann-Stokes wants to see the military represented correctly by Hollywood.

Ed Harris isn't just one of the most reliable actors working in Hollywood today: he's also a director. However, his latest directorial project, the neo-noir thriller The Ploughmen, has run into some delays. He spoke about the film with Collider's Taylor Gates while promoting his new movie, My Dead Friend Zoe. Says Harris, when asked about the film's progress:...

Now that a Buffy the Vampire Slayer revival series is on the way, just about everyone wants in. And who could blame ‘em? We want in, too! The latest star to share their hopes of having something — anything! — to do with the revamp (see what we did there?) is Natalie Morales, who, while chatting with Collider’s Taylor Gates about her upcoming feature, My Dead Friend Zoe, shared her enthusiasm about the reboot. While she hasn’t been cast or even contacted to show up on set in any capacity, Morales saw her conversation with Gates as the perfect time to shoot her shot and manifest her dreams into reality.

Editor’s Note: This review was originally published during the 2024 SXSW Film & TV Festival. Briarcliff Entertainment releases “My Dead Friend Zoe” in theaters Friday, February 28, 2025.

Grief is a funny thing — sometimes literally. Much of the best film and TV on the subject has been told through the lens of comedy; from “It’s a Wonderful Life” to “Fleabag” and everything in between, there is a secret society among the grieving, who know the power of laughing at or through the pain.

In fairness, that’s not the only lens through which debut feature director Kyle Hausmann-Stokes frames “My Dead Friend Zoe,” the story of a shattered veteran (Sonequa Martin-Green) haunted by the ongoing presence of her deceased platoon mate (Natalie Morales). Hausmann-Stokes, who co-wrote the film with Aj Bermudez, has been vocal about the personal nature of this story — including in the film’s post-credits — but even if he hadn’t,...

My Dead Friend Zoe deals with subject matter that a lot of us don’t really want to think about, yet is an awful truth of our society: Ptsd in our veterans. This can manifest itself in many different ways, yet this film does so with an interesting hook. Merit sees visions of her dead friend Zoe, and interacts with her like she’s a real person. What happened during their deployment that would make Merit feel such guilt over Zoe’s death? It takes something that could be silly (Zoe essentially being a ghost) and gives it some really dramatic stakes. I loved the film and you can check out my review Here.

I sat down with the film’s director Kyle Hausmann-Stokes to discuss his decision to cast veterans in nearly every single one of the acting roles. It was a gamble but it clearly paid off in the finished film.

Paul Scanlan, CEO and co-founder of the fan-owned Legion M, attributes some of the success of the company’s latest film “My Dead Friend Zoe” to the community support from its many fan investors.

Speaking with Variety‘s Jennifer Maas on the weekly Variety podcast “Strictly Business,” Scanlan explained that Legion M seeks input from its investors on everything it does. Legion M is a company that fans can own a part of for as low an investment as $40.

“Legion M is a fan-owned entertainment company, and what that means is we’re guided by and supported by our community. And so before we embark on these long journeys, we always go to them and say, ‘Hey, what do you what do you guys think of these projects?’ And this was a project that really resonated with our community,” Scanlan said.

Legion M can use its fan community to assess...

I quite enjoyed the funny and heartbreaking “My Dead Friend Zoe.” It tells the story of Merit (Sonequa Martin-Green) and her dead friend Zoe (Natalie Morales), both Afghanistan Army veterans, and their quest to celebrate life. From writer/director Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, the film is a great homage to the sufferings of our heroes. “My Dead Friend

The post “My Dead Friend Zoe” Interviews appeared first on Manny the Movie Guy.

Plot: Engaged in a mysterious relationship with wise-cracking (and dead) best friend from the Army, a female Afghanistan veteran reluctantly reunites with her estranged Vietnam vet grandfather at the family’s ancestral lake house.

Review: Cinema is often a great tool to showcase a subject matter that otherwise may not have gotten the time of day. Often our veterans are lauded as the heroes that they are yet a harsh reality sets in to what they often have to return to: Ptsd and memories they wish they didn’t have. The reality of military life doesn’t end when the job does and is something they’ll have to contend with for the rest of their lives. My Dead Friend Zoe takes the very real reality that many veterans go through, and gives it a twist to make a very inward story, more cinematic.

The story of My Dead Friend Zoe follows Merit,...

