A few days ago, it was announced that War 2, starring Hrithik Roshan, Jr NTR, and Kiara Advani in the lead, has been moved from its October 2024 release to now arrive on August 14, 2025. On December 4, Akshay Kumar announced that his multi-starrer comedy Housefull 5 is not releasing in 2024, as originally scheduled, but is now arriving in June 2025 due to its extensive VFX work. With these two major releases shifted one year ahead, it looks like 2024 is simply losing more sparkle than it could afford to. Housefull 5: Akshay Kumar and Riteish Deshmukh's Comedy Franchise To Arrive in Theatres On June 6, 2025.

The year ahead is not only losing out on the biggest releases, but some of the major male crowd-pulling stars are also skipping the year. Let's start with the three Khans. In 2023, Shah Rukh Khan had three releases in Pathaan, Jawan, and Dunki, but the superstar is giving 2024 a miss (unless we get some surprise cameos), taking the year off.

Salman Khan, who has never skipped a single year in recent memory, is also not coming out with any announced film yet for 2024. His next would be The Bull, directed by Shershaah fame Vishnuvardhan, that would only be released in 2025. Aamir Khan has not yet relinquished his sabbatical yet when it comes to acting. While his production Laapataa Ladies is releasing on March 1, 2025, he has yet to start working on Sitaare Zameen Par, his first acting assignment since the debacle of Laal Singh Chadha. However, there is a buzz that it would be arriving in December 2024, so fingers crossed on that.

Ranbir Kapoor, who has scored major back-to-back hits in Brahmastra, Tu Jhooti Main Makkar, and Animal, is also not having any release in 2024. Ranveer Singh is also avoiding a solo release in 2024, though he could be seen in a multi-starrer film, which I would mention ahead. Animal Movie Review: Ranbir Kapoor's Provocative Performance Can't Rescue Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Exhausting and Disturbing Ode to Toxic Masculinity.

That said, 2024 is not without its biggies. The first major Bollywood film to arrive is Siddharth Anand's aerial action-drama, Fighter, with Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone, and Anil Kapoor in the lead, and is scheduled to release on January 25. We also have Nag Ashwin's Kalki 2898 AD with Prabhas in the lead, that's not exactly a Bollywood film but has Hindi stars Deepika Padukone, Disha Patani, and Amitabh Bachchan in the cast. It is currently scheduled to release on January 12, but with pre-release buzz having begun yet, there is a reasonable doubt if it could meet this date. Also, Prabhas' Salaar is releasing merely a couple of weeks before, and Deepika's Fighter releasing one week after, so there's that.

Kalki 2898 AD Glimpse:

Akshay Kumar, who has no plans to slow down, might see his Housefull 5 shifted to 2025, but he still has four confirmed releases coming out in 2024 - Soorarai Pottru Remake (February 16), Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (April 11) co-starring Tiger Shroff, Sky Force (October 2), and multi-starrer comedy Welcome To The Jungle (December 20). Now is also the opportunity to say that Rohit Shetty's Singham Again is also most probably releasing in August 2024. Even though the film has Ajay Devgn in the lead, the movie features a starry supporting ensemble in Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh, Tiger Shroff, and Arjun Kapoor. Kartik Aaryan has his Kabir Khan sports drama, Chandu Champion, arriving on April 19. Alia Bhatt has Vasan Bala's Jigra coming out on September 27, while Kangana Ranaut's Emergency has been postponed from its original December 2023 release date to 2024. Some of the other major releases include Merry Christmas, The Diplomat, Yodha, The Crew, Mr And Mrs Mahi, Stree 2, Deva, and Chhaava.

However, perhaps the biggest blockbuster of the year might not come from Bollywood but again from Telugu cinema, with Allu Arjun's Pushpa 2 - The Rule also releasing on August 15 (which makes us doubt if Singham Again would release on the same date). So which of these 2024 releases are you most excited about? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 04, 2023 06:52 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).