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Top takeaways from CinemaCon: the year's hottest films

A view of the stage during The CinemaCon Big Screen Achievement Awards at The Dolby Colosseum at Caesars Palace during CinemaCon on 16 April, 2026, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images for CinemaCon)
CinemaCon - Tom Cruise, Michael B Jordan, Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks, Zendaya, and Timothée Chalamet led the parade of A-listers onto the stage at the Colosseum theatre in Caesars Palace, along with directors Steven Spielberg and Christopher Nolan

Hollywood's major studios brought their biggest films to Las Vegas this week for CinemaCon, the annual industry summit that offers insiders a sneak peek at what's coming soon to cinemas.

Tom Cruise, Michael B Jordan, Nicole Kidman, Tom Hanks, Zendaya, and Timothée Chalamet led the parade of A-listers onto the stage at the Colosseum theatre in Caesars Palace, along with directors Steven Spielberg and Christopher Nolan.

Attendees caught a glimpse of new trailers, clips, and teasers. Here are the highlights from the convention:

The Odyssey

Christopher Nolan debuted epic footage from The Odyssey, his hotly anticipated take on Homer's epic tale - and his first film since his Oscar-winning Oppenheimer.

The clips featured a look at Matt Damon as Odysseus and Charlize Theron as Calypso, as well as the scene where the iconic Trojan Horse is revealed, which generated major buzz among industry observers.


Watch: The trailer for The Odyssey

"Why The Odyssey? The Odyssey is a story that has fascinated generation after generation for 3,000 years," Nolan told the audience at the Universal Pictures event.

"It's not a story. It's THE story," the filmmaker added, explaining that it was a long-time dream to make this adaptation.

Zendaya, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, and Robert Pattinson also star in the film, which is set for release on 17 July.

Disclosure Day

Steven Spielberg presented an extended new look at Disclosure Day, his return to sci-fi and extraterrestrials, a genre he first explored nearly 50 years ago.

Though the Oscar-winning director said he had never seen an unidentified flying object himself, he made Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) because the phenomenon offered him "a really great story to tell".


Watch: The trailer for Disclosure Day

"I made Disclosure Day with a lot more certainty that there's more truth than fiction in the movie that you are going to see on 12 June."

Emily Blunt, Josh O'Connor, Eve Hewson, Colin Firth, and Colman Domingo star in a film that forces humanity to contend with evidence that aliens do exist.

Spielberg, who presented the Universal Pictures film with Domingo, said he had been extremely selective in what he wanted to reveal at the event.

"This movie is an experience, and all you need to get from the beginning to the end is a seatbelt," he said.

Avengers: Doomsday

Disney's Marvel Studios unveiled the first trailer for Avengers: Doomsday, which will arrive in cinemas on 18 December.

The clip, which earned thunderous applause from the crowd, offered the first look at Robert Downey Jr as villain Doctor Doom - a new franchise character for the actor, whose Iron Man died in Avengers: Endgame.

(L-R) Robert Downey Jr and Chris Evans attend CinemaCon 2026 at The Dolby Colosseum at Caesars Palace during CinemaCon on 16 April, 2026, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images for CinemaCon)
Robert Downey Jr and Chris Evans were on the stage at CinemaCon to present the Avengers: Doomsday trailer alongside the film's directors, brothers Joe and Anthony Russo

It also featured scenes with Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), whose Captain America had chosen to remain in the past in Endgame, passing on his shield. It's not clear yet how 'Cap' has returned.

Downey and Evans were on hand to reveal the footage, along with directors Joe and Anthony Russo.

"I said I would only come back if there was a real reason," Evans told the crowd.

"And in Doomsday, there is a very real reason that these heroes need Steve Rogers."

Dune: Part Three

Warner Bros showed the opening minutes of Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Three, which is also set to open on 18 December.

'DunesDay' could be the biggest day in cinemas since Barbie and Oppenheimer debuted simultaneously, creating the 'Barbenheimer' phenomenon.

(L-R) Jason Momoa, Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, and Denis Villeneuve promote the upcoming film Dune: Part Three at the Warner Bros. Pictures' presentation at The Dolby Colosseum at Caesars Palace during CinemaCon on 14 April, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
(L-R) Dune: Part Three stars Jason Momoa, Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, and director Denis Villeneuve at CinemaCon

Villeneuve called the final chapter in his sci-fi trilogy, which takes place 17 years after the end of the last film, a "thriller - action-packed, more intense, and definitely more emotional".

Chalamet and Zendaya were on hand, along with Jason Momoa, for the presentation.

Zendaya reflected on the changes that the characters had been through, saying it had been "an unkind few years, and I think there's so much left still to fight for".

Digger

Tom Cruise and Oscar-winning Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu offered a first look at the comedy Digger, with the actor virtually unrecognisable as a pot-bellied oil man who ruined the planet and now wants to repair it.

"The movie is wild, it's funny," said Cruise, who received a standing ovation from the packed room at the Warner Bros event.

Tom Cruise and Alejandro González Iñárritu attend Warner Bros' The Big Picture CinemaCon 2026 at Caesars Palace on 14 April, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Jon/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures)
Director Alejandro González Iñárritu told CinemaCon that the Digger role "could possibly be the most challenging" for Tom Cruise

Iñárritu said the role "could possibly be the most challenging" for Cruise, who has been nominated for three Oscars for his acting performances.

"We know that he's fearless - the stunts, the planes, the jumps - but I have to say, embodying this character, this is another kind of fearless," he said.

Source: AFP

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