With recent announcements about new film and television shows debuting this year, 2020 is already shaping up to be an exciting one in entertainment.
Stars like Issa Rae, Janelle Monáe, Dee Rees, and Jordan Peele have thrilling new films on the way and our favorite networks amp up the drama and laughs with new series premieres.
ESSENCE has put together a complete, comprehensive guide to all the new projects on the way, a one-stop-shop for what you should have on your radar. Here are the intriguing new film and television shows premiering in 2020.
01
Like A Boss – January 10
Tiffany Haddish, Rose Byrne, and Salma Hayek star in this comedy about two friends who start a beauty business, only to realize how cutthroat the industry can be when their benefactor attempts to steal their business.
02
The Outsider – January 12
Based on the Stephen King novel, this limited series features Cynthia Erivo and tells the story of a town rocked by an unspeakable crime.
03
Jezebel – January 16
Recently acquired by Ava DuVernay’s ARRAY, Numa Perrier’s Jezebel, which premiered last year at SXSW, is set to debut on Netflix. The film follows 19-year-old Tiffany, who becomes an online sex worker in order to deal with her family’s financial struggles after the death of her mother. She soon begins to form a relationship with a frequent customer.
04
Bad Boys For Life – January 17
Marcus Burnett (Martin Lawrence) and Mike Lowrey (Will Smith) return for another action-packed adventure as they take on a cartel mob boss seeking revenge against the cops who took down his brother.
05
The Last Thing He Wanted – January 27
Dee Rees directs this upcoming dramatic political thriller based on the book of the same name by Joan Didion. Starring Anne Hathaway, the film follows a veteran journalist who loses the thread of her own story while running an errand for her father.
06
The Photograph – February 14
Issa Rae stars opposite LaKeith Stanfield in director Stella Meghie’s romantic drama The Photograph. The film tells the story of a young woman who discovers a letter from her late mother that leads to secrets being revealed and love along the way.
07
High Fidelity – February 14
Inspired by the film of the same name, this romantic comedy series stars Zoë Kravitz as a music and pop culture obsessed record store owner living in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
08
Hunters – February 21
Amazon’s latest offering is a thrilling drama centered around a group of Nazi hunters in 1977 New York City. The series features Jerikka Hinton and Tiffany Boone as part of a cast that brings the eclectic group of hunters to life.
09
Dispatches From Elsewhere – March 1
With a cast that features André 3000, Dispatches From Elsewhere is an upcoming anthology series from AMC that follows a group of ordinary people who stumble upon a puzzle that leads to an even greater mystery.
10
Little Fires Everywhere – March 18
Kerry Washington stars alongside Reese Witherspoon in this upcoming Hulu miniseries based on Celeste Ng’s novel. The series sees the fate of two families intertwined and their lives upended when secrets rock their worlds.
11
Charm City Kings – April 10
Charm City Kings will make its debut at Sundance this month before being widely released in April. The film, which stars Jahi Di’Allo Winston and Meek Mill, tells the story of a boy who joins a dirt bike game in Baltimore. The project is an adaptation of documentary 12 O’Clock Boys.
12
Mrs. America – April 15
Hulu’s upcoming series Mrs. America tells the story of the Equal Rights Amendment movement during the 1970s and features an incredible cast of actresses, including Uzo Aduba as Shirley Chisholm.
13
Antebellum – April 24
Janelle Monáe stars in this thriller about a successful author who finds herself trapped in a nightmarish reality.
14
Candyman – June 12
Helmed by Little Woods director Nia DaCosta and written by Jordan Peele and Win Roselfeld, the “spiritual sequel” of 1992’s Candyman returns the now-gentrified neighborhood where the nightmare began. Not many details about the film are known at the moment but the project stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Tony Todd, Teyonah Parris, Colman Domingo, and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett.
15
Soul – June 19
Jamie Foxx, Questlove, Phylicia Rashad, Daveed Diggs, and Tina Fey star in this upcoming animated film about a middle school music teacher whose soul is separated from his body and transported to the “You Seminar,” where he must work with souls in training.
