When it's all said and done, 2018 may go down as the biggest year for comic book properties in mainstream media.The CW's DCTV lineup is currently going strong as the anchors of the teen-oriented network (and most of these shows will return with new seasons in the fall). Each of the Marvel Netflix shows has either wrapped or are in the midst of filming new seasons. The intriguing DC Entertainment streaming platform is launching late-2018 with
Titans and a new season of
Young Justice.
On the film side,
Black Panther will hit theaters later this week and kick off a 2018 superhero film slate that includes
Avengers: Infinity War,
Deadpool 2,
The Incredibles 2,
Venom,
X-Men: Dark Phoenix,
Ant-Man and The Wasp,
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, David Harbour
Hellboy reboot, and
Aquaman.
Clearly, there's a staggering amount of comic book television and film adaptations releasing throughout 2018 and if you need to "reset your palate" between projects, we suggest some hard sci-fi, non-superhero film and television shows that just might do the trick.
10. Altered Carbon (Netflix)
Based on the 2002 sci-fi novel by Richard K. Morgan, the Netflix series dropped on February 02 to predominantly rave reviews. Set in the year 2384 and starring Joel Kinnaman as Takeshi Kovacs, the amount of casual violence and sex on display makes it clear that a production of this nature could only find a home within Netflix's unrated landscape.
Altered Carbon is set in a world where a person's consciousness resides in a futuristic USB that can be transported from body to body, rendering death a thing of the past.
9. Annihilation (Paramount Pictures)
It's been a long three years but we finally have the directorial followup from
Ex Machina helmer Alex Garland. Paramount is releasing the film about a biologist (Natalie Portman) and her team who venture inside an otherworldly environmental disaster zone to save the life of a lone soldier who managed to return after a catastrophic military expedition. That soldier (Oscar Isaac) also happens to be Portman's husband in the film.
Annihilation opens in Canada, China, and the U.S. on February 23.
8. Westworld season 2 (HBO)
There's still plenty of questions to be answered in HBO's sophomore season of Westworld, a TV remake of the 1973 film of the same name from Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy.
Perhaps even more intriguing is the reveal that the show will also venture to other theme parks outside of the Wild West setting of Westworld- additional theme parks include a feudal Japan setting, a medieval setting and a recreation of the Roman Empire among others.
Westworld season 2 premieres April 22, 2018.
7. Mute (Netflix)
Netflix is back on the list with another futuristic sci-fi thriller but the streaming platform is swapping Joel Kinnaman for Alexander Skarsgård in Duncan Jones' Mute. Not much is known about the film other than it stars a mute bartender searching for his missing girlfriend.
The first trailer for the project certainly piqued its fair share of interest but time will tell whether Jones' artistic vision delivers an Altered Carbon or Cloverfield Paradox.
Mute will be released on February 23, 2018, the same day as Annihilation.
6. Fahrenheit 451 (HBO)
General Zod (Michael Shannon) and Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) are teaming up for Ramin Bahrani's dystopian adaptation of the classic Ray Bradbury tale. The film also stars Sofia Boutella and Martin Donovan.
How closely the movie follows the original story of a futuristic society that tasks firemen with burning books on site remains a mystery.
The project is still without an official release date but filming wrapped last fall and the show's website has slated the project for a Spring 2018 release date.
5. Ready Player One (Warner Bros.)
Arguably the most popular sci-fi novel of the last 5 years or so, Ready Player One was actually released in 2011. It just took that long for the nostalgia-fueled, fast-paced virtual reality thriller to peak from its strong word-of-mouth.
Of course, when any form of media becomes popular it suddenly becomes cool to bash it and pick at every single flaw. The film arrives at a weird crossroads for the novel, with Ernest Cline recently announcing that he's working on a sequel that's all but destined to be turned into a movie as well, should the Steven Spielberg-directed pic provide strong box office returns for Warner Bros.
Ready Player One hit theaters on March 29, 2018.
4. Alita Battle Angel (20th Century Fox)
Oldboy. Edge of Tomorrow. The on-again, off-again Akira adaptation. Ghost in the Shell. Netflix's Death Note.
Hollywood hasn't figured out how to translate the success of comic book movies into video game adaptations so a few studios are gingerly exploring anime and manga. Avatar helmer James Cameron has been developing an adaptation of Yukito Kishiros's 1990 Battle Angel Alita manga for almost two decades. Realizing his ambitious Avatar sequel plans would never afford him the time to direct the project himself, Cameron turned to Sin City's Robert Rodriguez.
Starring Rosa Salazar and Christoph Waltz, the film recently debuted a solid trailer recently but all anyone could talk about were the film's replication of "anime eyes." It will be interesting to see if there were any changes made to Salazar's character in subsequent trailers released between now and the films July 20th release.
3. Galaxy Quest Reboot (Amazon)
Galaxy Quest is one of those films that no one actually saw in theaters but develops a second life thanks to home video and television broadcasts. Developed at Amazon, the project likely would be much further along if not for the tragic death of Alan Rickman in January 2016 which brought development to a halt.
Amazon brought in a new writer ( Paul Scheer) to retool the project just as the cancellation of Tim Allen's Last Man Standing comedy hit the newswire. It seems the stars may have perfectly aligned for the series to finally shift into high gear.
2. Lost in Space Reboot (Netflix)
Netflix is quietly becoming a bastion of science-fiction. In addition to Altered Carbon and Mute, the streaming platform is also developing a Lost in Space reboot starring British actor Toby Stephens, who was last seen in Starz' Black Sails as Captain Flint.
Netflix has confirmed that the series is set for a mid-April premiere later this year. Parker Posey also stars in the series as a gender-reversed Dr. Smith.
1. Snowpiercer TV series (TNT)
TNT is moving forward with its television adaptation of the 2013 Chris Evans-led post-apocalyptic sci-fi thriller, Snowpiercer. The film itself is an adaptation of the 1982 French graphic novel Le Transperceneige from created by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette.
The show is executive produced by Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson, who is also directing the pilot. Filming on the show, which stars Jennifer Connelly, began September 2017.