There are four elemental types of Super Bowl viewers: Football fans, Halftime Show fans, people who only show up to eat the seven-layer dip, and people who only tune in for the commercials. In case you weren’t able to catch the Big Game this weekend (or you missed some of the ad breaks because somebody had to make more dip), here’s a quick recap of the animated, VFX-packed teasers and trailers that debuted.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Pre-Game Spot
April 8 | Paramount Pictures
The world’s favorite blue hedgehog is back for a next-level adventure. After settling in Green Hills, Sonic (voiced by Ben Schwartz) is eager to prove he has what it takes to be a true hero. His test comes when Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey) returns, this time with a new partner, Knuckles (voiced by Idris Elba), in search for an emerald that has the power to destroy civilizations. Sonic teams up with his own sidekick, Tails (voiced by Colleen O’Shaughnessey), and together they embark on a globe-trotting journey to find the emerald before it falls into the wrong hands.
Directed once again by Jeff Fowler (Gopher Broke); also stars James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Natasha Rothwell, Adam Pally, Lee Majdoub and Shemar Moore.
The Lost City Pre-Game Spot
March 25 | Paramount Pictures
Brilliant, but reclusive author Loretta Sage (Sandra Bullock) has spent her career writing about exotic places in her popular romance-adventure novels featuring handsome cover model Alan (Channing Tatum), who has dedicated his life to embodying the hero character, “Dash.” While on tour promoting her new book with Alan, Loretta is kidnapped by an eccentric billionaire (Daniel Radcliffe), who hopes that she can lead him to the ancient lost city’s treasure from her latest story. Wanting to prove that he can be a hero in real life and not just on the pages of her books, Alan sets off to rescue her. Thrust into an epic jungle adventure, the unlikely pair will need to work together to survive the elements and find the ancient treasure before it’s lost forever.
Directed by Adam Nee and Aaron Nee; also stars Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Oscar Nuñez, Patti Harrison and Bowen Yang — plus, Brad Pitt pops in, per the teaser.
NOPE Big Game Spot & Official Trailer
Universal Pictures | July 22
“What’s a bad miracle?” Oscar winner Jordan Peele disrupted and redefined modern horror with Get Out and then Us. Now, he reimagines the summer movie with a new pop nightmare: the expansive horror epic, Nope. The film reunites Peele with Oscar winner Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out, Judas and the Black Messiah), who is joined by Keke Palmer (Hustlers, Alice) and Oscar nominee Steven Yeun (Minari, Okja) as residents in a lonely gulch of inland California who bear witness to an uncanny and chilling discovery.
Written and directed by Peele, produced by Ian Cooper (Us, Candyman); co-stars Michael Wincott (Hitchcock, Westworld) and Brandon Perea (The OA, American Insurrection).
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness Official Trailer
Marvel/Disney | May 6
The MCU unlocks the Multiverse and pushes its boundaries further than ever before. Journey into the unknown with Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), who, with the help of mystical allies both old and new, traverses the mind-bending and dangerous alternate realities of the Multiverse to confront a mysterious new adversary.
Directed by Sam Raimi; also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Elizabeth Olsen, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, with Michael Stühlbarg, and Rachel McAdams.
Jurassic World Dominion Big Game Spot & Official Trailer
Universal/Amblin | June 10
This summer, experience the epic conclusion to the Jurassic era as two generations unite for the first time. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are joined by Oscar winner Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill in Jurassic World Dominion, a bold, timely and breathtaking new adventure that spans the globe. Dominion takes place four years after Isla Nublar has been destroyed. Dinosaurs now live — and hunt — alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history’s most fearsome creatures.
Directed by Jurassic World architect Colin Trevorrow; stars BD Wong, Justice Smith, Daniella Pineda and Omar Sy with newcomers DeWanda Wise (She’s Gotta Have It), Emmy nominee Mamoudou Athie (Archive 81), Dichen Lachman (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Scott Haze (Minari) and Campbell Scott (The Amazing Spider-Man 2).
Moon Knight Big Game TV Spot
Marvel/Disney+ | March 30
Disney+ unveiled a thrilling look at its new, original and exclusive Marvel Studios series, which brings a never-before-seen Marvel Super Hero to the screen, and unveiled a brand-new poster. The story follows Steven Grant, a mild-mannered gift-shop employee, who becomes plagued with blackouts and memories of another life. Steven discovers he has dissociative identity disorder and shares a body with mercenary Marc Spector. As Steven/Marc’s enemies converge upon them, they must navigate their complex identities while thrust into a deadly mystery among the powerful gods of Egypt.
Jeremy Slater is head writer and exec producer; stars Oscar Isaac, Ethan Hawke and May Calamawy.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Teaser Trailer
Prime Video | September 2
Amazon Studios’ forthcoming series brings to screens for the very first time the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness.
Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.
The series is led by showrunners and executive producers J.D. Payne & Patrick McKay. They are joined by executive producers Lindsey Weber, Callum Greene, J.A. Bayona, Belén Atienza, Justin Doble, Jason Cahill, Gennifer Hutchison, Bruce Richmond, and Sharon Tal Yguado, and producers Ron Ames and Christopher Newman. Wayne Che Yip is co-executive producer and directs along with J.A. Bayona and Charlotte Brändström.
… And, just for fun, some cosplaying ungulates in the Disney+ Has All the GOATS spot. The promo has Awkwafina take fans through the Disney+ offices, which are revealed to be the home of the “Greatest Of All Time” from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. More than 30 goats can be seen in the promo representing many fan-favorite characters including Captain America, Chewbacca, Cruella, Woody and Homer Simpson.
