Steven Spielberg is one of the most successful directors of all time, but even he might have trouble competing against some of Hollywood’s biggest franchises. For that reason, the release date for his next film has been pushed back. According to IndieWire, Spielberg’s latest, currently billed as an “untitled event film,” will premiere on June 12, 2026. It was previously scheduled to debut on May 15, 2026, where it would have been sandwiched between two massive Disney tentpoles: Avengers: Doomsday and The Mandalorian & Grogu. Delaying Spielberg’s film gives it plenty of breathing space from that pair of blockbusters.
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Spielberg’s movie isn’t the only Universal title to be delayed. His upcoming project is taking the date that was previously reserved for the next film from The Daniels (Everything Everywhere All at Once), which has been removed from the release calendar for the time being. However, IndieWire notes that The Daniels’ film will receive a new date “shortly.” Though there is a script in place, that movie “needs a little more time” before it’s ready to move forward.
Plot details for Spielberg’s latest are being kept under wraps, though it has been said the story involves UFOs. Written by the director’s longtime collaborator David Koepp, the film’s cast includes the likes of Emily Blunt, Colin Firth, Colman Domingo, and Josh O’Connor.
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May 2026 is set to be a very busy time at the box office. Marvel’s Avengers: Doomsday, which features Robert Downey Jr. as villain Doctor Doom, is set to open on May 1, 2026. A few weeks later (May 22, 2026 to be precise), Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian & Grogu — the first new Star Wars film since 2019 — will debut. Both films are expected to be sizable draws.
Spielberg’s box office track record speaks for itself, but Universal’s decision to delay his next film makes a lot of sense. Doomsday and Mandalorian & Grogu will in all likelihood dominate the marketplace during the early portion of the 2026 summer movie season, leaving very little room for other genre pictures to make an impact. As a high-profile “event film,” Universal obviously has a lot invested in Spielberg’s latest, and it wants the movie to be in the best place for it to succeed. Going up against the Scary Movie reboot in mid-June as opposed to two of 2026’s most anticipated tentpoles sounds like a recipe to accomplish that.
Of course, no window in the summer movie season is free from all competition. Spielberg’s event film is now opening in the same month as Travis Knight’s Masters of the Universe reboot, Pixar’s Toy Story 5, and Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow (plus, there are several high-profile offerings on deck for that July). However, Spielberg has been a fan-favorite director for decades, and his return to blockbuster filmmaking (his most recent offerings have been Oscar-contending dramas) will give audiences plenty of reasons to be excited for his next project. Knowing what Spielberg is capable of, whatever the movie is, it shouldn’t have any trouble standing out from the crowd.
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