Highlights include Wonka, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget and Ferrari.

By Patrick Cremona

Published: Tuesday, 05 December 2023 at 15:18 PM


The year is all but over, and many film fans may have already drawn up their lists of the year’s best movies – but there are still a few more exciting releases to come before those lists can truly be finalised.

December’s release schedule includes everything from musical Roald Dahl prequels like Wonka to long-gestating passion projects such as Michael Mann’s Ferrari, not to mention the hotly anticipated romcom Anyone But You starring Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney.

Meanwhile, Netflix has also saved two of its biggest new original films of the year for the final month, with Aardman sequel Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget and Zack Snyder sci-fi epic Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire both getting brief theatrical runs before being added to the streamer.

There’s also the latest film from Taika Waititi, Next Goal Wins, an acclaimed directorial debut from former Team GB volleyball player Savanah Leaf in Earth Mama and the second part of the epic adaptation of French classic The Three Musketeers.

To help you pick out the highlights, we’ve put together a selection of some of the best films to watch this month – check out the video above or read on for our choices.

Eileen

Thomas McKenzie as Eileen and Anne Hathaway as Rebecca in Eileen standing outside of a neon-lit bar
Thomas McKenzie as Eileen and Anne Hathaway as Rebecca in Eileen.
Universal

Release date: Friday 1st December in cinemas

Based on Ottessa Moshfegh‘s novel of the same name, this twisted and richly atmospheric thriller from Lady Macbeth director William Oldroyd boasts terrific performances from Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway.

McKenzie plays a disgruntled employee at a boys’ prison in mid-’60s Massachusetts whose life is changed when she becomes enchanted by glamorous new counsellor Rebecca (Hathaway) – their new friendship eventually leading to an unforgettable climax that is bound to elicit strong reactions.

Wonka

Timothée Chalamet as Willy Wonka in Wonka holding a cane and wearing a purple jacket and brown hat
Timothée Chalamet as Willy Wonka in Wonka.
Warner Bros

Release date: Friday 8th December in cinemas

Paddington director Paul King takes the reins for this delightful musical prequel starring Timotheé Chalamet as the eccentric chocolatier before he became the legendary and secretive factory owner we know from Roald Dahl’s classic children’s novels.

Penned by Simon Farnaby and boasting an array of beloved British stars in the cast – from Olivia Colman as a villain to Hugh Grant as an Oompa Loompa – it’s a great choice for a festive family trip to the pictures.

Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget

Bunty (Imelda Staunton), Mac (Lynn Ferguson), Rocky (Zachary Levi), Molly (Bella Ramsey), Ginger (Thandiwe Newton), Fowler (David Bradley), and Babs (Jane Horrocks) in Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget.
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget.
Netflix

Release date: Friday 8th December in cinemas, Friday 15th December on Netflix

More than 20 years after the first film, Ginger, Rocky and the rest of the flock return for a brand new stop-motion adventure that retains all the eccentricity and charm we’ve come to expect from Aardman Animations.

We rejoin them in a more comfortable place than last time, with their audacious escape from Mrs Tweedy having led to the establishment of a utopian island base. But when Ginger (Thandiwe Newton) and Rocky (Zachary Levi) discover that their intrepid daughter Molly has set off on an adventure, old enemies rear their heads and only an expertly orchestrated heist can avert a calamity.

Earth Mama

Earth Mama characters sat together reading
Earth Mama.
Universal

Release date: Friday 8th December in cinemas

Former Team GB volleyball star Savanah Leaf’s acclaimed directorial debut focuses on Gia, a pregnant single mother with two children in foster care who is fighting to reclaim her family.

Set in the San Francisco Bay Area, it is an intimate look at a subject that hasn’t often been explored on the big screen, complete with great performances from the likes of Tia Nomore and Sharon Duncan-Brewster.

