4 Top Rated Movies Coming This Friday

This summer started with a lot of heat waves across the UK and US, but things are heating up at the theatres also as moviegoers rush to watch the opening of Odyssey and Moana. And while both movies are still doing really well, there’s more on the way. These are just four of the movies releasing this Friday.

Pinocchio Unstrung

Pinocchio Unstrung is the latest addition to the twisted childhood universe that began with Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey. This new take on Carlo Collodi’s classic story is far more terrifying and gore-filled than previous adaptations, such as the 2022 Disney version directed by Robert Zemeckis and the Netflix version directed by Guillermo del Toro.

While Zemeckis used CGI animation entirely for Pinocchio, del Toro relied on practical stop-motion effects and, apart from different narratives and thematic conventions, Rhys Frake-Waterfield’s story aligns more with del Toro’s approach, resulting in a more realistic and horrific effect.

Rhys Frake-Waterfield, who is best known for Blood and Honey, Bambi: The Reckoning, Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare, and The Killing Tree, serves as the creator and director. Unlike his VFX-heavy Bambi project, Pinocchio Unstrung focuses on practical effects that fans will appreciate.

These physical effects work seamlessly with the film’s lighting and cinematography, which is handled by Vince Knight, a cinematographer known for his work with big names like Daisy Ridley and Kevin Smith.

To bring the titular puppet to life, the production hired the renowned Todd Masters. As an accomplished makeup and special effects artist, Masters has delivered incredible work on Child’s Play, Dune, Slither, and Demon Knight, and his expertise ensures Pinocchio occupies the space and looks realistic when working with the actors.

Whether Pinocchio’s movements in the shadows feel expressive or strictly realistic depends on the specific themes Frake-Waterfield wants to transmit. The higher production value gives Frake-Waterfield the freedom to cast Robert Englund as the voice of the Cricket.

Famously known as Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street, Englund brings both a dark new energy and a massive, loyal fanbase. Meanwhile, Richard Brake is no stranger to the genre; as a frequent collaborator with Rob Zombie, his distinct horror style will push the film’s atmosphere over the top in his role as Geppetto.

The movie was filmed on location in Islington, England, an area already famous for horror and supernatural productions like The Tunnel (2024), The Devil Went Down to Islington (2023), and Netflix’s Lockwood & Co. (2023).

This location choice is ideal because the setting is highly aesthetic yet inherently eerie when shot correctly, giving the audience a clear sense of the movie’s grim tone. This Friday the 24th, you will have the opportunity to experience this fresh, morbid take on a childhood tale as it explores dark paths and themes.

Jana Nayagan

Thalapathy Vijay’s much-awaited film Jana Nayagan has finally been given an official release date. The announcement comes after the project faced two significant setbacks: censorship issues that stalled its certification and an online leak that forced producers to delay the release further.

The film is given more emotional weight as it is expected to mark Vijay’s farewell to acting, as he steps away to pursue a full-time political career. After a long, successful acting career in which he took leading roles in mega movies such as The Greatest Of All Time (2024), Leo (2023), and Master (2021).

Jana Nayagan looks set to be no different, with the prolonged wait only fuelling hype and anticipation. Thalapathy’s co-stars include Pooja Hegde, Bobby Deol, Mamitha Baiju, Gautham Vasudev Menon, and Prakash Raj — performers known respectively for their work in Mohenjo Daro, Animal (2023), Premalu (2024), Kannum Kannum Kollaiyadithaal (2020), and Anniyan (2005).

What better way to close the curtains on a career than to be among an extraordinary cast such as this? The film is directed by H. Vinoth, who brings an intense storytelling style to the screen.

H.Vinoth has previously delivered critically acclaimed projects, including his directorial debut Sathuranga Vettai (2014), Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru (2017), Nerkonda Paarvai (2019), and Valimai (2022).

With a cast this diverse and talented, and a narrative guided by a director of such hunger and passion, Jana Nayagan looks firmly set to be a mega hit.

