As A Book Reader, There Are 5 Big Movies I'm Excited About In 2026

Isn't the book always better than the movie? I mean, oftentimes, yes, but that doesn’t mean a great book won't be the source material for a great movie. As a book-reader, I'm almost always going to get excited for the adaptation. There are so many great books with adaptations lined up on the 2026 movie schedule that it was hard for me to narrow things down for the purposes of this list. With that said, I did want to focus on movies here, but that makes it only marginally simpler. Of the adaptations I'm highlighting, I have read, well, most of them (I'll explain The Odyssey when we get to that one).

If you're looking for a comprehensive list of upcoming book-to-screen adaptations, this article has you covered. For me personally, however, these are the five I absolutely can't wait to see (in no particular order):

Project Hail Mary

In Theaters: March 20, 2026

I'm going to start with Project Hail Mary, because there's no movie I'm more excited about in 2026, and I'm not just talking about book-to-screen adaptations when I say that. Phil Lord and Christopher Miller's upcoming adaptation of Andy Weir's sci-fi novel looks so freaking good.

Obviously, I'm biased because Project Hail Mary is one of my favorite books, but I like to think that even if I didn't know what a great story it is -- a science teacher becomes a reluctant hero when he's sent into space to try to solve a world-ending problem -- I'd be on board to see this movie from the trailers alone.

Verity

In Theaters: October 2, 2026

I've said before that I have mixed feelings about Verity. I didn't love it, but also, I couldn't put it down. I had to know how it ended, and when I did, I couldn't stop thinking about it. That's the best way I can describe my experience with the Colleen Hoover novel, and I think that's part of what makes me so excited about the movie's potential.

The cast and director are additional factors. Dakota Johnson plays Lowen, a writer who's hired to ghost-write the ending to a famous author's book after the author, Verity Crawford, is in an accident. She comes across a hidden manuscript in Verity's office, and the mystery begins to build from there. Anne Hathaway plays Verity, and Josh Hartnett plays her husband. Beyond that trio of talent, Michael Showalter directed the adaptation.

People We Meet On Vacation

Streaming on Netflix: January 9, 2026

Emily Henry is a top tier rom-com writer, so it's undoubtedly about time that one of her books makes it to the screen. Thank you very much, Netflix, for making that happen with People We Meet on Vacation. To be completely honest, if I were picking my favorite of her books, Book Lovers and Funny Story would be at the top of the list, but I haven't read a book of Henry's that wasn't great, and that includes People We Meet on Vacation.

The story centers on the unlikely friendship between a guy and a girl who used to take an annual trip together until something caused an abrupt end to the tradition. Now they're reuniting for one last trip to try to resolve their issues. I really hope the People We Meet On Vacation movie lives up to the source material!

Cold Storage

In Theaters: February 13, 2026

I didn't expect to be as excited as I now am for the Cold Storage movie. I think that may be due to the fact that the trailer teases a comedy-horror tone, rather than the thriller I remember David Koepp’s book being. The story centers on the chaos that ensues when a microorganism stored deep in a self-storage facility begins to thaw and threatens to wreak havoc on the planet if it isn't stopped. Jonny Campbell's adaptation, which was penned by Koepp, stars Georgina Campbell, Joe Keery and Liam Neeson, and looks like a lot of fun.

The Odyssey

In Theaters: July 17, 2026

Ok, I haven't actually read The Odyssey yet. I'm determined to correct that as part of my 2026 reading goals, so I'm certain I'll get to it before Christopher Nolan’s new movie comes out. In the meantime, with Nolan at the helm of this star-studded adaptation, it's impossible for me not to be excited about it. The adaptation of Homer's epic stars Matt Damon as the legendary Odysseus, and also stars Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, Zendaya, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal and more. The Odyssey trailer released online in December, and now I’m even more determined to get to the book.

Other Adaptations I Have My Eye On

I wanted to stick to the five book-to-screen movies I was absolutely super excited about in 2026, and there are two that only just missed the cut. The adaptation for Daniel Kraus' Whalefall is expected to hit theaters on October 16, 2026, and while it's still too early to have seen a trailer for the movie, as a fan of the book, I'm hopeful that the adaptation will be just as good. The story centers on a scuba diver who's swallowed by a whale while trying to find his father's remains. It's a bit of an adventure, as you can imagine, but it's also quite emotional, when factoring in the main character's grief and the complicated relationship he had with his father.

The other movie is Remain, M. Night Shyamalan's adaptation of the book he and Nicholas Sparks co-wrote. It's a bit of a romance and a bit of a thriller, with a supernatural element. I liked-didn't-love the book, but as a huge fan of Shyamalan, I'm still looking forward to the Remain adaptation.

To mention a few other adaptations on the way that I’m sure I’ll see, Wuthering Heights is on the list, though I didn’t love the book. Maybe I missed the window of time in my life when I would've been swept away by the dramatic story, but I wasn't as caught up in it the way I hoped I'd be, having recently read it for the first time. Still, I'm curious about Emerald Fennell's adaptation, so I know I'll watch it eventually.

There's also Reminders of Him, which I haven’t read, but the trailer got my attention. And finally, there are three adaptations, all of which are based off of sequels (or in one case, a prequel) I haven’t read: The Devil Wears Prada 2, Dune Messiah, and Sunrise on the Reaping. I’m not sure if I’ll get to read any of those before their respective movies come out, but as fans of the previous movies, I plan to see the adaptations.