It is amazing to look at the release calendar and know I have movies already slotted as far out as December 15 in the case of Avatar 3. However, the farthest out I go for a film with an actual day is now May 17, 2013, the newly announced release date for the first film in Universal’s adaptation of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower with Ron Howard at the helm. Along with this date, Deadline confirms seven additional future release dates for Universal’s upcoming slate.
Just below I have listed all eight movies including any additional information I have on each at this time as well as any films that are already set to release on or near they same day.
Title: Larry Crowne
Release Date: July 1, 2011
Films Releasing at Same Time: Transformers: The Dark of the Moon (7/1/11)
Director: Tom Hanks
Cast: Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Taraji P. Henson, George Takei, Peter Scolari, Bryan Cranston, Cedric the Entertainer, Wilmer Valderrama, Jon Seda, Nia Vardalos, Natascha McElhone, Maria Canals, Pam Grier, Rami Malek, Rob Riggle
Storyline: Until he was downsized, affable, amiable Larry Crowne (Hanks) was a superstar team leader at the big-box company where he’s worked since his time in the Navy. Underwater on his mortgage and unclear on what to do with his suddenly free days, Larry heads to his local college to start over. There he becomes part of a colorful community of outcasts, also-rans and the overlooked all trying to find a better future for themselves…often moving around town in a herd of scooters. In his public-speaking class, Larry develops an unexpected crush on his teacher Mercedes Tainot (Roberts), who has lost as much passion for teaching as she has for her husband.
The simple guy who has every reason to think his life has stalled will come to learn an unexpected lesson: when you think everything worth having has passed you by, you just might discover your reason to live.
Title: Safe House
Release Date: February 10, 2012
Films Releasing at Same Time: None at this time
Director: Daniel Espinosa (Easy Money)
Cast: Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds
Storyline: A young CIA agent (Reynolds) must transport a dangerous criminal (Washington) to safety after both are attacked at a safe house.
Title: Contraband
Release Date: March 16, 2012
Films Releasing at Same Time: Frankenweenie (3/9/12) and The Croods (3/30/12)
Director: Baltasar Kormakur
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Kate Beckinsale
Storyline: A remake of Baltasar Kormakur’s Icelandic thriller Reykjavik-Rotterdam centering on a security guard (Wahlberg) whose financial woes force him back into his smuggling ways.
Title: The Bourne Legacy
Release Date: August 3, 2012
Films Releasing at Same Time: The Dark Knight Rises (7/20/12)
Director: Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton, Duplicity)
Cast: TBD
Storyline: No synopsis is available.
Title: Ouija
Release Date: November 9, 2012
Films Releasing at Same Time: Monsters, Inc. 2 (11/2/12) and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part II (11/16/12)
Director: TBD
Cast: TBD
Storyline: A feature film adaptation of the Hasbro boardgame with a budget targeted around $80-$100 million with a script by Tron: Legacy screenwriters Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis.
Title: 47 Ronin
Release Date: November 21, 2012
Films Releasing at Same Time: The Guardians (11/21/12) and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part II (11/16/12)
Director: Carl Rinsch
Cast: Keanu Reeves
Storyline: An 18th century set story based on the true tale of a group of samurai who were left leaderless (becoming ronin) after their daimyo (feudal lord) was forced to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) for assaulting a court official. The ronin avenged their master’s honor after patiently waiting and planning for over a year to kill Kira.
Title: Snow White and the Huntsman
Release Date: December 21, 2012
Films Releasing at Same Time: Life of Pi (12/14/12) and The Hobbit (December 2012)
Director: Rupert Sanders
Rumored Cast: Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron
Storyline: A re-imagining of the classic fairy tale “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves” featuring an expanded role for the Huntsman who is ordered to take Snow White into the woods and kill her. Instead, he lets her go and he becomes something of a mentor, teaching her to fight and survive.
Title: The Dark Tower
Release Date: May 17, 2013
Films Releasing at Same Time: Iron Man 3 (5/3/13)
Director: Ron Howard (The Da Vinci Code)
Cast: TBD
Storyline: Based on the seven book series by Stephen King, The Dark Tower follows the path of the last gunslinger, Roland Deschain of Gilead, and his search for The Dark Tower.
