David’s Top 6 of 2026 (so far)
With some breakout hits and a booming box office (the best in seven years!), I think it’s safe to say that “movies are back.”
Usually, by the midpoint of the year, I am feeling less than optimistic about the state of the industry. However, 2026 has surpassed my expectations across many genres as Hollywood studios took some big swings, even if all of them didn’t totally pay off. Check out my favorite movies of the year so far and give them a watch if you haven’t already:
6. Send Help
Sam Raimi (Evil Dead) gloriously returns to his horror roots with this horror-thriller that pits Rachel McAdams against Dylan O’Brien on a deserted island. It’s part Cast Away, part Misery, and packed with just the right amount of dark humor and gore to keep you coming back for seconds.
Check out The Drive Home’s full review here.
5. Obsession
This year’s biggest surprise hit also happens to be very good. Writer-director Curry Barker gives the “careful-what-you-wish-for” storyline a fresh twist with Obsession, which follows an awkward guy named Bear who wishes on a supernatural object for his crush Nikki to love him back. Bear gets a lot more than he bargained for, to a terrifying degree, and so does the audience! Inde Navarrette deserves an Academy Award nomination for her performance as Nikki - you’ll be squirming in your seat every time she appears.
4. Hoppers
Pixar is back on its A-game this year, delivering a fun and heartfelt adventure with Hoppers. The film lands its message about respecting nature and our planet without being heavy-handed and there are plenty of laughs along the way. Shoutout to Vanessa Bayer as the shark Diane!
3. Remarkably Bright Creatures
Netflix should have sent this crowd-pleasing adaptation to theaters because it’s exactly the kind of feel-good drama we’re missing from cinemas these days. Sally Field is perfectly cast as Tova, an elderly woman who befriends an octopus while working at the local aquarium.
Literary purists need not worry as the movie stays faithful to the book on which it’s based, and director Olivia Newman nails the emotional beats of the third act.
2. Project Hail Mary
This sci-fi blockbuster deserves all the critical acclaim and box office success it has earned this year. Ryan Gosling commands every frame as an astronaut stranded light years from home, working alongside a rock-like alien to get back to Earth and save our dying sun.
Check out The Drive Home’s full review here.
Hokum
Damian McCarthy’s latest chiller has stuck with me ever since I saw it in early May. Hokum is a reminder that sometimes the most tried-and-true ingredients can still add up to an exceptional horror experience at the movies. A spell-binding ghost story, topnotch jump scares, and a strong central performance from Adam Scott put Hokum among the top of my favorites so far this year.
Honorable mentions:
The Sheep Detectives
Toy Story 5
Apex
Backrooms