From Sonic the Hedgehog 3, XO, Kitty Season 2, Anora, and more, January 2025 is a busy month.
Related: End The Year Right With These New Movies And Shows Of December 2024
Given that it’s the start of the year, it is to be expected that the movie and show lineup for the month will be light on new content. But January 2025 didn’t get the memo with new releases coming our way every week of the month. New year, new watchlist, as they say. From blockbusters and critically acclaimed movies making their Philippine debut to anticipated new seasons, check out the new films and shows coming this month.
ANG MUTYA NG SECTION E
There’s a new Wattpad series adaptation on the scene. Based on the popular Wattpad series of the same name, the show follows Jay-jay on her fresh start in high school. But that proves more complicated when she’s assigned to the notorious Section E, a class composed of rowdy male students. As the only girl in the section, she’s the subject of pranks and torments by her classmates. But that doesn’t mean she takes it all as is, as she fights back with her signature wit and charm, which soon leads to Jay-jay forming unexpected friendships and then some with her classmates. The series is currently streaming on Vivaone.
CUNK ON LIFE
Deadpan documentarian Philomena Cunk confounds philosophers and academics in her quest to understand the meaning of life in this feature-length special that’s now streaming on Netflix.
WHEN THE STARS GOSSIP
Lee Min Ho stars in what is said to be the first space romantic comedy K-drama. It follows an OB-GYN space tourist and female space commander and their fateful encounter on a space station. The series is streaming now on Netflix.
MGA BATANG RILES
Featuring some of GMA’s hottest Gen Z stars including Miguel Tanfelix, Raheel Bhyria, Bruce Roeland, and Kokoy de Santos, Mga Batang Riles is based on the 1992 film Jesus dela Cruz at Ang Mga Batang Riles. The series follows a group of young men wrongfully accused of a crime and as they work to clear their names, they come across bad actors looking to stop them from seeking justice. One of GMA Network’s newest offerings is currently airing on TV.
WICKED: SING-ALONG VERSION
As the name suggests, it’s Wicked, but you can finally sing along this time with special sing-along screenings playing in the Philippines starting January 8. Now you can belt your hearts out to Popular and Defying Gravity without being judged.
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3
Following its successful US debut last December, the third installment in the Sonic movie franchise finally makes its way to the Philippines. Sonic the Hedgehog returns to the big screen as Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails reunite against a powerful new adversary, Shadow, a mysterious villain with powers unlike anything they have faced before. With their abilities outmatched in every way, Team Sonic must seek out an unlikely alliance in hopes of stopping Shadow and protecting the planet. The movie makes its way onto local cinemas this January 15.
WOLF MAN
New year, new monster. Blake, a San Francisco husband and father, inherits his remote childhood home in rural Oregon after his father vanishes and is presumed dead. With his marriage to his high-powered wife, Charlotte, fraying, Blake persuades Charlotte to take a break from the city and visit the property with their young daughter, Ginger. But as the family approaches the farmhouse in the dead of night, they’re attacked by an unseen animal and, in a desperate escape, barricade themselves inside the home as the creature prowls the perimeter.
As the night stretches on, however, Blake begins to behave strangely, transforming into something unrecognizable. Charlotte is soon forced to decide whether the terror within their house is more lethal than the danger outside. Oh, and did we mention that the movie is directed by Leigh Whannell, who gave us The Invisible Man and Upgrade? Yeah, we’re watching. See this for yourself when it screens in local theaters beginning January 15.
TOMORROW X TOGETHER: HYPERFOCUS
Tomorrow x Together: Hyperfocus is an immersive 4DX concert experience featuring the popular K-pop boy group. Fans will enjoy a fantastical performance in breathtaking environments in a K-pop experience unlike any other. Feel it all in 4D and more with limited screening beginning January 15.
INCOGNITO
ABS-CBN is coming in hot with their first big series of 2025. This star-studded production follows a group of special forces agents on a dangerous mission that takes them across the world. The mission commences when the series premieres on Netflix on January 17 and TV on January 20.
ANORA
This DIVA! The critically acclaimed love story stars Mikey Madison as Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn who gets her chance at a Cinderella story when she meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. Once the news reaches Russia though, her fairytale is threatened as his parents set out for New York to get the marriage annulled. Catch one of the best movies of 2024 exclusively in Ayala Malls cinemas this January 22.
FLIGHT RISK
Why not start your year with a thriller set in the sky? A U.S. Marshal escorts a government witness to trial after he is accused of getting involved with a mob boss, only to discover that the pilot who is transporting them is also a hitman who had been sent to assassinate the informant. If that wasn’t enough, after they subdue him, they’re forced to fly together after discovering that others are looking to eliminate them. You can watch this in cinemas on January 22.
PRESENCE
The first cinematic haunted house of 2025 comes courtesy of Steven Soderbergh. While the plot is giving typical haunted house fair with a family beginning to realize that there’s something wrong about their new house, there’s a lot more to the film since it premiered to strong reviews at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. See what goes bump in the night when it screens in local cinemas this January 22.
A REAL PAIN
Written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg (yes, that Jesse Eisenberg), the movie tells the story of mismatched cousins David and Benji as they reunite for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. The adventure takes a turn however when the odd couple’s old tensions resurface against the backdrop of their family history. The well-received movie comes to the Philippines as an Ayala Malls exclusive this January 29.
YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN
The MCU is going big this 2025 after a relatively quiet 2024, and it starts with this animated series following a young Spider-Man. Set in the wider MCU, the show centers on Peter Parker during his early days as Spider-Man on his way to becoming the hero we know. This fresh take and unique art style that pays homage to the character’s early comic book roots gives the series a fresh energy that we haven’t seen of the superhero in the MCU before. As a cherry on top, the show will also serve as the MCU debut of Pearl Pangan, aka Wave, the first Filipino Marvel superhero. The series swings on Disney+ on January 29.
NEW SEASONS
It may be January, but we’re starting the month with back-to-back new seasons to binge for the first half of the year. RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17 (January 3), Solo Leveling Season 2 (January 5), Singles Inferno Season 4 (January 14), Castlevania: Nocturne Season 2 (January 16), XO, Kitty Season 2 (January 16), Harley Quinn Season 5 (January 16), Severance Season 2 (January 17), The Recruit Season 2 (January 30).
Continue Reading: The New Movies And Shows Of November 2024 That Have Us Hyped
