Film festivals are getting underway, kids are going back to school, and pumpkin spice lattes have made their triumphant return to Starbucks, which means one thing: fall movie season is upon us. While blockbusters and superhero movies are now a 12-month-a-year affair, the fall movie season also brings with it the promise of character-driven dramas and movies from some of the most acclaimed filmmakers working today, as Oscar season usually coincides with the four-month period at the end of the calendar year and studios put on their Sunday Best.

As fall movie season approaches, and with a variety of films upon us, we here at Collider have taken the opportunity to put together a list of the movies we’re most looking forward to seeing. Since fall technically begins at the end of September, we’ve narrowed the eligibility window down to October through December of 2019, but as you’ll see below there’s really something for everyone heading to multiplexes (and streaming services) this fall movie season.

Behold, Collider’s 35 most anticipated fall movies.

The Laundromat

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Image via Netflix

Release Date: In select theaters September 27th, on Netflix October 18th

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Writer: Scott Z. Burns

Cast: Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, Sharon Stone, David Schwimmer, and Jeffrey Wright

Why We’re Excited For It: It’s the next movie from the writer/director team behind The Informant!, one of the funniest films of the 21st century. Granted, Steven Soderbergh makes a lot of movies, some more compelling than others, but the prospect of seeing him tackle something as politically charged as the Panama Papers with the ensemble-like approach of Traffic and the verve and sense of humor of Ocean’s Eleven is incredibly enticing. And with Meryl Streep in the lead, no less! Bring on The LaundromatAdam Chitwood

Joker

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Image via Warner Bros.

Release Date: October 4th

Director: Todd Phillips

Writer: Todd Phillips, Scott Silver

Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy, Marc Maron, Brett Cullen

Why We're Excited for It: Joker is a fascinating project. It has no ties to any DC Comics featuring the infamous Batman antagonist and yet it readily lifts key figures from that canon. It attempts to create an origin story for a character so deeply ingrained into the pop culture consciousness that, at this point, it's the definition of hubristic to try and pathologize him. Joker has also gotten a reasonable amount of skepticism thanks to early trailers. It's easy to write off the movie that attempts to explain a sociopath's descent into madness by making the movie's starting point an aggrieved white man on the wrong side of 40 who feels he hasn't gotten what he's deserved. I'm confident Joaquin Phoenix, who has never come within spitting distance of a role or world like this in his career, will put some bloom back on the rose with his all-in, balls-to-the-wall performance.

It's also a big swerve for director and co-screenwriter Todd Phillips to make a movie that is decidedly not a populist R-rated comedy. I welcome the director wading in, actively eschewing the potentially suffocating boundaries that come with making a comic book movie and instead, turning in a focused character study. - Allie Gemmill

Dolemite Is My Name

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Image via Netflix

Release Date: In select theaters October 4th and on Netflix on October 25th

Director: Craig Brewer

Writers: Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski

Cast: Eddie Murphy, Keegan-Michael Key, Mike Epps, Craig Robinson, Titus Burgess, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Wesley Snipes

Why We’re Excited For It: Well for one, it looks like Eddie Murphy’s best role in years. Inspired by the true story of filmmaker Rudy Ray Moore, who turned his stand-up routine into a series of Blaxploitation films, Dolemite Is My Name hails from Hustle and Flow director Craig Brewer and the writing team behind Ed Wood and The People v. O.J. Simpson. This looks to be an earnest Hollywood comeback story that packs a serious comedic punch, which may also herald a triumphant return to form for Murphy. So yeah, that’s worth getting excited about. – Adam Chitwood

Lucy in the Sky

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Image via Fox Searchlight

Release Date: October 4th

Director: Noah Hawley

Writers: Brian C. Brown, Elliott DiGuiseppi, Noah Hawley (revisions)

Cast: Natalie Portman, Jon Hamm, Dan Stevens, Zazie Beetz, Nick Offerman, Ellen Burstyn, Tig Notaro, Colman Domingo

Why We're Excited for It: Ever since Alfonso Cuarón took Sandra Bullock into space in 2013’s stunning sci-fi film Gravity, we’ve wanted to go back. Natalie Portman’s title character feels that same pull in Lucy in the Sky, Noah Hawley’s decidedly more grounded film, at least in terms of its setting. But much like Hawley’s mind-bending Marvel series Legion, Lucy in the Sky looks to be more of a psychological exploration of an ever-expanding human consciousness and less of a straight-up sci-fi space-survival story.

