It's a testament to the relatively reliable box office strength of the product put forth by The Walt Disney Studios that their CinemaCon presentation is generally the most anticipated of every year. After all, their presentation is typically just that, a "presentation" -- a no-frills, very business like, often PowerPoint-using befitting CinemaCon's textbook definition as a trade conference, and rarely, if ever, indulging in the glitzy pizazz and showmanship its rivals often do while they commandeer a massive stage in Vegas. This year, though, the anticipation was even more amplified. It first grew before the convention began, when it was announced Disney would be taking up the Thursday afternoon finale spot that Lionsgate has long had on lock, suggesting that perhaps the Mouse had a little more up its sleeve than usual. That only grew stronger as the convention began and progressed in earnest, with the flashier tactics employed by major studio rivals such as Warner Bros. and Universal failing to mask the the thinness of their strike-hobbled release slates.
Before Disney could get down to business, general convention business needed to be attended to. NATO President and CEO Michael O'Leary made his final Colosseum mainstage appearance of the week to introduce this session's sponsor, Dolby, and its Head of Cinema and Group Entertainment, Jed Harmsen. His brief remarks served as prelude to an extended reel featuring notable filmmakers such as James Cameron, Ryan Coogler, Martin Scorsese, John Krasinski, Kenneth Branagh, Denis Villeneuve, Alfonso Cuarón, Chloe Zhao, Wes Ball, Pete Docter, Guillermo Del Toro, Greta Gerwig, Shawn Levy, Jon M. Chu, and Matt Reeves discussing the virtues of various revolutionary Dolby Cinema technologies: the Dolby Atmos sound system, the Dolby Vision high dynamic range imaging system, and the Dolby Cinema premium cinema format.
Disney then wasted no time once that reel was over, transitioning right into a cell phone silencing message starring the titular characters of what is arguably the most anticipated film of any distributor's summer slate, Deadpool & Wolverine. Shot during the film's production, the bit featured Ryan Reynolds's merc with a mouth and Hugh Jackman's wild, clawed tough guy in full costumed character and bantering (fanboy alert: Deadpool makes throwaway mention of Secret Wars) until interrupted/disrupted by a cellular phone ring, which sets off Wolvie's hair-trigger temper. With Deadpool's closing line being "Enjoy your CinemaCon," this was expressly made for the theatre owners.
Tony Chambers, Walt Disney Studios
executive vice president of distribution
(photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
The recurring thread of strike disruptions -- or, rather, reassurance after strike disruptions -- continued with the presentation's first in-person appearance, that by Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman, promising a "steady product flow of events" for the year from its Disney live action, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures, and Marvel Studios brands. These were explored in depth when he turned the stage over to Disney's regular CinemaCon host, the ever-affable executive vice president of distribution, Tony Chambers. When he proudly announced that the presentation would include no less than 75 minutes of never before seen content, it reminded me of the unique advantage Disney had when it came to its immediate release slate and thus CinemaCon impression: with a number of films being either entirely animated or shot well in advance (read: pre-strikes) due to the extensive post-production work required, they would have the most preview footage available and ready.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (May 10): Kicking things off was 13 minutes from Wes Ball's revival of the highly successful and (especially when speaking of the 2011-2017 "Caesar Trilogy" starring Andy Serkis) massively acclaimed science fiction series, the first in the franchise to be produced since Disney absorbed 20th Century Fox. While not a "reboot" since it takes place within the same continuity of those recent films, it still serves as a clean slate start narratively, as seen in the footage screened, which introduced the new, young protagonist Noa. In addition to a typical preview reel that closed out this section, two full scenes were shown: one of Noa getting into some precarious antics with friends; and another touching upon the inciting incident that sets him onto his hero's journey. Tonally, this looks of a piece of with the Rupert Wyatt/Matt Reeves films, with further enhancements in CGI technology making the characters even more impressively expressive, though a new entry in this series without its beloved protagonist does leave some box office question marks.
Tony Chambers, Walt Disney Studios
executive vice president of distribution
(photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
Young Woman and the Sea (May 31): Producer Jerry Bruckheimer introduced on tape the premiere of the first trailer for this Disney-branded fact-based drama about the first woman to swim across the English Channel, played by Keira Knightley. Bruckheimer stated in the introduction that this film, originally slated to go straight to Disney+, is the highest testing film in his long, illustrious career, and seeing that the film looks firmly within the mold of the crowdpleasing inspirational true sports story that the studio used to regularly release in theatres (two recent, worthy entries into that pantheon, 2020's Safety and 2022's Rise, were indeed sadly relegated to home streaming).
Inside Out 2 star Amy Poehler
(photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
Inside Out 2 (June 14): Amy Poehler joined Chambers on stage to promote Pixar Animation Studios' sequel to their 2015 smash hit, which screened in its entirety at CinemaCon that year. The same exposure wasn't given to the new film, in which Poehler reprises her role as the emotion Joy, living among others in the mind of young Riley, who is now a teenager; that said, a substantial portion, the first 35 minutes, were shown, which promise more of the original film's all-ages-appealing blend of humor and heart.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige
(photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
Chambers completely ceded the stage for the Marvel Studios portion of the program, which, as usual, was effortlessly commandeered by president Kevin Feige, again working off the cuff without the help of a teleprompter. After making a mention of an intentionally suggestive Deadpool & Wolverine limited edition popcorn bucket in the tradition of the accidentally viral one for Dune: Part Two, he launched into an overview of the next big screen releases for the superhero brand.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige
(photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
The Fantastic 4 (July 25, 2025): Feige flashed on the big screen the logo of the fourth attempt, but first by Marvel Studios, at a film series starring Marvel's first family, set to begin production this summer starring Pedro Pascal (Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby (Sue Storm/Invisible Woman), Joseph Quinn (Johnny Storm/Human Torch), and Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Ben Grimm/The Thing), under the direction of Matt Shakman.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige
(photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
Thunderbolts* (May 5, 2025): Yes, the asterisk is part of the title, Feige revealed, though the meaning of its inclusion, he said, won't be until the movie releases next summer. No plot details were revealed about this film which assembles a number of disparate, generally shady, characters from previous Marvel Cinematic Universe films into a team on a mysterious mission. Still in production, no footage was shown, but Florence Pugh, previously seen as Yelena Belova/Black Widow in Black Widow and the Disney+ series Hawkeye, delivered a taped greeting to the CinemaCon audience.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige
(photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
Captain America: Brave New World (February 14, 2025): Perhaps more surprising than Sam Wilson/Captain America himself, Anthony Mackie, joining Feige live on stage to talk about his upcoming big screen bow bearing the name and shield was the fact that actual footage was shown -- considering rumors have been circulating about an extensive reshoot about to get underway. But what was shown is clearly from early-in-film scenario set-up, with newly elected President of the United States Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (Harrison Ford, taking over from the late Sam Elliott) calling Wilson in for a meeting in which he expresses his interest in reviving the Avengers (thus answering a long-lingering question that has been hanging over every Marvel Cinematic Universe project since the release of 2019's Avengers: Endgame), and then another executive office meeting being interrupted by unwelcome visitors. Feige called the film a throwback to the more grounded vibes of Mackie/Wilson's debut MCU project, 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and, at the very least, the footage that was shown reinforced that idea.
Stay tuned here and on my Twitter and Instagram all week for ongoing coverage of all the goings-on at CinemaCon 2024!
(Very special thanks to Heather Lewandoski and the CinemaCon PR team for all their helpful and generous assistance at the convention, as well as Mitch Neuhauser and the CinemaCon crew and Harry Medved and the National Association of Theatre Owners)
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