Well my Top 10 Most Anticipated films for 2015 didn’t really pan out (you can read my reactions to 2015 here), but hey, it’s almost a new year, which means a new slate of movies. Here are the ten films that I am most looking forward to in 2016, in only somewhat particular order.

10.) Central Intelligence – June 17

Kevin Hart really doesn’t give one much faith (his only good starring role is “Wedding Ringer”) but director Rawson Marshall Thurber (“Dodgeball” and “We’re the Millers”) knows how to make audiences laugh, and when is Dwayne Johnson not awesome?

9.) Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – November 18

Time will tell if this is genuine or just a cash grab, but as it stands now I am more than willing to return to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

8.) Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – December 16

See those two words in the title? “Star Wars”? Yeah, sign me up.

 

7.) Suicide Squad – August 5

We may get more or less excited for this depending on how “Batman v Superman” turns out to be, but it’s always fun to see villains get their time in the sun.

6.) Deadpool – February 12

An R-rated comic book film, this looks hilarious and over-the-top violent in all the best ways.

5.) Hail, Caesar! – February 5

I’ve been looking forward to this one for a while (it was delayed) because I love 1950s Los Angeles and this cast (including George Clooney, Josh Brolin, and Scarlett Johansson) is incredible. I’m not the biggest fan of the Coen brothers, and the February release date implies this won’t be an Oscar contender, but it should be a fun film.

4.) La La Land – December 16

Young writer/director Damien Chazelle’s follow-up to “Whiplash,” this sounds like it should be a lot of fun, with Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone (always charming as hell when paired) running around LA searching for fame.

3.) The Nice Guys – May 20

Speaking of Ryan Gosling and Los Angeles (you picking up on a trend of where I enjoy films taking place?) this 1970s-set crime comedy should be entertaining, with Gosling and Russell Crowe reciting Shane Black writing (“Iron Man 3” and the criminally underrated “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang”).

2.) Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – March 25

I’m a Batman fanboy so I am overly excited for this even if it is from the people who made “Man of Steel” and the trailers have shown way too much.

1.) Captain America: Civil War – May 6

The second Captain America blew me away and was actually the top film of 2014. So any sequel to that would be more than welcome on its own front, but add some Robert Downey Jr. and a half dozen other Avengers and we’ve got ourselves a party.