Portman stars as Lucy Cola, an accomplished astronaut who has a transcendent experience on her space-walk, a moment that’s so awe-inspiring that her life and her very world seem so much smaller in comparison. This psychological conflict escalates over the course of the film once Lucy returns to Earth. She grapples with the constraints of her aging mortal form and the rigors of the training program in a desperate attempt to get back into space, almost as if that experience was a drug she’s now addicted to. But beyond that, Lucy’s dalliance with a fellow astronaut and clashes with misogynistic bureaucracy show both the cracks in her mental faculties and the lengths to which she’ll go to untether herself from this Earth once more. A story like that in Hawley’s hands is something that’s sure to be worth watching. – Dave Trumbore

The Current War

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Image via 101 Studios

Release Date: October 25th

Director: Alfonso Gomez-Rejon

Writer: Michael Mitnick

Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Nicholas Hoult, Michael Shannon, Tom Holland, Matthew Macfadyen, Katherine Waterston, Tuppence Middleton

Why We're Excited for It: As a science nerd, I’m always up for a revisit of the late-19th century clash of corporations and ideals between Edison and Westinghouse/Tesla. As a cinephile, I’ve been waiting to see this story on the big screen since hearing about the Black List script way back in 2011. The movie has seen its share of off-screen drama in the years since then, but here’s hoping the theatrical release of The Current War this fall will make the wait worth the while.

The story is great, and the chance to revisit the highly charged contest between history’s engineering geniuses and corporate cutthroats is an exciting one, but it’s the cast that really sells us on this take. Cumberbatch and Shannon are sure to bring some big-screen bravado and powerful performances, with Hoult’s Tesla caught in the middle much like the mysterious scientist himself. And this release will also see a “new and improved” version of the original cut, though the fact that it had to be re-worked at all gives us some pause. So while this one could easily end up with a lot of scene-chewing, you’d better believe that we’ll be in the theater for it, probably with our AC/DC shirts on. – Dave Trumbore

Pain and Glory

Release Date: October 4th

Director: Pedro Almodóvar

Writer: Pedro Almodóvar

Cast: Antonio Banderas, Penélope Cruz, Asier Etxeandia, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Julieta Serrano

Why We're Excited for It: Filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar re-teams with frequent collaborator Antonio Banderas for Pain and Glory, a movie whose plot feels reminiscent of Federico Fellini's 8 1/2 (a famed director reflects on his life and career, focusing on specific defining moments and exploring them). Despite the similarities, the early buzz around Pain and Glory pegs this as an essential Almodóvar work — and that's big talk considering his oeuvre has earned lots of praise over the years. In my opinion, Almodóvar works best in reflective mode, combining the tender with the tough; if the first Pain and Glory trailers are anything to go by, this is what we can expect. It also helps that Banderas' performance has been garnering plenty of intrigued, positives reactions in Pain and Glory as it has begun making the rounds. By the time it arrives in theaters, we'll be in the throes of awards season, we would do well to focus on what's being offered in Pain and Glory because it could be a career-defining film for director and lead actor alike. - Allie Gemmill

Gemini Man

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Image via Paramount

Release Date: October 11th

Director: Ang Lee

Writers: David Benioff, Billy Ray, and Darren Lemke

Why We’re Excited For It: Gemini Man has been in the works in Hollywood for decades, with a litany of famous actors eyed for the lead role over the years. It wasn’t until technology finally allowed for the same actor to fill both lead roles that the movie actually got made, and who better to steer the cutting-edge action-adventure film than Ang Lee? The story tells of an aging government assassin who finds himself running up against a younger clone of himself, with Will Smith playing both parts. Instead of simply de-aging Smith, his younger self is a completely digital creation that utilizes facial motion-capture to bring the character to life. Will it work? Who knows, but Ang Lee consistently shoots for the stars, and we’re curious to see how this one turned out. – Adam Chitwood

El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie

Release Date: October 11th

Director/Writer: Vince Gilligan

Cast: Aaron Paul

Why We’re Excited For It: Because it’s the Breaking Bad movie! And because we know almost nothing about it. Breaking Bad creator and showrunner Vince Gilligan shot El Camino in secret in Albuquerque with Aaron Paul, and now it’s due to be released on Netflix in October. We know it’s not a prequel, as it follows the thread of Jesse Pinkman after the events of the Breaking Bad series finale, but we don’t really know who else might be in it, or if we might see the return of Bryan Cranston as Walter White in flashback form. In lesser hands the might sound like a terrible idea, but Gilligan’s prequel series Better Call Saul is a phenomenal example of how he and his team are able to expand the story of Breaking Bad without infringing on that original series, while also taking things in new, unexpected directions. This all bodes well for El Camino. – Adam Chitwood