Pull back hair, brush down sneakers, throw on Army tee, touch Zoe's military dog tag, head out for a run. Seeking order and routine in the midst of inner turmoil is a common tactic, and in Kyle Hausmann-Stokes' film My Dead Friend Zoe, a quiet desperation for control eats at U.S. veteran protagonist Merit Charles (Sonequa Martin-Green) — a former Army light-wheel vehicle mechanic. It's a bit elementary to say Merit's running hobby symbolizes her attempt to run from her problems, especially considering it's near impossible to run from constant visions of her deceased friend who served with her in Afghanistan.

These apparitions of Merit's dead friend Zoe Ramirez (Natalie Morales) are simultaneously comforting (like a cherished baby blankie) and suffocating (like a weighted blanket that's much too heavy). When your ghost bestie is both a soothing presence and a sinister one, there are evidently some traumas to be dealt with.

As Kansas City Chiefs players continue to process their lopsided loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl Lix, Hollywood insiders are watching to see whether Travis Kelce is ready to snag a coveted acting career.

The year has not quite gotten off to the start that Kelce might have expected. Although the star tight end — along with quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the team — reached the Super Bowl with a chance to win a third straight championship, the Chiefs’ prolonged dominance saw some football fans turn on them or become convinced that refs give them more favorable calls. Kelce’s girlfriend Taylor Swift was booed at the Super Bowl by a seemingly pro-Eagles contingent, while Kelce himself caused a social media stir ahead of the big game after calling it a “great honor” to have President Donald Trump in the stadium.

It remains uncertain whether the 35-year-old...

Exclusive: This year’s Manchester Film Festival is set to run from March 14 – 23 and will open with a screening of The Penguin Lessons, directed by British filmmaker Peter Cattaneo and starring Steve Coogan.

Based on the best-selling memoir, the film tells the story of an Englishman’s personal and political awakening during a cataclysmic period in Argentine history, brought about by his unlikely adoption of a penguin.

Manchester will screen 37 features, including 15 UK premieres and 4 world premieres. All films will be screening in Manchester for the first time. This includes the Manchester premiere of the UK’s Oscar selection Santosh from Sandhya Suri, Sundance, and Cannes hit Good One directed by India Donaldson, and South by Southwest Audience Award Winner My Dead Friend Zoe from Kyle Hausmann-Stokes.

Other highlights include the UK premieres of Y2K, A24’s latest horror comedy starring Fred Durst and directed by Kyle Mooney, the...

Exclusive: Betty Gabriel (Get Out), Thomas Barbusca (The Mick), Annie Gonzalez (Flamin’ Hot), and Caylee Cowan (Sunrise in Heaven) are among the final additions to Legion M’s thriller, Fade to Black, marking the feature directorial debut of Andrew Sandler.

Character details are under wraps, with production underway in Los Angeles. As previously announced, Karan Soni, Max Carver, Katerina Tanenbaum, John Carroll Lynch, Joseph Lee and Zosia Mamet will lead the ensemble. Other newcomers rounding it out include Johnno Wilson (I Love That for You), Veronika Dash (Isabel’s Garden), and Scott Evans (Barbie).

Written by Brandon Cohen, Fade to Black follows Amit (Soni) as he navigates the horrors of trying to break into the twisted business of Hollywood. After an accidental death spurs a sinister epiphany, the screenwriter starts committing the murders of his script’s fictional serial killer in a desperate attempt to generate the IP necessary to get his movie made.

The need for discussions about post-war trauma cannot be underscored enough and while Hollywood has told stories about war veterans and the issues they face, gaps yet remain. One person committed to filling out what's missing is Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, a former paratrooper turned filmmaker who's drawing from his years of experience serving in Iraq to tell authentic veteran stories. His first effort to fulfill this aim My Dead Friend Zoe premiered at SXSW to a resounding audience and critical reception, a feat that becomes even more outstanding when you consider that the indie drama is his feature directorial debut. My Dead Friend Zoe will make its theatrical debut next year and ahead of its anticipated release, a trailer has been released showing a glimpse of the toxic, yet loving friendship that is the core of the plot.

