Movies are Back! Get Ready for these 11 Big Releases in August

The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown a few curveballs in the movie industry, causing many films to switch and change release dates in order to get as many eyes on them as possible. While it has been disruptive to say the least, the good news is that August is jam-packed with some big releases that’ll undoubtedly deliver a little something for everyone!

Jungle Cruise

Release date: 6 August 2021

Like Pirates of the Caribbean, Disney’s iconic Jungle Cruise theme park ride is getting a movie adaptation. How is that going to work? Well, get Dwayne Johnson involved to give it some serious star power. Jungle Cruise follows a charismatic riverboat captain (Johnson) and an explorer (Emily Blunt) who have to team-up in order to find the fabled Tree of Life.

Old

Release date: 6 August 2021

The latest movie from M. Night Shyamalan (Signs, Unbreakable, Split) follows a family on a tropical vacation who discover that the secluded beach they are relaxing on for a few hours is somehow causing them to age rapidly, reducing their entire lives into a single day. The film’s ensemble cast includes Gael García Bernal, Vicky Krieps, Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie, Alex Wolff, and Abbey Lee.

The Suicide Squad

Release date: 6 August 2021

After the lacklustre 2016 Suicide Squad, Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn has been called in to soft-reboot the DC supervillain outing, which he is simply calling The Suicide Squad. Margot Robbie returns as Harley Quinn, along with Joel Kinnaman (Rick Flag), Viola Davis (Amanda Waller), Jai Courtney (Captain Boomerang) returning from the first film, with Idris Elba, John Cena, and a host of other actors joining what is to be a huge outing for the DC universe.

Black Widow

Release date: 13 August 2021

With the Infinity Saga phase of Marvel’s ever-expanding universe all wrapped up, the studio is now looking to flex its muscles with some of the lesser-appreciated characters – with Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow finally getting her solo movie. Directed by Cate Shortland, Black Widow will explore the life of assassin-turned-Avenger Natasha Romanoff after the events of Captain America: Civil War, and everything leading up to Infinity War.

Free Guy

Release date: 13 August 2021

Night at the Museum and Real Steel director Shawn Levy’s new film stars Ryan Reynolds as a bank teller called Guy, who realises that he is a background character in an open world video game called Free City that will soon go offline.

The Forever Purge

Release date: 20 August 2021

Michael Bay and Jason Blum join the beloved Purge franchise as producers on this fifth instalment in the murderous series. Picking up after the events of 2016’s The Purge: Election Year, the film stars Ana de la Reguera, Tenoch Huerta, Josh Lucas, Cassidy Freeman, Leven Rambin, Alejandro Edda, and Will Patton, and follows a group of people who attempt to escape from the United States after an insurrectionist movement continues committing crimes and murders nationwide after the Purge’s ending.

Reminiscence

Release date: 20 August 2021

Hugh Jackman’s mind-bending sci-fi film, Reminiscence, gives us a look into the bizarre world of memories being used to numb people’s realities after flooding has left Miami in partial ruins. Reminiscence is the first feature film from writer/director/producer Lisa Joy (who worked on Westworld), and follows Nick Bannister (Jackman), a private investigator of the mind, as he uses his own memory-searching technology to uncover the truth about his wife’s disappearance.

Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins

Release date: 20 August 2021

Whether you loved them or hated them, the two G.I. Joe movies were action-packed popcorn extravaganzas, despite some cheesy goodness thrown in too (what did you expect, it was based on an action-figure line). There were some interesting characters in there, and Paramount Pictures always had a desire to explore them a bit more… and, they have. Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins is the first in the proposed line-up, focusing primarily on the fan-beloved sword-wielding ninja, who popped up in both G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) and G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2011). However, this is said to be a reboot for the franchise, rather than a prequel. The movie stars Henry Golding as Snake Eyes, a tenacious loner who is welcomed into an ancient Japanese clan called the Arashikage after saving the life of their heir. The film also stars Andrew Koji as Storm Shadow, Úrsula Corberó as The Baroness, Samara Weaving as Scarlett, Haruka Abe as Akiko, Tahehiro Hira as Kenta and Iko Uwais as Hard Master.

Candyman

Release date: 27 August 2021

A “spiritual successor” to the 1992 horror film of the same name, Candyman is a reenvisioning from Jordan Peele (Get Out, Us), who co-wrote the screenplay, and which is directed by rising star Nia DaCosta. The new film dives into the bizarre origins of the myth which inspired the first movie, and how the nightmarish horror began. The film stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Teyonah Parris, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and Colman Domingo, along with Tony Todd and Vanessa Estelle Williams reprising their roles from the original film.

Don’t Breath 2

Release date: 27 August 2021

2016’s horror-thriller Don’t Breath was one of the most tension-packed and disturbing releases of the year, and it’s getting a sequel this August. Hiding out for years in an isolated cabin, the Blind Man (Stephen Lang) has taken in and raised a young girl orphaned from a house fire. Their quiet existence is shattered when a group of kidnappers show up and take the girl, forcing the Blind Man to leave his safe haven to save her.

The Ice Road

Release date: 27 August 2021

Liam Neeson is in yet another disgruntled-man-in-a-dire-situation film, and we couldn’t be more excited. The Ice Road follows Mike McCann, a truck driver who has to assemble a team to drive eighteen-wheeler trucks across a frozen ocean. Why? Well, in order to deliver lifesaving drilling wellheads to a mine before the oxygen runs out on trapped miners. Unbeknownst to the team, the operators of the mine plant a rogue assassin amongst them in order to sabotage the mission and keep the miners from revealing the truth – that the company had long conspired to let the mine run unsafely.

Which movie release are you most excited for? Let us know by tweeting @MenStuffZA, posting on our Facebook page, or commenting below.