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Highlights at this year's CinemaCon and the 2025 Big Screen Achievement Awards
CinemaCon, the world's largest theatrical convention held annually at the Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas by Cinema United, is usually the place where one gets a bird's eye view of the upcoming slate from all the movie studios like Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Warner Bros. Pictures, Walt Disney, Focus Pictures, Amazon MGM, Universal Pictures, and DreamWorks Animation.
Attended by more than 6,000 motion picture professionals from all facets of the industry, CinemaCon also attracts Hollywood celebrities from Tom Cruise to Mark Hamill, Ana de Armas to Lindsay Lohan, Glen Powell to Channing Tatum, among others, to promote their upcoming movies all made for the big screen.
For all the die-hard Beatles fans, the best news coming out of CinemaCon was the announcement of the highly anticipated four-film Beatles biopic saga from director Sam Mendes.
Coming to theaters in April 2028, the four lucky actors to portray the musical icons include Paul Mescal ("All of Us Strangers," "Gladiator II") as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson ("Triangle of Sadness," "Babygirl") as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn ("Stranger Things," "A Quiet Place: Day One") as George Harrison, and Barry Keoghan ("The Banshees of Inisherin," "Saltburn") as Ringo Starr. Get ready because Beatlemania is coming soon!
Starring Jessie Buckley as the Bride and Christian Bale as Frankenstein, the movie also stars Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Bening and Penelope Cruz.
Gyllenhaal also wrote the script which Buckley described as having "an electrical language that I'd never read or seen cinematically."
Gyllenhaal explained, "In the original, the bride is in the movie for about three minutes and doesn't speak which could not be more different than ours. I'm really interested in monsters, and I think that all of us have a little aspect of something monstrous in us. Monsters in our movie do monstrous things, but they're also our heroes."
"The Bride" is scheduled to come out on March 6, 2026.
A live-action remake of "How to Train Your Dragon" helmed, produced and written by Dean DeBlois and starring Mason Thames, Nico Parker and Gerard Butler reprising his role as Stoick the Vast from the animated films was screened, with the CinemaCon audiences being the first to see the film.
Get ready to be blown away by the acting of lead American actor Thames ("The Black Phone"), 17, as he portrays the young Viking named Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, son of Stoick the Vast, leader of the Viking island of Berk. Twenty-year-old British actress Parker ("The Last of Us"), who portrays the gutsy Astrid Hofferson, Hiccup's love interest and fellow student in dragon-fighting training, is also an upcoming star to watch. This action-packed film is scheduled for release by Universal Pictures in June 2025.
"Wicked" fans who have not had enough of "Wicked" magic will be happy to know that come November 21, the sequel, "Wicked: For Good" is coming. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande debuted the first trailer for the upcoming sequel to CinemaCon audiences.
Director Jon Chu, who was also at the after-party, sat with us at the dinner table to share his excitement in finally showing the sequel to the public before Thanksgiving weekend.
Ke Huy Quan, who portrays "Zootopia's first snake" Gary, introduced the trailer to "Zootopia 2" which is also coming this Thanksgiving. Quan said, "Just like me, Gary is terrifying and villainous. Gary kicks off the whole mystery when he turns up and panics the town."
Oscar winner Zoe Saldana introduced the latest Pixar movie "Elio," which is set for release on June 20. It is about an 11-year-old boy who is mistaken for the rule of Earth when he is beamed up to join an interplanetary group.
Saldana also showcased "Avatar: Fire and Ash" which is due for release in theaters on December 19.
This is the third movie from James Cameron's sci-fi series. Saldana said, "This movie expands the beautiful world of Pandora and introduces two new clans: The Windtraders who are a peaceful, nomadic air-traveling clan, and the Ash People, who have forsaken the god."
Closing the week-long festival was the 2025 Big Screen Achievement Awards held at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace which honored Lindsay Lohan (Vanguard Award), Channing Tatum (Distinguished Decade of Achievement in Film), Ana de Armas (Action Star of the Year), Mark Hamill (Cinema Icon Award), Glen Powell (Star of the Year), Cheech & Chong (Career Achievement in Comedy), David Jonsson (Next Generation Award), Madeline McGraw (Rising Star of 2025), and Ben Wang (Star of Tomorrow).
Lindsay Lohan, whom we first interviewed in "The Parent Trap" when she was only 12 years old, will be back on the big screen this summer with Jamie Lee Curtis in Walt Disney Studios' "Freakier Friday" opening on August 8.
