The 25 sequels to look forward to in 2018

Although “Insidious: The Last Key” will be the fourth installment in the horror series, chronologically, it is the second film. Lin Shaye, Angus Sampson, and Leigh Whannell will reprise their roles as Elise Rainier, Tucker, and Specs, respectively, with the film focusing on a haunting in New Mexico. Adam Robitel (“The Taking of Deborah Logan") will make his franchise debut as director.

2014’s “Paddington” earned a whopping $268 million against a budget of about $50 million, making a sequel a no-brainer for writer and director Paul King. Ben Whishaw, Sally Hawkins, and Hugh Bonneville all returned for the film, which was already released in the U.K. on Nov. 17. However, U.S. audiences will have to wait until Jan. 12 to see the return of their favorite duffle coat-wearing, suitcase-toting bear.

The dystopian sci-fi “Maze Runner” franchise is back for a third and final film with “The Death Cure,” which premieres on Jan. 26. The original release date was Feb. 17, 2017, but it had to be pushed back when star Dylan O’Brien injured himself on-set in March 2016 when he was pulled off the top of a vehicle and hit by another vehicle, suffering a concussion, facial fracture, and lacerations. Wes Ball will once again be at the helm.

Although it might not technically be a sequel, “God Particle” will be the third installment of J.J. Abram’s Cloverfield franchise. There was a loose connection between 2008’s “Cloverfield” and 2016’s “10 Cloverfield Lane,” so fans should expect a similar relationship with the new film. Directed by Julius Onah, “God Particle” will focus on a team of astronauts on the international space station coping with the sudden and total disappearance of the Earth.

On the heels of “Fifty Shades of Grey” (2015) and “Fifty Shades Darker” (2017), “Fifty Shades Freed” will be released on Feb. 9, 2018. Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan will return as Ana and Christian Grey, and James Foley will direct after joining the franchise for the previous film. The E. L. James book series still has two more installments, so don’t expect this to be the last sequel.

It may not be obvious from the title, but “Sherlock Gnomes” will, in fact, be a sequel to the 2011 animated kids comedy “Gnomeo & Juliet.” James McAvoy and Emily Blunt will reprise their titular roles; Michael Caine, Maggie Smith, and Stephen Merchant will also return; and the film will include franchise newcomers Johnny Depp and Mary J. Blige.

The sequel to the 2013 monster flick “Pacific Rim” will be released on Mar. 18, with a few changes to the cast. John Boyega will take over the lead in the film, which is set a decade after the original, along with fellow newcomer Scott Eastwood. Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, and Burn Gorman will be reprising their roles from the previous film.

Easily one of the most anticipated films of 2018, “Avengers: Infinity War” is slated to be released on May 4. It will be the nineteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and will unite the characters of Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Loki, Steve Rogers (Captain America), Hawkeye, Doctor Strange, and numerous “Guardians of the Galaxy” characters. And that’s not even the full lineup!

The second Deadpool film (or third, if you count “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”) doesn’t even have a name yet, but it has a release date: June 1, 2018. Given the humor of screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, that might just stay the title. Not that it matters; Ryan Reynolds, T. J. Miller, and Morena Baccarin will all be back, with Josh Brolin joining the cast for the sequel.

Billed as both a sequel to and spin-off of the “Ocean’s” trilogy, “Ocean’s Eight” will focus on the estranged sister of Danny Ocean. In addition to a stellar cast of Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway, Rihanna, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, Damian Lewis, and James Corden, the sequel will also boast George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh as producers.

A full 14 years will separate the original “Incredibles” film and the 2018 sequel, but that’s okay, because cartoons don’t age. Of course, the fact that the Disney/Pixar film secured the return of Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, Sarah Vowell, and Samuel L. Jackson doesn’t hurt either. “Incredibles 2” picks up right where the first movie left off, which makes sense, because the superhero family was just about to face the evil Underminer (John Ratzenberger).

In addition to Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, and B. D. Wong, “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” the franchise’s fifth installment, will also see the return of Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm. As long as there are no delays caused by rampaging dinos, it will premiere on June 22.

Same “Purge” idea, different setting. This time the theft, murder, and other mayhem will occur on an island. Although this is the fourth film, it is chronologically the first, meaning “The Purge: The Island” is actually a prequel. James DeMonaco once again penned the script, but he has passed on the directorial duties to Gerard McMurray, with Michael Bay, Jason Blum, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller, Sebastien Lemercier, and DeMonaco all listed as producers.