Her Private Hell

Her private hell follows Elle (Sophie Thatcher) as she searches for her father in a future metropolis through a mysterious mist. Neon’s most recent theatrical outing was Exit 8 on April 10th, and Her Private Hell now steps into its wake with some genuinely big shoes to fill.

But if there is one actress who can help deliver that same level of success, though, it is Sophie Thatcher. Her résumé, at a young age, is already thick with thriller and horror credits spanning both film and television, so she clearly knows how to make a character shine and hold the room. That kind of track record makes her exactly the presence Neon needs to keep that genre momentum going for the rest of the year.

Her Private Hell marks Sophie’s first cinematic outing since Companion arrived in theatres in January 2025, and while fans can also look forward to her return in Yellowjackets Season 4, seeing her grace the big screen once more is a genuine pleasure.

For those less familiar with the director, Nicolas Winding Refn has produced some genuinely compelling work: Netflix’s Copenhagen Cowboy — a neon-drenched supernatural noir series Neon Demon (2016), Only God Forgives (2013), and Drive (2011).

He is a filmmaker who occupies a world entirely his own, which makes the pairing of his instincts and Thatcher’s intensity a natural creative fit. Between the two of them, Her Private Hell is shaping up to be one of the more intriguing genre propositions of the summer.

The cast joining Sophie in Her Private Hell is credited, with several well-known names lending real weight to the project. Charles Melton (Private K), who recently starred in the high-profile second season of Netflix’s acclaimed dark comedy Beef, has also just been cast alongside Matt Damon and Sandra Oh in the Daniels’ untitled event film for Universal, while Shioli Kutsuna (Ms. T) was last seen reprising her fan-favourite role as Yukio in the Marvel blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine.

Hidetoshi Nishijima (Hayashi), the Drive My Car breakout, recently headlined both the Japanese-American drama Dear Stranger (September 2025) and Amazon Prime’s psychological thriller series Human Specimens.

Havana Rose Liu (Dominique) rounds things out, having recently starred alongside Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas in John Carney’s Irish musical comedy Power Ballad and the crime thriller Tuner, both of which received their wider theatrical releases in early 2026.

Motor City

Alan Ritchson — Reacher himself — stars alongside Shailene Woodley and the ever-dangerous Ben Foster in a silent revenge thriller that aims to do for action what Sisu did: catch the world completely off guard.

The plot is raw and direct. Ritchson’s character falls hard for a woman that Foster’s mob boss considers his property — because that’s what men like him believe, that everyone and everything belongs to them. That territorial arrogance sets the whole machine in motion, as Foster leverages his power to have Ritchson wrongfully thrown in prison.

But Reacher doesn’t go down without a fight, and when he finds his way back, he comes back harder, stronger, and carrying the kind of revenge-fuelled rage that only real injustice can build.

What makes this particularly exciting is who’s bringing it to life. Alan Ritchson is no stranger to the action-star mould, but he refuses to be swallowed by it the way so many before him have been.

He brings raw rage and genuine emotion to his roles, and his last three films prove exactly that range — The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024) mixed period action with sharp comedy, Play Date (2025) showed a more playful and unpredictable side, and War Machine (2026) pushed him deep into sci-fi thriller territory.

This is his first fully silent action film. As for the man standing across from him — few antagonists working today match Ben Foster. This is an actor genuinely starting to enjoy the dark side, from Mars Krupcheck in Hostage (2005) to Bertrand Zobrist in Inferno (2016), and he brings that same coiled, dangerous energy here.

Director Potsy Ponciroli, who turned heads with Old Henry (2021), came into this with a specific mission: strip away the noise and build a more personal, focused experience where every convention within the frame — every look, every movement, every held breath — carries amplified weight.

Silence here isn’t a gimmick; it’s the whole point. With this cast and this vision, there’s real reason to believe he’s pulled it off. The timing doesn’t hurt either — this is shaping up to be a proper man-movie weekend, slotted right between two of the season’s biggest tentpoles: Odyssey, which released on the 17th, and Spider-Man, which opens on the 31st. Sometimes the boldest choice on a crowded weekend is the quietest one.