Get ready for a thrilling cinematic ride in 2023! A slew of heart-pounding movies has already hit the screens, and there’s a lot more in store to keep you perched on the edge of your seat. This year, the lineup spans from prehistoric encounters with dinosaurs to cloak-and-dagger escapades with super-secret spies and even a tale involving cocaine bears (yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like—no need to overthink it).
The year kicked off with a twist-filled treat as the master of suspense, M. Night Shyamalan, returned with “Knock at the Cabin,” where Ron Weasley issues a chilling warning about an impending apocalypse to an unsuspecting family. Also in the mix is “65,” unveiling the consequences when a time-traveling man finds himself on Earth—65 million years ago. Spoiler alert: dinosaurs, and lots of them. And let’s not forget the fourth installment of the adrenaline-pumping John Wick series, with Keanu Reeves back for another round of intense action.
As the year unfolds, brace yourself for the latest Agatha Christie mystery from the talented Kenneth Branagh, featuring Tina Fey, Jamie Dornan, and Michelle Yeoh. There’s also the tantalizing “Fair Play,” an erotic thriller cautioning against mixing love and hedge funds. Thriller aficionados can also anticipate a gripping film from director David Fincher, who’s weaving his magic on a graphic novel adaptation about an assassin.
Curious to know which 2023 thrillers are tailor-made for you? Dive into their trailers, and discover when and where you can experience the pulse-pounding excitement of these brand-new films.
1. Missing
Building on the innovative concept of 2018’s Searching, its sequel, Missing, continues to unfold a gripping narrative entirely through computer and phone screens. Storm Reid stars as a teenage girl on a quest to find her missing mother (Nia Long) in Colombia. However, the search unveils surprising truths about her mom’s identity.
2. Cocaine Bear
Cocaine Bear is a dark comedy and a thriller, and it’s about exactly what the title says. Inspired by a true story (yep, really), the film from director Elizabeth Banks is about a bear that eats a bunch of cocaine and goes on a killing spree in 1985.
3. John Wick: Chapter 4
Keanu Reeves returns as John Wick for the fourth movie in the franchise. The hit man faces off against the international crime lords of the High Table once again. Costars include Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgård, and Laurence Fishburne.
4. Master Gardener
Joel Edgerton and Sigourney Weaver star in Master Gardener, about a horticulturalist who works on a wealthy woman’s estate. When the woman insists that he hire her niece (Quintessa Swindell) as an apprentice, dark secrets from his past come to light.
5. The Mother
“I’m a killer, but I’m also a mother,” Jennifer Lopez says in the trailer for The Mother, and that just about sums it up. Lopez stars in the action-thriller as an assassin, who reunites with the daughter she was forced to give up at birth in order to protect the young girl from her own violent past.
6. Extraction 2
It might have seemed like Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth) died at the end of the first Extraction movie, but that’s clearly not the case. The Australian special forces member turned black ops mercenary is back for more action and a brand-new mission in the Netflix sequel.
7. Oppenheimer
Oppenheimer is a biopic of Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist who was one of the inventors of the atomic bomb. Cillian Murphy stars in the title role alongside a cast that includes Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, and Robert Downey Jr.
8. The Creator
John David Washington stars in The Creator, a science fiction thriller that takes place in a world in which humans are at war with artificial intelligence. Washington’s former special forces agent character has to search for a person called The Creator, who developed a weapon that would end the war and end human life. Another problem? The weapon is a child. Co-stars include Gemma Chan, Ken Watanabe, and Allison Janney.
9. Fair Play
Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich star in the erotic thriller Fair Playabout an engaged couple who also work together at a hedge fund. When one of them gets a promotion over the other, their relationship takes a turn—to put it lightly. Don’t date your co-workers?
10. The Killer
David Fincher is known for making thrillers, and his latest film is no different. The Killer is a psychological thriller based on a French graphic novel about an assassin, who begins to question his sanity. Michael Fassbender stars as the assassin and is joined by Tilda Swinton, Arliss Howard, and Charles Parnell.
11. Leave the World Behind
Julia Roberts, Mahershala Ali, Ethan Hawke, and Myha’la Herrold star in Leave the World Behind, which is based on Rumaan Alam’s 2020 book. The story follows two couples who have to try to survive a mysterious blackout and figure out why it’s happening in the first place.
12. Eileen
The psychological thriller Eileen is based on the 2015 Ottessa Moshfegh novel of the same name. It stars Thomasin McKenzie as Eileen, a young woman working at a juvenile detention center in the 1960s, who is intrigued by a new counselor, Rebecca, played by Anne Hathaway. As their relationship develops, the connection between the two women only grows darker.
13. A Haunting in Venice
A Haunting in Venice is the latest Agatha Christie mystery adaptation from director and star Kenneth Branagh, following 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express and 2022’s Death on the Nile. This time, Branagh’s detective Hercule Poirot is joined by characters played by Tina Fey, Jamie Dornan, Michelle Yeoh, and more.
14. Heart of Stone
Gal Gadot stars in the action thriller Heart of Stone as CIA agent Rachel Stone (get it? Heart of Stone?). Expect car chases, explosions, and stunts on stunts on stunts. Jamie Dornan and Alia Bhatt costar.
15. Sanctuary
Sanctuary stars Margaret Qualley and Christopher Abbott as a dominatrix, Rebecca, and the rich heir to a hotel chain, Hal, who are engaging in a secret relationship. The movie follows the heir’s attempt to end their arrangement while the dominatrix argues that she has the right to some of his money since she helped him in his business career.