16
In The Heights – June 26
Based on the Broadway musical by Quiara Alegría Hudes and Lin-Manuel Miranda, In the Heights follows a bodega owner with mixed feelings about leaving the city for the Dominican Republic after inheriting his grandmother’s fortune.
17
Tenet – July 17
John David Washington stars in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming thriller that tests reality as Washington’s character is tasked with preventing World War III through time travel.
18
Untitled Fred Hampton Film – August 21
Expected to be released in August, the currently untitled Fred Hampton project sees Queen & Slim star Daniel Kaluuya tackling the role of Hampton in this biopic about the slain activist and revolutionary socialist.
19
Respect – October 9
Jennifer Hudson stars are late legendary singer Aretha Franklin in this biopic about the life of the iconic diva.
20
The Witches – October 9
The second adaptation of Roald Dahl’s novel of the same name, The Witches stars Octavia Spencer, Anne Hathaway, Chris Rock, Stanley Tucci, and more in this film about a little boy who stumbles upon a witches conference and is turned into a mouse by the Grand High Witch.
21
Eternals – November 6
Brian Tyree Henry rounds out a stellar cast for Marvel’s upcoming Eternals, tentatively scheduled for November 6. With a story spanning over 7,000 years, the film follows an immortal alien race that protects humanity from the evil Deviants.
22
Coming 2 America – December 18
The sequel for 1988’s Coming To America, Coming 2 America picks up with Prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) set to become King of Zamunda when he discovers that he has a soon in America.
23
Dune – December 18
Zendaya stars alongside Timothée Chalamet, Jason Momoa, Oscar Isaac, and more in this 2020 adaptation of Frank Herbert’s book of the same name. Set in a very distant future, Dune follows the son of a noble family who is entrusted with the most valuable asset in the galaxy, the spice.
24
The Last Dance – December 24
An upcoming sports documentary miniseries from ESPN, The Last Dance takes a look at the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls season and Michael Jordan’s last season with the team.
25
Da 5 Bloods – TBA
Spike Lee directs this upcoming Netflix drama about four African American veterans who return to Vietnam to search for the remains of their fallen squad leader and hunt for buried treasure.
26
Crip Camp – TBA
Part of their deal with Netflix, the Obamas will executive produce upcoming documentary Crip Camp, which tells the story of a summer camp for teens with disabilities that sparked a revolution in the 1970s.
27
Lovecraft Country – TBA
With Jordan Peele, JJ Abrams, Ben Stephenson, and Underground creator Misha Green attached, Lovecraft Country is a drama-fantasy-horror series that sees a man embarking on a cross-country journey in 1950s Jim Crow America in search of his missing father.
28
Snowpiercer – TBA
A reboot of the film of the same name, Snowpiercer stars Daveed Diggs in a post-apocalyptic world where the world has become a frozen wasteland and its remaining inhabitants live in a perpetually moving train.
29
The Underground Railroad – TBA
Another series from Amazon, The Underground Railroad, a limited series directed by Barry Jenkins, is adapted from Colson Whitehead’s novel of the same name. The series follows Cora, a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia who decides to escape via the Underground Railroad. Actress Thuso Mbedu will play Cora in the upcoming series.
30
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier – TBA
Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan team up for Marvel’s The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, set to premiere on Disney+. The series follows the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame with Stan’s Bucky Barnes and Mackie’s Falcon taking on a new challenge.
31
The Stand – TBA
Based on the Stephen King novel, The Stand, featuring a cast that includes Jovan Adepo and Whoopi Goldberg, is a miniseries that sees mankind decimated by a plague and its remaining survivors engaging in a battle of epic proportions.
32
We Are Who We Are – TBA
Created, written, produced, and directed by filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, We Are Who We Are is a miniseries that examines the lives of two American teenagers living with their families on a military base in Italy. Kid Cudi rounds out a cast that includes Faith Alabi, Corey Knight, Benjamin L. Taylor II, Alice Braga, Chloë Sevigny, and more.
