So far, 2026 has been a pretty stellar year when it comes to the global box office – with the likes of The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day racing past $1 billion over the summer.

But those big-budget behemoths represent only a tiny fraction of the hugely varied selection of films that have arrived on the big screen in the eight months of the year so far – so we’re taking a moment to shine a spotlight on the best of the bunch so far, including some which you might have missed.

As Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, I’ve seen more than 100 new UK releases so far, and have picked out the 25 best below – in addition to five that you’d probably be wise to steer clear of.

I’ve tried to keep the list as varied as possible in terms of genres and style and it’s also worth noting that this list is by no means conclusive.

For example, there was no room here for the likes of Steven Spielberg’s imperfect but sometimes thrilling sci-fi tale Disclosure Day or Jodie Foster-starring detective drama A Private Life, or for the surprisingly witty and inventive family films Minions and Monsters and Sheep Detectives, all of which are very much worth your time.

But scroll down for our list of 25 recommendations and five films to avoid.

25 films from 2026 so far which are worth your time

1. The Testament of Ann Lee

Released in the UK back in February – having arrived in the US towards the tail end of 2025 – this superb film from director Mona Fastvold was unfairly almost completely shut-out from the awards conversation, despite featuring some of the very finest music, cinematography and performances of any film released in recent years.

Amanda Seyfried is in scintillating form as the titular Ann Lee, the founder of the Shaker religious movement in the 18th century, with the film detailing her life story through the medium of a number of sublime songs, reworked from traditional Shaker hymns by Oscar-winning composer Daniel Blumberg. It’s a complete triumph.

2. The Secret Agent

One of the nominees for best international film at this year’s Oscars – though it lost out on the prize to Joachim Trier’s excellent Sentimental Value – the latest film from Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho is a fascinating study of life under Brazil’s military dictatorship in the 1970s.

Oscar-nominated Wagner Moura leads the cast as Armando, a university professor with an initially unclear past, who is on the run for reasons that are gradually unspooled over a luxurious 2-hour 40-minute run-time that finds time for various dramatic detours, including a fantastic B-movie inspired sequence starring a rampaging severed leg. It’s a consistently engaging work with a deeply textured sense of time and place and real cinematic verve.

3. Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma

The third feature from I Saw the TV Glow director Jane Schoenbrun cements them as one of the most exciting directors to emerge in the 2020s. Hacks star Hannah Einbinder plays a queer filmmaker hired to reboot an old horror franchise, with the great Gillian Anderson starring as the actress who played the final girl in the original entry of that series, with whom she soon forms a transformative bond.

It’s an eerily atmospheric film – though packed with generous lashings of humour – as Schoenbrun conjures up a mesmeric, evocative experience that merges fantasy with reality to explore themes relating to identity, art, sexuality, desire and otherness. It might not be for everyone – but has all the makings of a cult classic.

4. Sirat

Another film on the shortlist for best international feature at this year’s Oscars, this film from Spanish director Oliver Laxe is undoubtedly one of the most intense viewing experiences of the year so far – containing a couple of scenes in particular that will leave most viewers with their hearts in their mouths.

It stars Sergi López (Pan’s Labyrinth) as a father on the lookout for his missing daughter, with that search leading him and his young son to fall into the company of a group of ravers in the Moroccan desert, who take them under their wing. Boasting a terrific electronic score from Kangding Ray, it’s a thrilling sensory experience that’s impossible to look away from.

5. 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple

Released in January – just over six months after last year’s 28 Years Later – this second entry in a planned sequel trilogy saw Nia DaCosta take over the directorial reins from franchise originator Danny Boyle, with Alex Garland continuing on screenwriting duties.

Picking up with Spike (Alfie Williams) after he’s inducted into the horrifying gang of “Jimmies” he met at the end of the previous film, the film unfold as an atmospheric – at times very violent – exploration of good versus evil in apocalyptic times, with Ralph Fiennes in especially electric form as maverick doctor and survivalist Dr Ian Kelson.

6. Miroirs No 3

German director Christian Petzold has been consistently delivering thoughtful and fascinating dramas for the past two decades, and his latest effort – released in the UK back in April – may well have passed you by.

It’s a small-scale, enigmatic mystery drama starring his regular collaborator Paula Beer as a pianist named Laura who is taken in by a woman named Betty and her family after her husband is killed in a car crash.

