With the arrival of Friday’s “Wolverine,” blockbuster season is officially upon us. Last year’s summer of “The Dark Knight” was a record-breaker, and this one could be bigger. Attendance is already up by about 12 percent over last year, according to Media By Numbers, and audiences hungry for (relatively) cheap thrills may eat up the long list of sequels, adaptations and revamps. Here are the high-profile offerings.
Star Trek (May 8)
Director J.J. Abrams reboots the franchise and injects something that’s been sorely lacking: all-out action. A young Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and crew try to stop a Romulan (Eric Bana) from destroying planets.
Angels & Demons (May 15)
Tom Hanks returns sans mullet (amen!) as symbologist Robert Langdon in Ron Howard’s follow-up to “The Da Vinci Code” — this time investigating a murder plot by the shadowy Illuminati.
Terminator: Salvation (May 21)
You need to see this fourth in the franchise — in which John Connor (Christian Bale) battles in a future world overrun by machines — if for no other reason than you don’t want to make Bale angry.
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (May 22)
Ben Stiller keeps taking security jobs at museums where exhibits come to life. (Maybe he should think about law school.)This time, he’s got another sexy historical figure to ogle: Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams).
Up (May 29)
We’re dying to see how Pixar plays this bizarre premise: A crusty old man (Ed Asner) ties thousands of balloons to his house and floats off.
Land of the Lost (June 5)
A scientist (Will Ferrell) and his assistant (Anna Friel) get sucked into a primitive world inhabited by strange and hostile creatures. And it’s not Mississippi.
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (June 26)
Those pesky giant robots are back to destroy Earth and claim their rightful Burger King merchandising dollars. Shia LaBeouf reteams with the Autobots and Megan Fox’s cleavage to defeat the evil Decepticons.
Bruno (July 10)
Prepare to cover your eyes for two-thirds of this cringe-worthy successor to “Borat.” Sacha Baron Cohen punks the unsuspecting with his flaming gay Austrian character.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (July 17)
In this penultimate chapter to the series, the boyish-no-longer wizard discovers more about the origins of Voldemort.
Funny People (July 31)
In Judd Apatow’s third film as director, a famous comedian (Adam Sandler) discovers he’s dying from cancer and takes a young performer under his wing. Apatow branched out and cast Seth Rogan in this one.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (Aug. 7)
Sienna Miller, Channing Tatum and Dennis Quaid head a commando team whose greatest weapon is computer effects. Just so we’re clear, producers say the movie isn’t based on the original toy line, but the comic books based on the toy line.
Julie & Julia (Aug. 7)
A Queens woman (Amy Adams) decides to prepare every recipe in Julia Child’s cookbook. Meryl Streep plays Child herself, which should be all you need to know to buy a ticket.
Inglourious Basterds (Aug. 21)
A WWII commander (Brad Pitt) assembles a small group of Jewish soldiers to terrorize Nazis in occupied France. Quentin Tarantino writes and directs, so you know the dialogue will crackle — and the blood flow.
Public Enemies (July 1)
The story of the most daring robbery spree in America not involving an AIG bailout. Gangster John Dillinger (Johnny Depp) matches wits with a relentless fed (Christian Bale). Michael Mann directs.