An Ant-Man sequel has been in the works since the release of the first installment in 2015, and the all-star cast of Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Peña, T.I., Judy Greer, and Michael Douglas will all be returning. Michelle Pfeiffer, Laurence Fishburne, and Randall Park will join the cast for this Marvel sequel, which, chronologically, takes place after “Captain America: Civil War.”

Halloween is coming early in 2018, with Count Dracula, the Invisible Man, Frankenstein, the Werewolf, and all the other characters of the “Hotel Transylvania” franchise returning for a summer cruise ship vacation on July 13. Of course, Johnny (Andy Samberg) and Mavis (Selena Gomez) will be along for the ride as well.

Nearly a decade after the original “Mamma Mia!” film, “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” will hit theaters on July 20. The all-star cast will return for the sequel, along with a few special guests. Ol Parker, who wrote the screenplay for “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” penned the script and also directed.

Tom Cruise and Ving Rhames are reuniting for their sixth (sixth!) “Mission: Impossible” movie, along with Simon Pegg, who already has three installments under his belt. This will be the first 3D film in the franchise, and the second to be directed by Christopher McQuarrie, who also helmed 2015’s “Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation.”

2018’s “The Predator” will be the fourth film in the franchise (unless you count “Alien vs. Predator” and “Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem”) and will be set after both 1987’s “Predator” and 1990’s “Predator 2,” but before 2010’s “Predators.” The cast will be an entirely new lineup, but will feature famous faces like Olivia Munn, Keegan-Michael Key, Sterling K. Brown, Jacob Tremblay, and Thomas Jane.

Antoine Fuqua’s 2014 neo-noir action film, “The Equalizer,” starring Denzel Washington, is slated to get its sequel on Sept. 14, 2018. Filming of the second installment recently made the news after two young men shot two security guards tasked with securing the set. Thankfully, both guards survived, and the hoodlums were apprehended.

Somewhat surprisingly, 2015’s “Goosebumps” (based on the children’s book series by R.L. Stine) fared pretty well at the box office, grossing more than $150 million worldwide against a budget of $84 million. Director Rob Letterman and star Jack Black are both involved in the sequel, which is set for a Sept. 20 release.

Although the late Stieg Larsson only penned three books with the characters of Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist - the first of which was made into a film in both Sweden and the United States - a brand new sequel will hit theaters on Oct. 5, 2018. It will be based on the successful novel by David Lagercrantz, who was tasked by the Swedish publishing company Norstedts to continue the Millennium series after Larsson’s fatal heart attack. And don’t expect “The Girl in the Spider’s Web” to be the last big-screen adaptation, as “The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye” was released in Sept. 2017. Claire Foy will be replacing Rooney Mara as Salander.

James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, and Michael Fassbender are among the big names in “X-Men: Dark Phoenix,” the thirteenth installment of the X-Men franchise. The film will also be the directorial debut of Simon Kinberg, the screenwriter behind movies like 2005’s “Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” 2009’s “Sherlock Holmes,” and three previous X-Men flicks.  

Harry Potter fans will get another installment of the “Fantastic Beasts” franchise on Nov. 16, 2018 — almost exactly two years after “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” hit theaters. The sequel will be titled “The Crimes of Grindelwald,” which is a bit ironic, because Johnny Depp plays Gellert Grindelwald, and some fans have been questioning why the actor has been allowed to remain in the cast after allegations emerged that he abused his ex-wife, Amber Heard.

It will have taken a full six years, but 2012’s “Wreck-It Ralph” will finally get a sequel. Ralph (John C. Reilly) and Vanellope (Sarah Silverman) will once again lead the voice cast, along with the returns of Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, and Alan Tudyk. Rumor has it that the Disney Princesses will also make appearances in the sequel.

Interestingly, “Mary Poppins Returns” is not being billed as a remake or reboot, but a sequel to the original film starring Julie Andrews. The gap between the two movies - 54 years - is one of the longest in Hollywood history. Scheduled for a Christmas release, “Mary Poppins Returns” will star Emily Blunt and Lin-Manuel Miranda, as well as Meryl Streep, Colin Firth, Angela Lansbury, and Dick Van Dyke.