As they spend time together, it gradually becomes clear that not everything is as it seems – with Petzold providing an understated study of grief that occasionally takes on a slightly sinister edge.

7. Splitsville

A film that didn’t get as much fanfare as it deserved upon its release, this perfectly pitched screwball comedy about polyamory will have you grinning and chuckling throughout. It stars Dakota Johnson and Adria Arjona alongside co-writers Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin, playing two couples whose friendship descends into something altogether more complicated due to complications regarding an open marriage.

All four leads provide top-tier comic performances and there are no shortage of hilarious set pieces – including one that features goldfish and a rollercoaster – but there’s also a heartfelt relationship film underpinning all of the chaotic shenanigans.

8. The Odyssey

A film that will need no introduction, Christopher Nolan’s star-studded blockbuster adaptation of Homer’s epic The Odyssey has performed incredibly well at the global box office – making almost $1.5 billion so far with that figure only likely to grow still further.

A muscular work anchored by a number of stellar performances – including Matt Damon in the lead role as Odysseus – it also features several of the best sequences of Nolan’s acclaimed career, none finer than the magnificent horror-tinged segment that sees Samantha Morton turn in a standout performance as the witch Cersei.

9. My Father’s Shadow

The first feature from British director Akinola Davies Jr premiered at last year’s Cannes Film Festival and arrived in UK cinemas in February having already won several awards, including best director for Davies at the British Independent Film Awards.

A lyrical, personal work informed by the memories of Davies and his brother, co-writer Wale Davies, it follows two young brothers as they spend time with their father in Lagos during the political turmoil of the 1993 Nigerian election crisis – with child stars Godwin Chiemerie Egbo and Chibuike Marvellous Egbo both excelling alongside a stellar performance from Sope Dirisu.

10. Blue Heron

Another deeply moving personal work inspired by its writer-director’s childhood – this piercing, poetic drama from Canadian writer/director Sophy Romvari follows a Hungarian immigrant family following their move to a new home on Vancouver Island – where the eldest son is seen to experience behavioural difficulties.

Intimate and low-key, the early sections of the film unfolds like a memory, filmed naturalistically and completely devoid of melodrama, before a time-jump in the latter stages elegantly reframes the events into something genuinely profound.

11. The Drama

Robert Pattinson and Zendaya lead the cast of this film that emerged as a major conversation point before it actually arrived in cinemas – even as distributor A24 did its level best to keep the exact nature of its premise under wraps.

We won’t give away the central dilemma here in case you still haven’t seen it, but suffice to say that writer-director Kristoffer Borgli turns what could have been a shallow and one-note idea into something a little more knotty and complex: a drama about the subtle changes major revelations can have on our relationships and how we perceive those around us.

12. Tony

The first of two films from writer/director Matt Johnson on the list, this charming film takes its inspiration from a few early chapters of Kitchen Confidential – the memoir by the late celebrity chef and writer Anthony Bourdain.

The Holdovers star Dominic Sessa takes on the central role as Bourdain, but the film largely sidesteps the tired conventions of the celebrity biopic, with Johnson instead delivering a rewarding coming-of-age tale with a light touch, packed with period details that evoke the nostalgic vibe of a seaside summer in the 1970s.

13. No Other Choice

Despite wide acclaim from film fans and critics, masterful Korean director Park Chan-wook has often struggled to find favour with the Academy, and his latest stylish crime flick was another that failed to pick up any nominations at the Oscars earlier this year.

But it’s well worth a watch: a cutting satire of modern-day capitalism that follows a recently unemployed man (played by Squid Game star Lee Byung-hun) as he goes to extreme lengths to find a new job. Not all of the humour lands, but there are some expertly designed set pieces, a great deal of suspense and plenty of Park’s signature virtuoso camerawork.

14. Project Hail Mary

Another film that has found success both with critics and at the box office, this likeable sci-fi tale from directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller takes its cues from classic Spielberg and is built around a charismatic performance by Ryan Gosling as reluctant astronaut Ryland Grace – who wakes up in space with no memory of who he is or what he’s doing there.

Gradually, he pieces together the reasons for his mission, and soon finds an unlikely ally in the form of an adorable rock-based alien known as Rocky. It’s that relationship which serves as the heart of a film that avoids the generic CGI-action traps that so many recent blockbusters have fallen into.

15. Little Amélie or The Character of Rain

Clocking in at less than 80 minutes long, this gorgeous animation from directors Maïlys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han is a small but perfectly formed piece of work about the formative experiences of a toddler living with her Belgian family in 1960s Japan.