Parasite

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Image via NEON

Release Date: October 11th

Director: Bong Joon-ho

Writers: Bong Joon-ho, Jin Won Han

Cast: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Jo Yeo-jeong, Choi Woo-sik, Jang Hye-jin, Park So-dam

Why We're Excited for It: I could just say “Bong Joon-ho” full-stop and that would be enough reason to get excited. The iconic filmmaker who’s delivered such delights as Okja, Snowpiercer, Mother (not that Mother), and The Host may have just given us his best film yet in Parasite if early buzz is to be believed. But don’t just take my word for it; the film won the highest prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, and those folks know a thing or two about movie-making.

The movie tells a tale of two families: A rich one of wealth and means, and a relatively poor one with street smarts and savvy. When those without see an opportunity to provide a unique service those with more than they could ever need, they end up securing some luxuries for themselves as well. But when a parasitic force inserts itself in the otherwise symbiotic relationship, chaos ensues. Parasite promises to be yet another cinematic port-over from the natural world, which Bong Joon-ho excels at, as a metaphor for the complex and complicated human condition. We simply cannot wait. – Dave Trumbore

The King

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Image via Netflix

Release Date: October 11th

Director: David Michôd

Writer: David Michôd & Joel Edgerton

Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Joel Edgerton, Robert Pattinson, Sean Harris, Lily-Rose Depp, and Ben Mendelsohn

Why We're Excited for It: Director David Michôd knows how to be unflinching in his storytelling from the crime thriller Animal Kingdom to the survival tale The Rover to the satire War Machine. Now he’s going for historical epic with Timothée Chalamet as Henry V in The King. While we’ve seen some ups and downs in the period drama, such as last year’s disappointing entries like Outlaw King and Mary Queen of Scots, I think Michôd will put together something unique and interesting based on his past works. At the very least, the story of how Henry V learned to rule should feel immediate and visceral with Michôd behind the camera and Chalamet in the lead role. – Matt Goldberg

Zombieland: Double Tap

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Image via Columbia Tristar

Release Date: October 18th

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Writer: Dave Callaham, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick

Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson, Abigail Breslin, Rosario Dawson, Zoey Deutch, Avan Jogia, Dan Aykroyd, Luke Wilson, Thomas Middleditch

Why We're Excited for It: It took a hell of a long time to happen but alas, the time has come for us to return to Zombieland — and what a glorious return it will be! At least, that's the sense I get from the first Zombieland: Double Tap trailer which sees the core Zombieland quartet played by Eisenberg, Stone, Harrelson, and Breslin, somehow thriving in the midst of the ongoing zombie apocalypse. I'm curious to see where the story will go as new characters (played by Deutch, Dawson, Jogia, Wilson, and Middleditch) will fare in this world but mostly, I'm here for the chemistry of the original Zombieland crew. Bring on the zombies and most of all, bring on the zaniness.

Jojo Rabbit

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Image via Fox Searchlight

Release Date: October 18th

Writer/Director: Taika Waititi

Cast: Taika Waititi, Scarlett Johansson, Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, Sam Rockwell, Rebel Wilson, Alfie Allen and Stephen Merchant

Why We're Excited For It: Taika Waititi is one of the most singular voices in filmmaking at the moment; a master of infusing quick-witted comedy with warmth and heart, who puts his stamp so firmly on every project they could never have come from anyone else. That’s even true of his MCU banger Thor: Ragnarok, a tightrope of tone that somehow managed to check all the Marvel Studios boxes and still come out the other side a one-of-a-kind Waititi film. His next film, Jojo Rabbit, tackles some timely matter through his signature comedic lens with the story of a boy in Hilter’s army, who learns his mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their home and works through his conflicts with the help of the imaginary Adolf Hitler in his mind (played by Waititi). — Haleigh Foutch