"When a soldier dies, you suck it up." Briarcliff Ent. has unveiled an official trailer for a movie called My Dead Friend Zoe, marking the feature directorial debut of filmmaker Kyle Hausmann-Stokes (who was in the US Army). A fresh new take on veterans. This initially premiered at the 2024 SXSW Film Festival earlier this year, where it won the Audience Award in the Narrative Spotlight section. You can tell why from this trailer! Engaged in a mysterious relationship with her dead best friend from the Army, a female Afghanistan veteran comes head to head with her Vietnam vet grandfather while at the family's ancestral lake house. At its core, this is about a complicated friendship, a divided family and the complex ways in which we process grief. This unique indie film stars Sonequa Martin-Green as Merit, Natalie Morales as Zoe, along with Ed Harris, Morgan Freeman, Utkarsh Ambudkar, and Gloria Reuben.

Exclusive: Jefferson White (Yellowstone), Gloria Reuben (E.R.), and Tate Donovan (Argo) have signed on to star alongside Alexandra Doke (City on Fire) and David Nordstrand in Bonding, an independent thriller from Ukrainian-born director Victoria Trofimenko, which is shooting at the historic Stoner Ranch near Telluride, Colorado.

Bonding is the story of three disconnected siblings who must confront their personal differences to cover up the murder of a tech millionaire at his remote Colorado ranch. The problem is not just the dead body. It’s that these siblings Do Not get along. Having grown up in a fractured home, they have a few things in common — checkered pasts and resentment for each other. Faced with an impossible problem of covering up an accidental murder, the family is forced to confront their strong differences and dark secrets.

Produced by the Colorado-based Stoner Ranch Productions, the film is eyeing a Spring 2025 release.

The Woodstock Film Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary on Saturday night with an awards ceremony that recognized excellence in independent cinema. Located in Woodstock, New York, the festival has established itself as an important platform for showcasing new talent and honoring veterans of the independent film industry.

This year’s top prize, the Grand Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature, went to the debut film “My Dead Friend Zoe” and its director Kyle Hausmann-Stokes. The film tells the moving story of a female veteran confronting her past with her grandfather, also a veteran. Members of the jury, which included renowned filmmakers Oren Moverman, Roger Ross Williams, and Debra Granik, praised the film for its emotional central performance and depiction of the tragic effects of war. “My Dead Friend Zoe” also received awards for its cinematography and editing.

In the documentary category, the Grand Jury Award went to “Porcelain War” and...

Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ directorial debut My Dead Friend Zoe took the Grand Jury prize for Best Feature Narrative Saturday night as the Woodstock Film Festival presented awards for its silver jubilee edition.

The film stars Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales, Ed Harris, and Morgan Freeman in a tale of a female veteran of the war in Afghanistan who “comes head to head with her Vietnam vet grandfather at the family’s ancestral lake house.” The feature grew out of a short film directed by Hausmann-Stokes, himself a U.S. Army veteran who served in Iraq.

The jury, comprised of Oren Moverman, Roger Ross Williams, and Debra Granik, wrote, “For a standout central performance that delves into the darkness of the human psyche in the aftermath of its most extreme brutality, and for shining a light on the tragic consequences of war on those who are sent in our name to fight, we the...

Paramount is making some big shifts on its 2025 release calendar, the biggest title dated being Edgar Wright’s reboot of The Running Man starring Glen Powell. The pic is going the Friday before Thanksgiving next year, on November 21.

Running Man will race against Wicked: Part Two on that date as well as Angel Studios’ David and a Warner Bros event movie.

In regards to this year, Paramount also said Friday that its awards-season contender September 5 is now opening November 29 limited before getting a December 13 expansion. Previously, the pic that world premiered at the Venice and Telluride film festivals was set to go on November 27. The Tim Fehlbaum-directed movie starring Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin and Leonie Benesch depicts what happened with the ABC Sports TV control booth had to contend with a live act of terrorism during the 1972 Munich Olympics.

Related: Breaking Baz: ‘September 5’ Vividly Recalls Tragedy Of...

It is that time of the year when we once again find ourselves on the precipice of another year of new film releases. This is when we look forward eagerly to the films scheduled for release in the coming year. There is probably likely something coming out at some point during the year that should be of interest to everyone (at least that’s what most studios are hoping). As always, there will be the usual sequels and big blockbusters set as tent-pole releases, as well as a plethora of additional titles in multiple genres to choose from. We hope you find this list of the upcoming films of 2025 and their release dates useful and that it helps you plan what you’re going to look forward to throughout the years.

The list below gathers all of the titles we know that are coming in 2025 by their current release date.

Travis Kelce is scoring big time as the latest game show host for new Prime Video series “Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?”

The Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs quarterback (and former reality TV star) is billed as a “NFL legend” by Amazon MGM Studios, which backs the 20-episode first season of the game show. The first contestants include comedians Nikki Glaser, Natasha Leggero, Nicole Byer, and Ron Funches, plus Thursday Night Football analyst Ryan Fitzpatrick and former NFL wide receiver Chad Ochocinco.

“The Real Housewife of Beverly Hills” cast member Garcelle Beauvais and “Vanderpump Rules” star Lala Kent will also compete alongside podcaster Sophia Stallone and actress Lilly Singh.

“Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?” will premiere Wednesday, October 16 on Prime Video with three episodes, followed by one new episode weekly.

The series logline reads: “‘Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?’ offers a fun, new twist on the premise of the original popular format.

Peter Sarsgaard, the veteran character actor who has received some of the best notices of his career this year for his performance on the Apple TV+ drama series Presumed Innocent and in the Paramount film September 5, will receive the Newport Beach Film Festival’s Film Performance of the Year Award and record an episode of The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast live in front of a festival audience, Nbff announced on Tuesday.

Sarsgaard’s award presentation and podcast recording will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 23, during the 25th edition of Nbff, which will run Oct. 17-24.

The fest also announced its film lineup, which includes 112 films from 19 countries, including 16 world premieres, 10 U.S. premieres, 16 North American premieres, 13 West Coast premieres and 10 Southern California Premieres

This year’s Nbff will open on Oct. 17 with the world premiere of Simon West’s Old Guy, with West and star Chrostoph Waltz in attendance,...

The Woodstock ’99 music festival may have been an unmitigated disaster, but that town and that year brought us something far more lasting: The Woodstock Film Festival.

Fast-forward to 2024, and we’re celebrating the film fest’s 25th year. Among the slate’s highlights this fall is Paul Schrader’s latest film “Oh, Canada,” which will screen on Saturday, October 19. The screening will be followed by a conversation with Schrader, who will be further celebrated with the Honorary Maverick Award.

The 2024 festival will take place from October 15-20 at venues across the Hudson Valley towns of Woodstock, Rosendale, Kingston, and Saugerties. The centerpiece selection is Steve McQueen’s “Blitz,” with Jesse Eisenberg’s “A Real Pain” closing the festival.

“On this 25th anniversary of the film festival, and at this pivotal time in our nation and the world, I’m thrilled to welcome the many talented filmmakers who will be arriving...

Briarcliff Entertainment announced on Wednesday that its dark veteran dramedy My Dead Friend Zoe, starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Natalie Morales and Ed Harris, will now open in theaters nationwide on February 28, 2025.

Exec produced by Travis Kelce, the film, which won the Audience Award in its SXSW world premiere, had previously been scheduled to open on November 1.

Marking the directorial debut of Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, a former U.S. Army infantry paratrooper and Iraq War Bronze Star veteran, My Dead Friend Zoe follows the journey of Merit (Martin-Green), a U.S. Army Afghanistan veteran who is at odds with her family thanks to the presence of Zoe (Morales), her dead best friend from the Army. Despite the persistence of her Va group counselor (Morgan Freeman), the tough love of her mother (Gloria Reuben) and the levity of an unexpected love interest, Merit’s cozy-dysfunctional friendship with Zoe keeps the duo insulated from the world.

Exclusive: Legion M, a fan-driven film production and distribution outfit behind films like SXSW audience award winner My Dead Friend Zoe, has just raised $5 million from 15,000 individual investors.

It is the company’s largest fundraising round, both in terms of the number of investors and the amount raised, and is slated to close on October 11. The influx of investors brings the company’s total count to almost 50,000.

The news comes a day after a wildly successful Kickstarter campaign for fall title The Apprentice offered yet more evidence that newer models of film financing appear to be increasingly viable.

Legion M, whose slate also includes the upcoming film The Man in the White Van, which stars Sean Astin, Ali Larter, Madison Wolfe and Brec Bassinger, lets audiences get directly involved in the creation of content and own a financial stake in it. Investors become shareholders in the company and can also invest directly in individual projects,...

Ali Abbasi’s Donald Trump movie “The Apprentice” starring Sebastian Stan as Trump and Jeremy Strong as Roy Cohn will get a chance to help shape the 2024 presidential election.

“The Apprentice” has been acquired for U.S. distribution by Briarcliff Entertainment, which plans to release it in theaters ahead of the election on October 11, IndieWire has learned.

