Beasts, beauties and heroes: Movies coming in 2017

It seems like only yesterday that it was 2016.

Oh, wait, it was! And that means we have a whole new slate of movies on the horizon. As usual, there are lots of sequels and franchise installments, but there are also some new takes on old classics.

Here’s a look at what’s in store for 2017 (release dates are subject to change).

“Fifty Shades Darker” – The sequel to kinkfest “Fifty Shades of Grey” finds perpetually tortured soul Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan) trying to entice a more cautious Anastasia Steele (Dakota Johnson) back into his life. Don’t do it, girl (but we know you do, since there’s still one more movie to come in the trilogy). (Opens Feb. 10)

“John Wick – Chapter Two” – This sequel to the surprisingly good original has Keanu Reeves again starring as the titular hitman, who comes out of retirement (why are they always retired?) to square off against the world’s deadliest killers. (Feb. 10)

“The Great Wall” – Matt Damon stars in this tale about China’s Great Wall if it had been built not to keep out northern invaders but to defend against mythical monsters. I guess we just have to pretend there isn’t a thing called actual history. (Feb. 17)

“Logan” – The third stand-alone Wolverine movie depicts an older Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), past his prime, taking care of an even more past-his-prime Charles Xavier/Professor X (Patrick Stewart). Grumpy old X-men, perhaps? (March 3)

“T2 Trainspotting” – More than 20 years after the original “Trainspotting” became a hit and introduced us to a little-known actor by the name of Ewan McGregor comes this sequel as we catch up with Renton, Spud (Ewen Bremner), Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller) and Begbie (Robert Carlyle) to see where life has led them. I suspect it hasn’t been good. (March 10)

“Kong: Skull Island” – Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: A gigantic ape lives on a remote island and – oh, you have heard this one before? (March 10)

“Beauty and the Beast” – Disney is slowly getting around to making live-action versions of all its most beloved cartoons, including this one with Emma Watson as the beauty and Dan Stevens (from TV’s “Downton Abbey”) as the beast. Be their guest, indeed. (March 17)

“Power Rangers” – This reboot of the franchise has five teens who use their special powers to save the world from an alien threat. (March 24)

“Ghost in the Shell” – The Japanese manga series gets remade for the American screen with Scarlett Johansson as a cyborg policewoman who attempts to bring down a nefarious computer hacker. (March 31)

“The Fate of the Furious” – The eighth film in the “Fast and Furious” franchise has Vin Diesel and Co. returning for more street adventures, this time attracting such pedigreed Oscar winners as Charlize Theron and Helen Mirren to join the cast. (April 14)

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” – The second outing with the Marvel space misfits has them trying to unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s true parentage. Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista and the voices of Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel return. (May 5)

“King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” – Speaking of reboots, director Guy Ritchie tries to do for the King Arthur legend what he did for “Sherlock Holmes”: update it with his flashy visual flair but leave it in its original era. Charlie Hunnam (TV’s “Sons of Anarchy”) and Jude Law star. (May 12)

“Alien: Covenant” – This is the sequel to “Prometheus,” which was itself a prequel to the original “Alien” movies – got all that? Director Ridley Scott returns to the franchise. (May 19)

“Baywatch” – This reboot of the cheesy TV lifeguard series stars Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron as the buff dudes who patrol a beach in California. Series stalwarts David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson make cameos. (May 19)

“Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” – The franchise just goes on and on and the titles make increasingly less and less sense. Brenton Thwaites joins the cast with Johnny Depp returning in his now-signature role of Capt. Jack Sparrow. (May 26)

“Wonder Woman” – The Amazon princess gets her own origin story movie, starring Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman. Chris Pine also stars. (June 2)

“The Mummy” – An ancient mummy awakens from its slumber, etc. Tom Cruise stars. (June 9)

“World War Z 2” – You know those zombies, they just won’t quit. Brad Pitt returns, but the story has been kept under wraps. (June 9)

“Kingsman: The Golden Circle” – British spy Taron Edgerton returns, this time teaming with his American equivalents to clobber bad guys – with style, of course. (June 16)

“Spider-Man: Homecoming” – The second reboot of the Spider-Man series has Tom Holland continuing the role he launched in “Captain America: Civil War,” as Peter Parker learns more about his special powers – and how he got those instant abs. (July 7)

“Dunkirk” – Christopher Nolan directs this World War II historical drama about allied soldiers from Belgium, the British Empire and France who are evacuated when the Germans attack. Tom Hardy and Cillian Murphy star. (July 21)

“Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” – The French comic book comes to the American big screen, following time-traveling agents Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne), who are sent to investigate a galactic empire. (July 21)

“The Dark Tower” – Stephen King’s beloved series of books gets made into a movie, following Gunslinger Roland Deschain (Idris Elba), who roams an Old West-like landscape in search of a dark tower. (July 28)

“Blade Runner 2049” – The sequel to the 1982 original follows a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K (Ryan Gosling), who unearths a long-buried secret that could wreak havoc among what’s left of society. Harrison Ford reprises his role of Rick Deckard, but to what extent is unknown. (Oct. 6)

“Thor: Ragnarok” – Chris Hemsworth returns for the third solo Thor film. He’ll be joined by Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner/The Hulk, but story details have been mum. (Nov. 3)

“Justice League” – It’s superhero overdose as Batman (Ben Affleck), Superman (Henry Cavill), Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), the Flash (Ezra Miller), Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and Cyborg (Ray Fisher) unite to battle the evil Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds). (Nov. 17)

“Star Wars: Episode VIII” – We don’t know much about this next installment, except that Rian Johnson (“Looper”) is directing and most of Episode VII’s cast will be back, including Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac and Adam Driver, as well as original franchise stars Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher (whose recent death will add an air of sentimentality). (Dec. 15)

This story was originally published December 28, 2016 at 6:30 PM with the headline "Beasts, beauties and heroes: Movies coming in 2017."