Time Out's 10 Best Movies of 2026: From Nolan's 'The Odyssey' to Backrooms Horror

Key facts

• Time Out's list of the ten best movies of 2026 so far includes Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' at number one.
• The list was compiled by Time Out editors and contributors, updated throughout the year.
• Paolo Sorrentino's 'La Grazia' features Toni Servillo as a retiring Italian president dealing with pardons and an assisted-dying bill.
• Mascha Schilinski's 'Sound of Falling' traces trauma across four generations on a Bavarian farm.
• Mary Bronstein's 'If I Had Legs I'd Kick You' stars Rose Byrne as a therapist and mother, with a cameo by Conan O'Brien.
• Ross McElwee's 'Remake' revisits his 1985 film 'Sherman's March' and deals with personal loss, including the death of a son.
• Olivia Wilde's 'The Invite' is a comedy about a disastrous dinner party, adapted from the Spanish film 'The People Upstairs'.
• Óliver Laxe's 'Sirât' is a thriller set at a desert rave in Morocco, starring Sergi López.
• Kane Parsons' 'Backrooms' grossed $250 million at the global box office, based on the internet meme.
• Jane Schoenbrun's 'Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma' stars Hannah Einbinder and Gillian Anderson.
• Kaouther Ben Hania's 'The Voice of Hind Rajab' is a docudrama based on real phone calls of a six-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza.
• Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' stars Matt Damon as Odysseus and Samantha Morton as Circe, shot in IMAX.
• The year saw major franchise sequels stumble at the box office, while unknown directors broke through.
• Adaptations and documentaries have been particularly strong in 2026.