2025 Shows Promise for Women Screenwriters and Directors
/For Women's History Month, we are highlighting female directors and writers who have films scheduled for release this year and others who have films in the works but no exact release dates yet. Check these flicks out when they open at a theater near you.
Coming Soon
"Audrey's Children" (March 28)
In 1969, British physician Dr. Audrey Evans became the first female Chief of Oncology at the preeminent Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Director Ami Canaan Mann, writer Julia Fisher Farbman, and actress Natalie Dormer bring her story to life in the biopic "Audrey's Children." Among her many accomplishments, Dr. Evans co-founded the first Ronald McDonald House and made groundbreaking advances in fighting neuroblastoma, one of the most prevalent pediatric cancers.
"The Uninvited" (April 11)
Chaos ensues when a confused, elderly woman crashes a party at a Hollywood couple's upscale home. An ensemble cast of Pedro Pascal, Walton Goggins, Lois Smith, Elizabeth Reaser, Eva De Dominici, and Rufus Sewell star in writer and director Nadia Conners' first narrative feature, "The Uninvited," which has been generating positive buzz since debuting at last year's South by Southwest (SXSW) Film & TV Festival.
"Materialists" (June 13)
In 2023, Celine Song broke onto the movie scene with a debut that most filmmakers can only dream of. She wrote and directed "Past Lives," which won over audiences and earned Academy Award nominations for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay. Song is following up her highly successful feature film debut with the new romcom "Materialists," starring Dakota Johnson as a New York City matchmaker caught in a love triangle with Chris Evans and Pedro Pascal.
"Elio" (June 20)
Pixar's latest feature film will follow a space-obsessed boy named Elio who finds himself beamed up on a spaceship and then mistaken by aliens as an ambassador for Earth. Two of the three directors of "Elio" are women — Madeline Sharafian, who earned an Oscar nomination for 2020's animated short "Burrow," and Domee Shi, who won an Oscar for directing the 2018 animated short "Bao" and directed Pixar's critically acclaimed 2022 feature "Turning Red." Adrian Molina, who co-directed Pixar's award-winning feature "Coco," wrote the script and is co-directing.
"Freakier Friday" (August 8)
Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan are back for more fun in a sequel to 2003's body-switching comedy "Freaky Friday." Numerous cast members from the original will return, including Rosalind Chao, Chad Michael Murray, and Mark Harmon. New cast members include Julia Butters, Sophia Hammons, Manny Jacinto, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, and Vanessa Bayer. Nisha Ganatra, known primarily for her television work, is in the director's chair, working from a script by relative newcomer Jordan Weiss.
"The Bride!" (September 26)
Maggie Gyllenhaal has seamlessly transitioned from Oscar-nominated actress to award-winning director and screenwriter over the past few years. In 2021, she made her feature film directorial debut with the critically acclaimed drama "The Lost Daughter." The film earned three Academy Award nominations including Best Adapted Screenplay for Gyllenhaal. She is following up that effort with a musical adaptation of "Frankenstein" starring Christian Bale, Jessie Buckley, Penélope Cruz, and Annette Bening. The cast of "The Bride!" also includes her husband Peter Sarsgaard and brother Jake Gyllenhaal.
"Five Nights at Freddy's 2" (December 5)
Emma Tammi directed and co-wrote the highly successful 2023 horror film "Five Nights at Freddy's," based on the video game of the same name. The film made nearly $300 million on a $20 million budget, and Tammi is returning to direct its sequel, which she also co-wrote. Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, and Matthew Lillard will all reprise their roles from the first film.