Adapted from Amélie Nothomb’s memoir The Character of Rain, it’s a poignant, delicately told story that is sweet but never saccharine, with the use of colour especially commendable as the central character grows to appreciate the world around her.

16. Rose of Nevada

Across his first two features – Bait and Enys Men – Cornish writer/director Mark Jenkin had already developed an inimitable, singular approach. He continued that run earlier this year with another deeply strange and mysterious piece of work complete with all his usual trademarks – including the use of a wind-up Bolex camera and a curious, though undeniably effective, offbeat editing style.

Rose of Nevada stars George Mackay and Callum Turner as two men who join the small crew of a fishing boat which has inexplicably surfaced in a coastal village 30 years after it had vanished without trace. Their new job soon takes them on a bizarre, time-bending odyssey that sees them make new discoveries both about themselves and their surroundings.

17. Hokum

It’s been a great year for horror so far, and although this latest effort from Irish writer/director Damian McCarthy didn’t make nearly as much of a splash at the box office as a couple of examples further down on this list, it’s just as worthy of your time.

The latest addition to a canon of films that see a depressed writer staying in an eerie hotel, it stars Adam Scott as an author who has travelled to a remote Irish inn to scatter his parents’ ashes, only to be told that a Cailleach – an old Irish mythological witch – lurks within its walls. McCarthy sustains an admirably creepy and tense atmosphere for much of the film, with no shortage of nightmarish imagery but also a wicked streak of black humour running through the piece.

18. The Invite

After her last film as director – 2022’s Don’t Worry Darling – became something of a critical disaster, Olivia Wilde’s return behind the camera saw her deliver on the promise of her debut Booksmart with this rich and very funny chamber piece centred on two extremely different couples.

Wilde herself stars alongside Seth Rogen as a married pair whose relationship is on the rocks, but who find themselves throwing a dinner party for their rather more free-spirited – and seemingly much happier – neighbours, played by Edward Norton and Penelope Cruz. As the night unfolds, various revelations and uncomfortable truth come to light, with the script by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones expertly unspooling the tensions.

19. Backrooms

Making his feature directorial debut at the age of just 20, Kane Parsons expanded on his series of YouTube shorts about a creepy and seemingly endless network of office rooms with this smartly-designed film led by Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve.

Playing on the fear of the liminal spaces and the uncanny, it’s an atmospheric and genuinely unnerving film that marks out Parsons as a hugely promising directorial talent – even if the film occasionally falters the more it spells out exactly what is going on.

20. Obsession

An incredible box office success story that has already launched its star Inde Navarrette to the cusp of super-stardom, this horror film from filmmaker Curry Baker is one of the most profitable films ever made – making more than half a billion dollars on a production budget of less than a million.

Although perhaps not quite as good as that success might have you believe, it’s still an impressively made genre flick serving as a cautionary tale about male entitlement and being careful what you wish for. It also includes the best jump scare of the year – while Navarrette’s highly committed central performance is very much deserving of the high praise (and could even land her an Oscar nomination).

21. Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie

The second Matt Johnson film on the list, this one is a feature length spin-off of the mockumentary sitcom he created with regular collaborator Jay McCarroll – with that duo starring as fictionalised versions of themselves who are desperate to secure a gig at the Rivoli performance venue in Toronto.

Luckily, a detailed knowledge of the series is not a prerequisite for enjoying this one, with Johnson himself even telling Radio Times that it was best to go in knowing as little as possible. What you can know is that it’s a hugely inventive and often hilarious comedy that borrows extensively from Back to the Future to deliver a hugely rewarding film about male friendship.

22. Toy Story 5

While it’s generally agreed upon that the first three Toy Story films make up one of the finest trilogies in cinema history, many fans considered the still-enjoyable fourth entry a let down by comparison. There was, therefore, some trepidation about the fifth film – was it really necessary or are Pixar simply beating a dead horse?

Thankfully, most viewers could safely put any fears to one side after watching this delightful, touching film, which addresses concerns about screen time without devolving into one-note scare-mongering. While all the familiar toys – and a fair few new ones – are back, it’s Jessie (voiced again by Joan Cusack) who truly gets her chance to shine.

23. If I Had Legs I’d Kick You

Rose Byrne was deservedly showered with praise, including an Oscar nomination, for her central performance in this brilliantly made – if not always easy to watch – film from writer/director Mary Bronstein.