The Lighthouse

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Image via A24

Release Date: October 18th

Writer/Director: Robert Eggers

Cast: Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson

Why We're Excited For It: The Witch is one of the most stunning, haunting slow-burn horror films of the 21st Century; a sumptuous, stylish and uncompromising nightmare that immediately established Robert Eggers as a top-of-the-pack exciting, upcoming young filmmaker. His followup, The Lighthouse, looks equally challenging and hopefully just as rewarding — a sepia toned, 1.19 to 1 aspect ratio mind-bender starring Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson as to grumbly men going through some kind of insanity in a lighthouse. The name Harold Pinter keeps coming up in relation to this one, and as a theater kid who turns more towards absurdism with each passing year, that just couldn’t be more exciting. We know this one is going to look stunning, we know the acting is going to be first rate, but it’s the unknown and unpredictable about this one that make it such an exciting prospect. — Haleigh Foutch

Harriet

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Image via Focus Features

Release Date: November 1st

Director: Kasi Lemmons

Writers: Gregory Allen Howard, Kasi Lemmons

Cast: Cynthia Erivo, Janelle Monáe, Leslie Odom Jr., Clarke Peters, Joe Alwyn

Why We're Excited for It: Everyone loves a superhero story. Harriet, a true-to-life tale of one of American history’s greatest freedom fighters, is about as close as you can get to one in the real world. I wrote about Harriet Tubman’s actual exploits as an abolitionist in an article for the film’s first trailer, and I’m happy to say that it looks like those incredible events will make their way onto the big screen, with the force of Cynthia Erivo driving it.

Harriet follows Tubman on her escape from slavery and subsequent missions to free dozens of slaves through the Underground Railroad in the face of growing pre-Civil War adversity. That tale will take us from her early life as a slave in Maryland, to her escape to Philadelphia and near-immediate return to liberate her family. We’ll also likely see her other claims to fame, like her role in John Brown‘s raid on Harpers Ferry, her time spent working as an armed scout and spy for the Union Army during the Civil War, and the time she guided the raid on Combahee Ferry in 1863, freeing hundreds of slaves. Not all heroes wear capes. –Dave Trumbore

Terminator: Dark Fate

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Image via Paramount Pictures

Release Date: November 1st

Director: Tim Miller

Writers: Story by James Cameron, Charles H. Eglee, Josh Friedman, David S. Goyer, & Justin Rhodes; screenplay by David S. Goyer, Justin Rhodes, & Billy Ray

Cast: Linda Hamilton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mackenzie Davis, Edward Furlong, Tom Hopper, Diego Boneta, Steven Cree, Gabriel Luna, Natalia Reyes

Why We're Excited for It: We’re taking a chance with this one. The Terminator franchise hasn’t exactly been kind to us since James Cameron’s surprisingly solid sequel back in 1991. Terminator: Dark Fate hopes to course-correct by ignoring everything that’s happened in the movie franchise since then and opting to pick up right from that sequel instead. And with Deadpool director Tim Miller at the helm, we’re hoping to get some amped-up action and thought-provoking sci-fi injected back into this icon.

Linda Hamilton will be shaking things up in her return as Sarah Connor. That’s a great start. And while the return of Edward Furlong as John Connor and Arnold Schwarzenegger as The Terminator are welcome nods to the canon, we’re more excited about newcomers Mackenzie Davis as a hybrid freedom-fighter of sorts, and Gabriel Luna’s turn as a two-part Terminator. We honestly just want this one to be fun, memorable, and just smart enough to make you think about it for a few minutes after the credits roll. – Dave Trumbore

The Irishman

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Image via Netflix

Release Date: In select theaters November 1st and on Netflix November 27th

Director: Martin Scorsese

Writer: Steven Zaillian

Cast: Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci, Al Pacino

Why We're Excited for It: The Irishman is basically an Avengers movie for fans of a certain type of hard-R crime drama. Based on Charles Brandt's biography of Mafia hitman Frank "The IrishmanSheeran, the film marks the ninth collaboration between Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro (and the first since 1995's Casino), the first-ever Scorsese film to star Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci's first non-cameo role since he "retired" in 1999. That is an absolute powderkeg of gangster film talent right there, and that's without factoring in the two intriguing wild cards Scorsese is bringing to the table: 1) The fact The Irishman is using digital de-aging to place its stars in both modern-day and flashback scenes, and 2) That reported 210-minute runtime that suggests Netflix is truly letting Scorsese run as wild as he wants.

