While the summer movie preview cover of this week’s Entertainment Weekly features the cast of Captain America: Civil War , the main focus of the double issue is highlighting 92 of the coming movies coming to theaters this summer. Which ones are the editors excited to see? The answers might surprise you.
According to a slideshow featured on EW.com , the there are seven movies they are looking forward to this summer.
The Shallows (June 24)
Unlike Jaws , which showed crowds of summer beach-goers evacuating the ocean, The Shallows is a “smaller” movie. Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, this movie is about one woman (Blake Lively) and the great white shark trying to kill her. The premise is about a young surfer, grieving over the death of her mother, who manages to get into “deep water” while visiting a South Pacific island beach.
“What I really liked about this is that it wasn’t just ‘Bikini vs. Monster,’ Lively told the magazine. “But you still get a little bikini, and you still get a little monster.”
The BFG (July 1)
This summer movie will be “big” among those who are fans of Steven Spielberg, Disney, and Roald Dahl. It is the one Roald Dahl book that hasn’t yet been turned into a movie. Starring Ruby Barnhill and Mark Rylance, The BFG is a story about a really big, yet friendly, giant who befriends a little orphan girl, Sophie, and the two have huge adventures together. The summer film is also the final collaboration between Spielberg and Melissa Mathison ( E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial ), who passed away last November.
Ghostbusters (July 15)
EW are not the only ones looking forward to this summer movie. Many fans are curious to see if this new reboot, featuring a cast of women, will be as entertaining as the 1984 original. Directed by Paul Feig, this movie is full of girl power in the form of Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones.
Star Trek Beyond (July 22)
The summer of 2013 was the last time that we saw the current Star Trek crew. This summer, they will face a new villain, Krall. Played by Iris Elba, who is doing double duty playing bad guys this year (he voiced the role of Shere Khan in Disney’s The Jungle Book ), the actor describes his relationship to Captain Kirk to be similar to Jaws and Dory from Finding Nemo . Directed by Justin Lin, the movie also stars Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto.
Jason Bourne (July 29)
2012’s The Bourne Legacy featured Jeremy Renner instead of Matt Damon, and the box office ticket sales showed some disappointment. Damon hasn’t played the title movie role since 2007’s The Bourne Ultimatum . This summer’s new version of the movie franchise is directed by Paul Greengrass, who directed The Bourne Ultimatum , so there should be some continuity there. In addition to Damon, the movie stars Alicia Vikander and Tommy Lee Jones.
Suicide Squad (August 5)
Despite poor reviews of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice , the movie is still making box office money, but not as much as the DC Comics marketing team would like. However, one thing that movie fans and critics have agreed on is Ben Affleck’s interpretation of Bruce Wayne and Batman. Because of this, DC is making sure that fans know that the character/actor will appear in this summer’s new venture that features a round-up of baddies in hopes of gaining a larger fan base. Suicide Squad is directed by David Ayer and stars Will Smith, Jared Leto, and Margot Robbie.
Pete’s Dragon (August 12)
The other Disney movie that EW is excited to see this summer is the re-imagined tale of Pete’s Dragon , which appears to be nothing like the 1977 original, namely that it is more of a mystery story. The movie is definitely not a musical, and Elliott the dragon looks more like a dog than he does a dragon. Bryce Dallas Howard already has experience acting with large creatures, as she starred in last summer’s Jurassic World . Pete’s Dragon is directed by David Lowery and, in addition to Howard, stars Oakes Fegley and Robert Redford.
[Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images]