SCI-FI TV PREVIEW

The coming months will bring a treasure trove of new movies, series and returning favorites

- CHRISTOPHER WALLENBERG

MOVIE MADNESS

Filmgoers may slowly be gravitating back to megaplexes, but you can still see some new releases on any of your own screens at the same time the titles hit theaters. The latest adaptation of Frank Herbert’s landmark sci-fi novel Dune (HBO Max, October 22) will try to turn the rich source material into a hit franchise. Director Denis Villeneuve, who helmed Arrival, hopes to have better luck than David Lynch, whose 1984 version was sandblasted by critics. In this epic tale, a family becomes guardians of a dangerous desert planet’s storehouse of the most valuable substance in the universe. A Game of Thrones-style power struggle leads to the rise of a messianic hero (Timothée Chalamet). Dune costars Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Charlotte Rampling, Zendaya, and a load of giant sandworms. Audiences can also plug into the highly anticipated The Matrix 4 (HBO Max, December 22), written and directed by Lana Wachowski. Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss return as Neo and Trinity, despite both having died at the end of The Matrix Revolutions, though Hugo Weaving and Laurence Fishburne are reportedly not part of the action. Cast additions include Neil Patrick Harris, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen), rumored to be playing a younger version of Morpheus. And let’s call this one a postapocalyptic Cast Away! Like that 2000 Tom Hanks film, Finch (Apple TV+, Fall) features the two-time Oscar winner as one of the last human survivors of a cataclysmic event. Hoping to ensure his beloved dog will be cared for once he’s gone, he builds an android to watch over the pooch. The biggest challenge? Showing the robot how to “love.”

THEY CAN BE HEROES