Marriage Story

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Image via Netflix

Release Date: In select theaters November 6th and on Netflix December 6th

Director/Writer: Noah Baumbach

Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, Laura Dern, Alan Alda, and Ray Liotta

Why We’re Excited For It: Because we love to get our hearts broken. But seriously, filmmaker Noah Baumbach’s portrait of divorce—no doubt inspired by his own split with ex-wife Jennifer Jason Leigh—looks to be a crushing, heart-wrenching film anchored by a pair of tremendous performances from Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver. Early reviews for Marriage Story are already calling it the best film of the Frances Ha and Squid and the Whale filmmaker’s career, and are signing the praises of Johansson and Driver. The dual trailers alone made this a must-see, but it now seems assured that this will be a regular on the upcoming awards circuit. – Adam Chitwood

Doctor Sleep

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Image via Warner Bros.

Release Date: November 8th

Writer/Director: Mike Flanagan

Cast: Ewan McGregor, Rebecca Ferguson, Kyliegh Curran, Cliff Curtis, Bruce Greenwood, Jacob Tremblay, Zahn McClarnon, Jocelin Donahue, Alex Esso, Carl Lumbly and Emily Alyn Lind

Why We're Excited For It: The idea of making a sequel to Stanley Kubrick’s iconic horror film The Shining is one of the most wildly bold and ambitious swings any filmmaker is making this year — but Flanagan’s not just trying to thread that near-impossible needle, he’s tying to combine it with the legacy of Stephen King’s novel (a notoriously different beast from the film adaptation) and his 2012 follow-up Doctor Sleep. Catching up with Danny Torrence (Ewan McGregor) in his adult years, the sequel sees the boy with the shine taking on some of his father’s worst traits until he moves to a small town and telepathically “meets” a young girl with abilities even more extraordinary than his own. Throw in a roving band of child-murdering soul-vampires led by Rebecca Fergusen’s Rose the Hat and Flanagan’s proven knack for translating childhood trauma, addiction, and grief into horror (just watch The Haunting of Hill House), not to mention his knockout adaptation of King’s Gerald’s Game (a novel long thought unadaptable) and you better believe I’m all kinds of excited for the all the heartfelt scares Flanagan has in store. — Haleigh Foutch

Last Christmas

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Image via Universal Pictures

Release Date: November 8th

Director: Paul Feig

Writers: Emma Thompson and Bryony Kimmings

Cast: Emilia Clarke, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, and Emma Thompson

Why We're Excited For It: Based on an original idea by Emma Thompson and inspired by the music of George Michael, Last Christmas is a brand new, original Christmas romance. Sure, the trailer sparked speculation that it may or may not have spoiled the movie’s big twist, but the idea of watching Emilia Clarke and Henry Golding star in a Christmas love story, written by Emma Thompson, and directed by Paul Feig is too good to pass up. Feig has yet to direct a bad movie, and he proved with the insane A Simple Favor that his handle on tone is downright masterful. So whatever surprising avenues Last Christmas explores, at least we know we’re in good hands. – Adam Chitwood

Honey Boy

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Image via Amazon Studios

Release Date: November 8th

Director: Alma Har'el

Writer: Shia LaBeouf

Cast: Shia LaBeouf, Lucas Hedges, Noah Jupe, Natasha Lyonne, FKA Twigs, Maika Monroe, Clifton Collins Jr.

Why We're Excited for It: I never knew I wanted a loose re-telling of Shia LaBeouf's early life until I first caught wind LaBeouf was writing it. I grew up watching the actor on Disney Channel's Even Stevens, radiating big Lucille Ball energy in his raucous, family-friendly performance. I followed him through the highs and lows, as he nabbed star-making roles in Michael Bay's Transformers franchise and working with Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. LaBeouf's life has been an exercise in surprises, for better or for worse; he's always kept us on our toes.

Now, having miraculously and fascinatingly navigated his way into adulthood and confirming he's a serious actor, LaBeouf has teamed with director Alma Har'el (Bombay Beach) to parse how a star like LaBeouf's was born in Honey Boy. The thought of LaBeouf playing a version of his father, a working-class stage dad who seems to be a charismatic and vicious sort in the vein of Marlon Brando's Stanley Kowalski, is what will encourage purchasing a ticket. But what really has me sold is Jupe and Hedges playing the child and young adult versions of LaBeouf. Jupe is a rising star thanks to a strong performance 2018's A Quiet Place and I want to see how he fares in similarly tense yet more realistic circumstances as a young actor trying to navigate the perils of fame and a controlling father. As for Hedges, well c'mon, who wouldn't want to see his version of LaBeouf's mid-'00s BDE writ large on the screen? – Allie Gemmill