The Queue

A Spielberg alien film, a Nolan adaptation of Homer, and a Massachusetts-filmed Anthony Bourdain biopic.

By Kevin Slane

May 20, 2026 | 11:09 AM

3 minutes to read

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Summer doesn’t start for another month, but the movie world operates on a different calendar. To Hollywood, summer runs from May to August, which means that our 2026 summer movie preview doesn’t include the likes of “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” which strutted into theaters on May 1.

The rest of the 2026 summer movie calendar holds additional promise as well. I have a full rundown of the 26 must-see movies this summer, but here are three I’m especially excited about. 

PS: Last week’s edition of The Queue, tied to Matt Damon hosting “SNL,” skipped inboxes and was online-only due to a third-party technical issue. If you missed out, you can still read it here.

3 must-see movies for summer 2026

“Disclosure Day” (June 12): Not much is known about “Disclosure Day,” other than that it is an alien film both directed by and based on a story by Steven Spielberg. After “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “E.T.,” and “The War of the Worlds,” what else do you need to know?

“The Odyssey” (July 17): After the massive scope of his Oscar-winning biopic “Oppenheimer,” Christopher Nolan decided to scale back a bit by adapting the most epic tale in the history of written language. Matt Damon plays King Odysseus, who must fend off enemies on his journey home to his beloved Penelope (Anne Hathaway), who is fending off fiends of her own.

“Tony” (Aug. TBD): This Anthony Bourdain biopic, filmed in Massachusetts last summer, is a snapshot of the late celebrity chef’s life, chronicling a formative summer that Bourdain (played by Dominic Sessa of “The Holdovers”) spent working in a Provincetown restaurant.

Play or Skip

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Press play on these new movies and shows:

• “Pop Culture Jeopardy”: This Colin Jost-hosted spinoff of the popular game show has moved from Prime Video to Netflix, and has slimmed the competing teams down from trios to duos. But little else has changed about this looser, more accessible “Jeopardy!” (Netflix)

• “Tucci in Italy”: After CNN canceled his similarly named Italian food and travel show in 2022, the actor has returned with another season spotlighting Italian cuisine, its origins, and the people who bring it to life. (Disney+andHulu)

• “Welcome to Wrexham” Season 5: I won’t spoil what happened to the actual football club this season, but thus far Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac’s underdog story has been nothing short of a miracle. This season also brings more of the heartwarming stories of the Welsh city’s residents that make this series shine. (Hulu)

But go ahead and skip this one:

• “The Punisher: One Last Kill”: Just look at this actual footage of a clearly CGI-ed Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal) and try to tell me with a straight face that Marvel put any effort into this one-off special. (Disney+)

End Credits

That’s a wrap on this edition of The Queue. If you’re a fan, please consider recommending this newsletter to your friends.

Until next time, good stream hunting, everyone!

— Kevin