The Three Musketeers: Milady

Eva Green as Milady de Winter in The Three Musketeers Milady looking at an object in her hands
Eva Green as Milady de Winter in The Three Musketeers: Milady.

Release date: Friday 15th December in cinemas

The second part of the epic adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’s classic adventure novel picks up where the previous film left off, with a greater focus on Eva Green’s Milady de Winter this time around.

The returning all-star French cast from the acclaimed first film also includes François Civil as D’Artagnan, Vincent Cassel as Athos, and Louis Garrel as King Louis XIII.

Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire

The cast of Rebel Moon stand in a row in a grungy industrial setting
Rebel Moon.
Clay Enos/Netflix

Release date: Friday 15th December in cinemas, Friday 22nd December on Netflix

Zack Synder’s epic original sci-fi flick started life as a Star Wars project, and the divisive director now hopes this first instalment in what is planned as a two-parter can launch a whole new franchise.

It follows a young woman with a mysterious past (Sofia Boutella) who is hired to seek out warriors from neighbouring planets to help a colony defend itself from the armies of the tyrannical Regent Balisarius (Fra Fee).

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom

Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry in Aquaman 2 holding a golden trident
Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry in Aquaman 2.
DC/WB

Release date: Thursday 21st December in cinemas

The final film in the DC Extended Universe before it is rebooted under the leadership of James Gunn sees Jason Momoa reprise his role as Arthur Curry – who is forced to protect Atlantis and his loved ones against a new threat from old foe David Kane/Black Manta.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II reprises his role as the villain from the previous film, only this time he is armed with the cursed Black Trident – which allows him to unleash an ancient power.

Anyone But You

Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney leaning on chairs, smiling at each other
Anyone But You.

Release date: Tuesday 26th December in cinemas

Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell lead the cast of this hotly anticipated romcom from Easy A and Friends with Benefits director Will Gluck, which has been billed as a modern update of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing.

The pair star as Ben and Bea – two people who despise one another but can’t seem to get away from each other while they vacation in Sydney.

Ferrari

Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari in Ferrari walking towards a race car in a suit
Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari in Ferrari.
SEAC

Release date: Tuesday 26th December in cinemas

Adam Driver plays iconic Italian racing driver and entrepreneur Enzo Ferrari in this passion project from legendary director Michael Mann, which he has been hoping to make for over 20 years.

The film unfolds over the course of one fateful three-month period in 1957, following Ferrari in both his personal and professional lives as he reckons with bankruptcy, a marriage strained by his wife’s discovery of his secret son and mistress, and the Mille Miglia road race across Italy.

Next Goal Wins

Kaimana as Jaiyah Saelua and Michael Fassbender as Thomas Rongen in Next Goal Wins staring each other down
Kaimana as Jaiyah Saelua and Michael Fassbender as Thomas Rongen in Next Goal Wins.

Release date: Tuesday 26th December in cinemas

Based on a documentary from 2014, Taika Waititi’s new comedy follows the famously terrible American Samoan football team after a new coach is brought in an attempt to reverse their fortunes – with the remit of finally getting them to score a goal.

Michael Fassbender stars as coach Thomas Rongen, who is also reckoning with personal trauma, while his working relationship with fa’afafine player Jaiyah Saelua – the first transgender player ever to compete in a World Cup qualifier game – also becomes a key focus.

The Boy and the Heron

The main character of The Boy and the Heron wearing a grey shirt with a plaster on his head
The Boy and the Heron.

Release date: Tuesday 26th December in cinemas

Hayao Miyazaki’s latest film follows Mahito, a 12-year-old boy struggling to settle in a new town after his mother’s death – until a strange encounter with a talking heron sees him embark on an surreal journey to find her in another world.

Released both in original Japanese with subtitles and in an English dub – featuring a stellar voice cast that includes Christian Bale, Florence Pugh, Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson – it is the latest in a long line of animated gems from Studio Ghibli.

Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what’s on tonight.

Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10 – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.