Coming Later
Several women had films premiere at January's Sundance Film Festival and this month's SXSW Film & TV Festival. "Atropia," the directorial feature debut of writer and director Hailey Gates, won the highly coveted Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. Eva Victor is earning rave reviews for writing, directing, and starring in "Sorry, Baby," which also premiered at Sundance. A24 won the bidding war over distribution of the critically acclaimed film, though no release date is set yet. Mary Bronstein's "If I Had Legs I'd Kick You" also premiered at the festival to critical acclaim, with particular praise for actress Rose Byrne's leading performance. Director and writer Amy Wang is generating buzz for her feature "Slanted," which debuted at SXSW. Other notable SXSW premieres included Julia Max's horror film "The Surrender," Amy Landecker's romcom "For Worse," and "The Astronaut," a thriller written and directed by Jess Varley.
Scarlett Johansson will soon be making her feature directorial debut with "Eleanor the Great," a dramedy starring June Squibb as a 90-year-old trying to move on after the death of her best friend of seven decades. The Oscar-nominated actress of 2013's "Nebraska" and star of last year's "Thelma" will be joined by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Jessica Hecht, and Erin Kellyman. Newcomer Tory Kamen wrote the screenplay, which was loosely inspired by her grandmother's move from Florida to Manhattan at the age of 95.
Kathryn Bigelow has a very secretive film project coming this fall. The latest feature from the Oscar-winning director of 1991's "Point Break," 2009's "The Hurt Locker," and 2012's "Zero Dark Thirty" will star Idris Elba and Rebecca Ferguson, but the plot and even the name of the film are being kept under wraps.
Lynne Ramsay has been quiet for nearly a decade, but the writer and director of 2011's psychological drama "We Need to Talk About Kevin" is making up for lost time with two films currently in post-production. Jennifer Lawrence will star as a woman in a remote part of Montana struggling to maintain her sanity as her marriage disintegrates in "Die, My Love." Robert Pattinson, LaKeith Stanfield, Nick Nolte, and Sissy Spacek will co-star. Ramsay's other film on the horizon is "Polaris," which takes place in Alaska during the late 19th century and stars Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara.
Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao has a new historical drama film in the works. The director and writer of 2020's "Nomadland" and 2021's "Eternals" is adapting Maggie O'Farrell's 2020 novel "Hamnet," a fictional take on the lives of William Shakespeare and his wife following the death of their young son Hamnet. Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley will play the grieving playwright and his wife.
Another film generating a lot of buzz is "Rental Family," a dramedy directed and co-written by Hikari, who is known for directing several episodes of Netflix's award-winning limited series "Beef." Brendan Fraser plays a struggling actor who is hired by a Japanese rental company to play various roles in the lives of clients. The film co-stars Mari Yamamoto, Takehiro Hira, and Akira Emoto.
Writer and director Nia DaCosta is adapting Henrik Ibsen's 1891 play "Hedda Gabler" for the big screen. Tessa Thompson will star as Hedda, a manipulative newlywed in a loveless marriage. Other stars of "Hedda" will include Imogen Poots, Tom Bateman, Nina Hoss, and Nicholas Pinnock. DaCosta is known for directing and co-writing 2021's hit horror film "Candyman" and 2023's "The Marvels." She is also attached to direct the upcoming post-apocalyptic horror sequel "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple," which is expected to be released next year.
Speaking of 2026, Greta Gerwig will follow up her 2023 blockbuster "Barbie" with a highly anticipated film adaptation of "The Chronicles of Narnia" for Netflix. Rumors are swirling about who will be among the cast, but nothing seems to be confirmed just yet.
Emerald Fennell, the director and Oscar-winning writer of "Promising Young Woman," is writing, directing, and producing an adaptation of Emily Brontë's "Wuthering Heights" starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi that is scheduled for release next year. Her most recent release was 2023's dark comedy "Saltburn," which co-starred Elordi.
Looking ahead, "Wonder Woman" director Patty Jenkins is hard at work on the script for the much-delayed next feature film in the "Star Wars" universe, titled "Star Wars: Rogue Squadron," which she will also be directing. The film has been in development since 2020.
Be on the lookout for these productions so you can experience the talent and vision of these female directors and writers for yourself!
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