{"id":359739,"date":"2026-04-02T04:46:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T04:46:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/359739\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T04:46:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T04:46:20","slug":"we-asked-our-readers-for-the-best-new-movie-of-2026-so-far-and-there-was-a-clear-winner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/359739\/","title":{"rendered":"We asked our readers for the best new movie of 2026 (so far) \u2014 and there was a clear winner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Towards the end of March 2026, we asked our readers to select their favorite movie from 2026 (so far)<\/a>, and more than 2500 people responded. While we\u2019re staring down a barrage of highly-anticipated summer blockbusters (\u201cThe Odyssey,\u201d \u201cSupergirl: Woman of Tomorrow<\/a>\u201d and \u201cSpider-Man: Brand New Day<\/a>,\u201d to name but a few), we figured now was as good a time as any to see what our readers have loved watching most so far this year.<\/p>\n

Just like how we asked for your input as part of the inaugural Tom\u2019s Guide Movie Awards <\/a>last month, we recently launched a poll asking readers to choose their favorite major release they\u2019ve enjoyed seeing on the big screen. They had to pick from flicks like \u201cSend Help<\/a>,\u201d \u201c28 Years Later: The Bone Temple<\/a>,\u201d and Disney and Pixar\u2019s latest family adventure, \u201cHoppers<\/a>,\u201d but another film quickly emerged as the clear winner.<\/p>\n

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That film was \u201cProject Hail Mary<\/a>,\u201d Phil Lord and Christopher Miller\u2019s new take on Andy Weir’s novel of the same name.<\/a> This phenomenal sci-fi adventure received 38% of the thousands of votes cast. <\/p>\n

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Granted, it\u2019s no shock to see it come out on top; within two weeks of its theatrical release, \u201cProject Hail Mary\u201d has overtaken \u201cHoppers\u201d as the second-biggest movie of the year at the worldwide box office (behind Chinese sports comedy \u201cPegasus 3\u201d). It landed rave reviews from critics and fellow moviegoers alike \u2014 and if you\u2019ve seen it, you\u2019ll know why.<\/p>\n

That delightful intergalactic adventure is absolutely my film of the year so far, too, and judging by the comments on our original article, our readers agree! User John Szetela said, \u201cI read the book and then saw ‘Project Hail Mary’. It\u2019s one of the best Science Fiction movies ever made! Don\u2019t miss it!\u201d<\/p>\n

Nia DaCosta\u2019s visceral horror sequel \u201c28 Years Later: The Bone Temple\u201d carved out a small lead as our second-place winner, earning 11% of the votes. Of the film, Seth Roth said: \u201cI really enjoyed ‘Bone Temple’, it\u2019s a shame it didn\u2019t seem to set things on fire because I\u2019ve been enjoying their weird new take on zombies and a kind of oddball storytelling.\u201d<\/p>\n

After that, it was a tightly contested competition for third place, with the remaining eight films each earning between 5-8% of the remaining votes. The Chris Hemsworth-led crime thriller \u201cCrime 101<\/a>\u201d (8% of votes) claimed the last spot on the podium at the last second, fewer than 10 votes ahead of Sam Raimi\u2019s darkly funny survival thriller \u201cSend Help\u201d (8% of votes).<\/p>\n

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“Hoppers” came in fifth, just ahead of Emerald Fennell’s divisive \u201cWuthering Heights<\/a>\u201d (both earning 6% of votes), with “Goat” and “Reminders of Him” (also both earning 6% of votes) coming in seventh and eighth place.<\/p>\n

Down at the bottom of the list, “Scream 7″ just edged ahead of Mark \u201cMarkiplier\u201d Fischbach\u2019s independent sci-fi\/horror feature, \u201cIron Lung.” Both earned 5% of the vote, but the latest Ghostface flick grabbed 139 votes to “Iron Lung’s” 134, meaning the latter flick rounded out our list in 10th place.<\/p>\n

We loved seeing your responses, and hope you enjoyed weighing in \u2014 even if your top movie didn’t quite come out on top. At the very least, you might have uncovered a recommendation or two to catch up on before blockbuster season is upon us.<\/p>\n

We’ll be running more polls<\/a> and “Have Your Say” articles in the future (in fact, we’ve just published one asking What was your first-ever Apple device?<\/a>), so stay tuned for our next reader vote!<\/p>\n

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Follow Tom’s Guide on Google News<\/a> and add us as a preferred source<\/a> to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. <\/p>\n

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