Lohan, now 38, who is now married to Bader Shammas, Assistant Vice-President at Credit Suisse in Dubai and mother to son Luai, has been living in Dubai since 2014.
In "Freakier Friday," Lohan will also serve as executive producer. She said upon receiving her award, "This award means more than you know to me. Really it does. I have grown up in this industry and I'm so proud to still be doing what I love. There's nothing like the magic of cinema, and I first saw myself on the big screen when I was very young in The Parent Trap with Disney, and it was so surreal, but I felt right at home.
"I want to make a huge thank you to everyone at Disney - Alan Bergman, David Greenbaum, Michelle Sewell, Alison Erlichman and Asad Ayyaz for your belief in me. Everyone at Disney always has had so much belief in me and to my husband for his constant support and continuously encouraging me and my family. To my fans for a lifetime love and to my team. Thank you for always having my back. It's so important to me. Thank you, CinemaCon, for believing in me and for coming to cinema and bringing me here for this wonderful recognition."
Known for his "Magic Mike" franchise and movies like "The Lost City," "21 Jump Street," "The Vow," and "Deadpool & Wolverine," Tatum also produced hit films like "Blink Twice" and "Fatherhood."
After watching the tribute clips of him and his movies, Tatum exclaimed, "It was kind of wild after watching that. How fast this is going by. When you see all the clips, I realize I have been doing this for a little while now. I started getting jobs before I knew how to act. In a way, I was on-the-job training. And now you cut to I'm standing in front of you beautiful people and realizing that I was sitting where you guys are on some level, just loving movies and I still love movies.
"We all love telling stories. We are all in it together – loving and doing it together. My mom always said that luck is nothing but preparation and opportunity. I just keep walking through doors and wanting beautiful stories to come out of those doors. I am just very thankful for Cinema United. Just keep doing this, showing movies and telling stories."
De Armas, who became the first woman to be presented the Action Star of the Year award, will be surprising you as a badass Eve Macarro in Lionsgate's "Ballerina" with Keanu Reeves. The movie is coming to theaters on June 6.
Taking place during the events of "John Wick: Chapter 3—Parabellum," "Ballerina" follows Eve as she begins her training in the assassin traditions of Ruska Roma.
With a career spanning over a decade in both Spanish and Hollywood films, de Armas gained recognition for her performances in "Blade Runner 2049," "Knives Out," and "No Time to Die." She received critical acclaim for her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in "Blonde," for which she earned an Oscar, SAG, Golden Globe and BAFTA Award nominations.
The Cuban Spanish actress said in her acceptance speech, "My dream has always been to be surrounded by filmmakers. This is without a doubt what I wanted to do. And I knew that since I was very young, I knew I wanted to meet the best and most talented people in the industry and work with them, and I feel like I have been so lucky. I really have worked with some of the extraordinary people.
"One of them, he's on my mind tonight. I met him when I barely spoke English when I moved to LA ten years ago. Keanu Reeves. I'm going to tell you a little story. I met Keanu for the first time in Santiago de Chile at lunch with the filmmakers of "Knock Knock" (2015). Our first movie together. We were sitting across from each other at the table. And I was really nervous, as you were when you're in front of Keanu Reeves. And I was. I couldn't talk to him much because I was so self-conscious about my English, and I was really struggling and really trying hard to follow the conversation.
"They were talking about his career. They were talking about The Matrix, and he looked up at me and asked me if I had seen it, and I was like, The Matrix? No. Everyone at the table was shocked. So, someone came to me and told me in Spanish, you haven't seen The Matrix. And I was like, oh, The Matrix? Yeah, I have seen that one. That will never not be embarrassing.
"But then he started talking about John Wick, and he got up from his chair and he started doing one of the choreographies. I believe it was the one in the bathhouse. He remembered how he killed every single man in that scene, and he did it for us. And I was just staring at him like he was so happy. And he was just so excited about this film he had just made. And it got me excited. So anyways, what I want to say is that here I am ten years later, receiving the Action Star of the Year award for Ballerina. But there wouldn't be Ballerina without John Wick. And for sure there wouldn't be John Wick without Keanu Reeves."
Directed by Francis Lawrence, the visionary director of "The Hunger Games"?franchise films, this intense, chilling and emotional thriller challenges audiences to confront a haunting question: how far could you go?
He is garnering early awards buzz for his role opposite Tom Hiddleston in "Neon's The Life of Chuck" which won the 2024 TIFF Audience Award and will also be seen in Paramount's "The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants" as The Flying Dutchman.
