As an avid solo cinemagoer who firmly believes that taking yourself to the movies is a form of self-care, I’m calling it now: October is shaping up to be my favourite month of the year! With Halloween around the corner and an incredible lineup on the way, I’ll be spending a large amount of time in my PJs at my local Cineworld. There’s no shortage of horror, plenty of fun family films for a more wholesome outing, and, unsurprisingly, an abundance of movies exploring the ever-evolving world of technology and our relationship with it. Hopefully this guide will encourage you to switch off your phone for a couple of hours and support your local cinema.
To kick off the month, from October 2nd, Tom Cruise stars in Digger under the direction of Alejandro González Iñárritu, who swept the 2016 Oscars with The Revenant. Cruise plays a billionaire oil tycoon who must embark on a frantic mission after he accidentally triggers a huge disaster that threatens to destroy everything.
Also landing on the 2nd is Verity, with author Colleen Hoover’s novel making its way to the screen under director Michael Showalter. Featuring a stacked cast led by Anne Hathaway, who is on a legendary 2026 run with The Odyssey and The Devil Wears Prada 2, alongside Dakota Johnson. it’s billed as a psychological romance thriller and will be popular among Colleen Hoover’s massive cult following.
Next, a throwback. Casino Royale returns to the big screen on October 5th for its 20th anniversary. Directed by Martin Campbell, it was Daniel Craig’s first (and arguably best) Bond film, and if you weren’t born or were too young to remember 2006, this is your chance to see it properly. It’s worth it.
Making its long-awaited debut on the 9th is Other Mommy, directed by Rob Savage and based on Josh Malerman’s novel Incidents Around the House. Jessica Chastain stars in a dual performance in this psychological body horror about an eight-year-old girl stalked by a shapeshifting entity that has stolen her mother’s appearance. It looks incredibly creepy and is a great way to start off horror movie month.
Circle your calendars for the 9th because also dropping that day is highly anticipated The Social Reckoning. Director Aaron Sorkin returns with a companion piece to his 2010 Facebook-founding drama The Social Network, following whistleblower Frances Haugen (played by Mikey Madison) as she teams up with Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White) to expose Facebook’s most closely guarded secrets. The amazing Jeremy Strong plays Mark Zuckerberg.
October 16th sees the release of Whalefall, which centres on a scuba diver searching for his dead father’s remains who is swallowed by an 80-foot sperm whale and has one hour before his oxygen runs out. It is based on Daniel Kraus’s 2023 novel and stars Austin Abrams, who was lead actor in the game adaptation Resident Evil last month, which is receiving stellar reviews.
The 23rd is another busy release day. Wildwood is from the Coraline director Travis Knight and is the longest stop-motion film ever made by runtime. A dark fantasy themed, visually stunning and 100% hand-crafted film that I think is so important in a world where AI is constantly threatening art and creativity. The stacked voice cast includes Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali and Jacob Tremblay, and it looks like it will be the best family drop of the month.
Klara and the Sun is coming out on the 23rd directed by Taika Waititi, who oversaw one of my personal comfort movies, Hunt for the Wilderpeople. His new one is a dystopian movie following a solar-powered AI friend (Jenna Ortega) that is chosen to join a family who have a problem.
On a much darker note, the 23rd also brings DC’s first-ever horror movie, Clayface. Directed by James Watkins and starring Tom Rhys Harries, it follows Matt Hagen, a Hollywood leading man from Gotham’s streets whose life is destroyed when a crime boss leaves him horribly disfigured. A miracle treatment restores his face, but it also warps his grip on reality.
Rounding out the month on the 30th, the day before Halloween, are what I think are the two most exciting releases of October. First up is Primetime, with Robert Pattinson as Chris Hansen, host of NBC’s To Catch a Predator, alongside Skyler Gisondo. It looks twisted and controversial, and I think everyone will be excited for their performances.
For those craving something lighter, there’s Wicker, also out on the 30th. Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgård star in this medieval romantic comedy about a lonely fisherwoman who desperately tries to beat lonely spinster accusations when she commissions the local basketmaker (Peter Dinklage) to make her a husband out of wicker, causing uproar in the village. It looks like a fun, raunchy way to end the month.
Due to Klara and the Sun and The Social Reckoning, both big movies based on technology, it is significant that the New York Film Festival is currently premiering Artificial, a Luca Guardino movie featuring Andrew Garfield as Sam Altman, creator of OpenAI, which is currently the most relevant company on earth and the main pioneer behind the uprise of AI.
As NYFF kicks off this month, another couple of movies are being released that I think we should be excited about. First is You Can See Everything, an A24 documentary produced by comedian Nathan Fielder, based on Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and the huge corporate fraud she committed in the 2010s. It follows Nathan and a camera crew who lived with her for 34 days leading up to her 10-year arrest.
Next is A Long Winter directed by Andrew Haigh. After the remarkable emotional resonance of his 2023’s All of Us Strangers, it follows a young man played by Fred Hechchinger living in the Colorado mountains whose life changes when his mother goes missing during a blizzard. It is based on the acclaimed Irish writer Colm Tóibín’s short story, and Haigh’s patient and intimate style of filmmaking is sure to find an ideal companion in Tóibín’s measured storytelling, where every silence, glance, and gesture carries extraordinary weight. It will be released on January 15th, 2027.
