Film in 2024: 'Barbie' early awards nods, delayed movies top releases

LONDON: From delayed sci-fi sequel "Dune: Part Two" to the held-up third "Deadpool" movie, 2024 will see some major movie releases as the industry recovers from this year's twin Hollywood strikes which halted film production.

Awards season kicks off the year, with smash hit "Barbie" leading the Golden Globe nominations with nine nods. Historical drama "Oppenheimer", which featured in a summer box office clash with "Barbie" dubbed "Barbenheimer," has eight nominations.

Gothic comedy "Poor Things," which triumphed at the Venice Film Festival, and love story "Past Lives" are also strong contenders, as is Martin Scorsese's "Killers of the Flower Moon", about the 1920s murders of American Indians in Oklahoma.

"It's early days but ... you have already seen that 'Barbie' and 'Oppenheimer' are going neck to neck," said Leo Barraclough, director of international features at Variety.

"One film that's come up just recently is 'Anatomy of a Fall' which is the French film that won at Cannes ... 'Past Lives' is a favourite with a lot of people and (historical drama) 'The Zone of Interest' is certainly gonna be there."

Among next year's releases are films pushed back from 2023, like the big-budget "Dune" sequel and tennis drama "Challengers," as studios readjusted schedules because of the four-month long actors' strike, which ended in November.

"Deadpool 3", whose production was halted by the strike, had its release date moved from May 2024 to July 2024.

"There's a double effect. Firstly, production was held up, so films like 'Gladiator 2' (have) been delayed in terms of shooting and, so now the release is gonna be towards the end of next year," Barraclough said.

"Other films got pushed into next year in terms of releases partly because of the need to promote them."

Also on the 2024 slate are spy movie "Argylle", origins story "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga," stuntman action flick "The Fall Guy," "Beetlejuice 2" and sci-fi drama "Mickey 17" by Oscar-winning "Parasite" director Bong Joon-ho.

For younger audiences, family movie releases include "Despicable Me 4," "Kung Fu Panda 4" and "Inside Out 2."

A survey by ticket-seller Fandango showed the top 10 most anticipated 2024 movies were mainly sequels and spin-offs, with "Deadpool 3" at No. 1.