Hamill is best known for his portrayal of Luke Skywalker in the original "Star Wars" movies and reprised his role in both the sequels as well as the second season of "The Mandalorian" and season one of "The Book of Boba Fett."
Hamill revealed, 'This is the first CinemaCon I've been invited to. And I don't know about you, but I've been having a great time. It's exhilarating being around so many creative people, and I'm still a fan. I look over there and there's Channing Tatum over there. There's Tom Cruise. Oh, my God. It's like that old Neil Simon line. I'm the only one here I've never heard of. But I'm grateful for this. But more than that, I'm grateful, as I'm sure all of you are, to be able to do what you love and make a living at it. And I've never taken that for granted. But this is a celebration of the moviegoing experience. And I have to tell you, it's not just the big screen. It's not the state-of-the-art sound. It's the live audience, that communal experience that elevates. I look at these kids who want to watch Gladiator or Wicked on their cell phone? Not me. But thanks so much. This is as appreciated as it is unexpected. Thanks so much."
Powell, 36, who received the Star of the Year Award, will lead the cast in the new film, "The Running Man." His box office hits include "Twisters," "Anyone But You" and "Top Gun: Maverick." He also wrapped production on the film "Huntington."
Powell pointed out, "This is so damn cool. It's even cooler because I got the Star of Tomorrow award three years ago, so now I guess it's tomorrow, which is badass. But we all know you're only one flop away from being the star of yesterday, so I'm not going to get cocky.
"I also love my parents who follow me everywhere, who are also here. They never miss a party or an opportunity to cheer me on, so thank you. I also want to give a shout out to Cheech Marin who is in the room. So, I was on Spy Kids 3-D Game Over. I was 12 years old, and Cheech and Danny Trejo invited me to sit with them at lunch on my first day. I was the new kid at school, and that was the coolest lunch table. And I'll never forget that gesture. When you're pursuing this career and you have those pinch-me moments, you don't forget those. And especially when no one's inviting you to sit at the cool table, so thank you."
Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong are set to return to the big screen with their upcoming release?"Cheech & Chong's Last Movie," hitting theatres nationwide on April 25,?with special limited engagements on April 20th. The film will explore their friendship, fame, rebellion and redemption through a unique mix of real-life moments and creative storytelling.
A defining force in comedy, the critically acclaimed duo struck comedy gold and made a fluid transition from live shows and records to films starring in eight features together. Their first, "Up in Smoke," was the highest-grossing comedy of 1978. With over five decades in the industry, their unique blend of comedy continues to resonate in both film and pop culture today.
Marin, 78, said in his speech, "Thank you for this incredible recognition. I think this is the first award we ever got. I had to wait all this time. First of all, we want to give a big shout-out and congratulations to the team at CinemaCon - Mr. Newheiser, Michael O'Leary and Matt Pawlak. As you know, Tommy and I have spent over five decades in comedy making movies. And this career achievement or honor is a great honor. So, thank you very much."
Chong, 86, added, "I really want to give a shout out to Dave Bushell and my daughter, Robbi Chong, because they were the ones that put that movie together, Cheech and Chong's Last Movie. And what they did was phenomenal because they went to a storage room and got some old footage that we forgot we even had. And we got, I think, Geraldo Rivera, because at the height of our career, Cheech and Geraldo were like kind of partners in a few endeavors. And so, Geraldo brought a whole crew to L.A. and followed us around for about a week, shooting us at the height of our career. And it's all in the movie.
"And there's a lot in the movie that got a little personal but hey, we did it, and we can't lie about it, and I'm very proud that we got pot legal anyway. That's one thing that we accomplished. And we want to thank everybody who put this award together because it's really the first award that we've ever received, because television networks were kind of afraid to put us on TV.
"In fact, we were on Johnny Carson. We had an intimate time with Johnny Carson, and he was a little afraid. They shot the show at the Shrine, and there was no place to go except the fire escape to be alone. And we're out there with Johnny Carson. And he was nervous. I really wanted to pull out a joint and light it up. Hey, there you go, buddy. I didn't. But anyway, thank you. And thank you, Robbie and Dave, for doing the Last Movie."
Other awardees include David Jonsson who will be seen in the highly anticipated adaptation of Stephen King's first-written novel, and the visionary direction of filmmaker Francis Lawrence, Lionsgate's "The Long Walk," a gripping dystopian thriller, Madeleine McGraw, who will reprise her role as Gwen in Universal Pictures' "Black Phone 2," and Ben Wang, who stars in Sony Pictures' "Karate Kid: Legends." —MGP, GMA Integrated News