Abbasi’s film made its premiere in competition at Cannes to lukewarm reviews, even given the morbid-curiosity factor of seeing Trump’s rise to power — as well as it being an “Avengers” star who portrays the 45th president. In his review of “The Apprentice” out of Cannes, IndieWire critic David Ehrlich wrote that while the film generates an ounce of sympathy for Cohn and the “monster he helped create” in Trump, Trump as a character is too shallow to be dramatically interesting.

“Sometimes in broad strokes and sometimes with brutal specificity, ‘The Apprentice...

Jason and Travis Kelce are taking their New Heights podcast to Wondery.

The brothers have signed a reported nine-figure deal, handing the Amazon-owned podcast company rights to distribute their show, along with exclusive ad-sales representation.

The multi-year agreement also gives Wondery global distribution rights to all audio and video episodes of New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce and its back catalog. Wondery can also create international adaptations.

Since its launch in 2022, New Heights has been with Wave Sports + Entertainment, but now transfers to Wondery, which is known for the likes of Dr. Death, Business Wars, Scamfluencers and American Scandal. The show follows the NFL stars’ personal and sporting lives, plus insight on football and pop culture. It is a regular top sports podcast on Apple and Spotify. Wave will continue to provide production services.

The move comes in a big year for the brothers. Jason retired from the...

Fresh off of the first trailer for his next project, Ryan Murphy's Grotesquerie, Travis Kelce is already lining up more projects. How he's navigating his Hollywood career while also training for the upcoming NFL season with the Kansas City Chiefs, we sure don't know. What's clear is that Kelce...

Recent Super Bowl champion Travis Kelce is attached to star in Loose Cannons, an action comedy in development at Lionsgate, sources have confirmed to Deadline.

Lionsgate declined comment.

Details as to the plot of the film are under wraps, and it’s expected that it’ll be some time before filming as the new NFL season is just weeks away. Script is from Timothy Dowling (Pixels). The John Wick franchise’s Chad Stahelski will produce for 87Eleven Entertainment, along with Jason Spitz and Alex Young.

Famous as much for his relationship with pop superstar Taylor Swift as he is for his work as tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, Kelce would with Loose Cannons be making his feature film debut. In the early days of his Hollywood career, he’s thus far only committed to star in Grostesquerie, the new horror drama from Ryan Murphy, which premieres on FX...

Travis Kelce is scoring his first acting TV touchdown with mega-producer Ryan Murphy.

The Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs tight end and former reality TV star appears in Murphy’s FX series “Grotesquerie,” which is led by Niecy Nash-Betts. Kelce will also host Prime Video series “Are You Smarter Than A Celebrity?,” and expanded his film slate by serving as an executive producer on SXSW-selected indie film “My Dead Friend Zoe.”

The official synopsis for “Grotesquerie” reads: “A series of heinous crimes have unsettled a small community. Detective Lois Tryon (Nash-Betts) feels these crimes are eerily personal, as if someone — or something — is taunting her. At home, Lois grapples with a strained relationship with her daughter, a husband in long-term hospital care and her own inner demons. With no leads and unsure of where to turn, she accepts the help of Sister Megan (Micaela Diamond), a nun and journalist with the Catholic Guardian.

Filmland Film Festival is returning to the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts from Aug. 14 through 18, hosted by the Arkansas Cinema Society. Colman Domingo with be honored with the inaugural Southern Storytellers award at the festival.

Domingo is receiving the honor in recognition of his performance in A24’s “Sing Sing,” in which he stars as Divine G, a man wrongfully imprisoned who finds purpose by acting in a theater group with other incarcerated men. The actor, who also served as executive producer on the film, will join co-writer and producer Bentley, producer Walton and moderator Nichols in a post-screening conversation.

Variety‘s chief film critic Peter Debruge will host the Southern Storytellers panel, presented by Variety, featuring speakers Domingo, Jeff Nichols (“The Bikeriders”), Craig Brewer, Kyle Hausmann-Stokes (“My Dead Friend Zoe”), Michael Schwartz, Christy Hall, Clint Bentley and Monique Walton.

Additionally, Hart Denton and actor and executive producer Dylan Sprouse will present their film,...

Yanqui is a TV pilot episode about a North American man's unexpected journey to Argentina after a one-night stand results in pregnancy. The show's premise is based on a true story and explores themes of romance, fatherhood, and personal growth. The pilot episode premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival with Rowan Kahn and Delfina Chaves in the starring roles.