Byrne plays Linda, a mother who is stretched to breaking point while struggling to cope with a number of issues including an ill daughter and a severely leaking ceiling. It’s an intense and claustrophobic experience that isn’t without moments of bleak humour, and Byrne anchors the whole thing with a sensational, intelligent performance that never overdoes things.

24. Ish

This artfully shot coming-of-age film from first-time feature filmmaker Imran Perretta is very much in the mould of classic films like Ken Loach’s Kes. It follows two British-Asian boys living in Luton as they experience a summer that marks the end of their childhoods, with their friendship threatened when one of them is the victim of racial profiling by police officers.

Filmed in crisp black-and-white and bolstered by fine, naturalistic performances from young actors Farhan Hasnat and Yahya Kitana, it’s a rich piece of work that marks Perretta out as another British director to watch.

25. Tuner

Leo Woodall has been everywhere since first breaking out on season 2 of The White Lotus, but this terrific thriller marked the first time he’s had a leading role in a film – and he turned in arguably his finest performance to date opposite Havana Rose Liu and Hollywood legend Dustin Hoffman.

Woodall plays Niki, a piano tuner suffering from hyperacusis who gets caught up in a world of crime after discovering that his heightened sense of hearing makes him an expert safe-cracker. Although you can see some of the plot beats coming a mile off, it’s a thoroughly entertaining film boosted by top-tier sound design and a jazzy editing style that makes it a pleasure to watch.

5 Films from 2026 so far to avoid

1. Glenrothan

Over the years, Brian Cox has marked himself out as a formidable actor who barely puts a foot wrong – so it’s perhaps a surprise that his first feature as a director is quite so poor. But Glenrothan – in which he stars alongside fellow Scot, Alan Cumming – is a decidedly uncinematic affair; a stylistically bland drama that trades almost entirely in treacly sentimentality.

Cox has described the film as a “love letter” to Scotland, but nothing about the depiction of his homeland is textured or specific enough to feel like meaningful homage. Nor does the family feud, which is communicated through cloying flashbacks and stagey confrontation scenes, ring true. This is a plodding drama where virtually every choice is the most basic one.

2. Return to Silent Hill

The latest film in a video game adaptation franchise that has never exactly attracted the most positive critical notices, this reboot from director Christophe Gans didn’t do much to convince us that there’s much cinematic potential in the series.

Jeremy Irvine stars as James Sunderland, who finds himself in the titular town while looking for his estranged wife and must come face to face with all sorts of unspeakable terrors. Nothing here – from the murky visuals to the non-existent character work – gives us any reason to invest in what quickly descends into a stale and repetitive piece of schlock.

3. Animal Farm

Whatever you could say about George Orwell’s legendary satirical novel Animal Farm, it’s not a book that is known for containing a surfeit of fart jokes.

And while there’s no problem with updating a classic text for modern audiences, this ugly, animated take from Andy Serkis is so tonally jarring that it loses any sense of potency it might have. And that’s before we even get to an altered ending that essentially undermines the whole thing. A baffling misfire.

4. Scary Movie

No one would have gone into the latest horror parody from the Wayans brothers expecting some kind of cinematic masterpiece, and there’s no problem with that. But in a world where films such as last year’s The Naked Gun reboot have proved there’s still plenty of life in the spoof genre, this dreadfully unfunny, almost unwatchably chaotic film falls completely flat.

The Wayans enjoyed stirring the pot ahead of release by claiming the film wouldn’t go down well with scolds who don’t enjoy offensive humour. But the problem here isn’t that the jokes are offensive; it’s that they’re all just so lazy, boring and incoherent. Indeed, most of the horror films parodied here – and there are a lot of them – have more genuinely humorous moments than this tiresome stinker.

5. Ladies First

This gender-swap comedy starring Rosamund Pike and Sacha Baron Cohen feels like it was lifted from another century, so outdated are its regressive views on gender relations. Baron Cohen plays chauvinist executive Damien Sachs, who bangs his head and wakes up in a world where it is women, and not men, who rule the world.

With embarrassingly one-note humour and a predictable narrative that is occasionally interrupted by a couple of genuinely baffling scenes, it has nothing incisive to say about the modern world or how things may be different in a world where gender norms were flipped – and the redemption of Baron Cohen’s dreadful character seems entirely unearned.

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