Tribeca Film Festival may be best known for its independent movies, but it is also a haven for fledgling television shows to find their wings. One such episodic hopeful is Yanqui, billed as part Knocked Up and part Fleabag but with a whole lot of heart. Rowan Kahn plays the eponymous "yanqui" (slang for a hapless American), Josh, and he finds his co-lead in Argentine star Delfina Chaves (Maxima), who plays Sofia. The pilot episode also stars Sebastian Wainraich, Luis Ziembrowski, Miriam Odorico, Rodrigo Raffetto, Carolina Alamino, Pablo Lapa, and Anish Merchant.

Artificial intelligence is getting more and more aggressive, taking over every important field. While AI is not entirely bad and could replace boring, repetitive tasks, its usage in art has stirred major controversy, especially when it comes to unauthorized usage. In once instance, AI used a voice that sounded like Morgan Freeman's iconic voice.

Morgan Freeman is famous for his distinctive, calming voice, which he used in many voiceover roles, commercials, and documentaries. However, the actor shared a note slamming the AI usage of his voice on X. A recent trend online sparked a debate as TikTok creator justinescameraroll used AI to replicate the 87-year-old actor's voice to narrate videos, claiming to be his "nepo niece."

Related New Sailor Moon Video Transforms the Shojo Classic Into a 1950s Film Noir Flick

A new genre-bending Sailor Moon video transports the series' heroines into an old-school film noir flick, complete with retro 1950s-style narration.

Exclusive: Olivia Taylor Dudley (The Magicians) and Riley Dandy (Things Will Be Different) are in production in Little Rock, Arkansas on Abigail Before Beatrice, a slow-burn psychological thriller marking the sophomore feature of writer-director Cassie Keet.

Hailing from Little Black Dog Entertainment, Nanu Pictures, and Exit 44 Entertainment, the film is about an isolated woman who must confront her past when a fellow former cult member reaches out with news that their leader has been released from prison early.

A Little Rock native, Keet came to make it on the heels of Scream Therapy, a horror comedy that landed her a Panavision camera grant, which will be available on demand from Indican Pictures starting June 18. Benjamin Dunn (My Dead Friend Zoe) and Mindy Van Kuren are producing the film, financed partly by New Harvest Creative, with Exit 44 Entertainment handling sales.

“I’m so excited and humbled to be filming in my home state,...

Briarcliff Entertainment has acquired domestic distribution rights to Legion M’s “My Dead Friend Zoe.” The dark comedy-drama, which won the SXSW Film Festival’s Audience Award this year, stars Sonequa Martin-Green (“The Walking Dead”), Natalie Morales (“No Hard Feelings”), Oscar nominee Ed Harris (“Apollo 13”) and Oscar winner Morgan Freeman (“Million Dollar Baby”). The supporting cast also includes Gloria Reuben (“ER“) and Utkarsh Ambudkar (“Ghosts”).

The film is the directorial debut of Kyle Hausmann-Stokes, a former U.S. Army infantry paratrooper and Iraq War Bronze Star veteran. In the film, Hausmann-Stokes examines the post-war experience and pays tribute to veterans. The story was co-written by Hausmann-Stokes with A.J. Bermudez. The film also marks the executive producer debut of NFL star Travis Kelce.

In “My Dead Friend Zoe,” Merit (Martin-Green) is a U.S. Army Afghanistan veteran who finds herself at odds with her family because of the presence of Zoe...

Sonequa Martin-Green continues to shine after leading Star Trek: Discovery as Captain Michael Burnham, with upcoming film roles and interest in reprising her iconic character. Doug Jones, known for his portrayal of Saru, remains active in the industry with multiple projects in production, including horror films and Christmas-themed projects. Wilson Cruz, Anthony Rapp, Mary Wiseman, Blu del Barrio, and Callum Keith Rennie have all found new roles and projects post-Star Trek: Discovery, showcasing their versatility and talent.

Star Trek: Discovery came to an end with season 5, but what has the cast been up to since the show finished filming? Throughout its five seasons, Discovery told many different kinds of stories, from with a dark Mirror Universe drama and to an intergalactic adventure. Sonequa Martin-Green led Discovery's cast with a lot of heart, making it impossible not to root for Captain Michael Burnham and her crew. Burnham began Star Trek: Discovery...