5 Reasons Why Steven Spielberg's Disclosure Day Is Already The Must-See Movie Event Of The Summer

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The light is shining on Emily Blunt in Disclosure Day

Published May 30, 2026, 8:11 PM EDT

Karlis has been obsessing over television and movie news since he first learned how to read. He has worked in tech, as a musician, and in journalism with a well-rounded knowledge base of pop-culture throughout the eras. He claims that he has memorized the entire Internet Movie Database, and to date no one has been able to refute this.
Holding a Bachelor's Degree in Religion and Culture from Wilfrid Laurier University, Karlis loves to examine the intersections of popular science-fiction and culture. His latest novel MASS. is available now on Amazon and examines a world where obesity has become a federal crime.

Steven Spielberg returns to the big screen this summer with Disclosure Day, and his new science fiction story looks to be the most important movie of 2026. Spielberg's best movies have already crafted one of the greatest legacies in cinema for the director, but there is good reason to believe that he is not finished with breaking ground yet.

That said, none of these are the most exciting cinematic events of this summer. Even the return of Star Wars to the big screen with The Mandalorian and Grogu's box office opening has resulted in the lowest opening of the Disney era. Audiences are hungry for something fresh, and Spielberg's new film looks like the perfect offering.

With big films like Jurassic Park and A.I. Artificial Intelligence on Spielberg's resume, it is no wonder that audiences are eagerly anticipating Spielberg's return to big-budget science fiction movies like Disclosure Day. However, things are even more exciting than they may initially seem, thanks to these incredible details that help to emphasize the movie's importance.

The Reactions To Disclosure Day Have Been Wildly Positive

Emily Blunt in front of a weather screen in Disclosure Day.

The most recent boon for Spielberg's new film is in the first reactions to Disclosure Day. The film received some early screenings for critics, and the responses have been astoundingly positive.

Jim Hemphill called it on "top tier Spielberg" on X, claiming that he "lays down the gauntlet and reminds you that he does this stuff better than anybody in the history of film."

Bill Bria on X paints a similar picture, describing David Koepp's script as "X-FILES-meets-The Bible" before praising the performances and the musical score. Critics who have seen the film have all been extremely positive about the new story, and while full reviews are not yet available, these opinions bode incredibly well.

Granted, early reactions do tend to skew somewhat positive. However, it is the palpable energy and excitement from these responses to Disclosure Day that make these responses so exciting. If the reviews are even remotely as good as the reactions, audiences are in for a real treat.

The New Film Builds On Spielberg’s Legacy

Cary Guffey as Barry Guiler in Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Spielberg's resume contains one of the most diverse slates of anyone in Hollywood. The originator of the blockbuster with the release of Jaws more than 50 years ago, Spielberg has remained a creative and technical powerhouse, crafting original stories as well as franchise templates that continue to be built upon to this day.

Still, one of the most exciting parts of Spielberg's career has been his contributions to the science fiction genre. While more recent films like Ready Player One have added to his resume, Spielberg's legacy has endured with films that explore alien life, preceding even Jurassic Park with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

While Disclosure Day is not purported to be a sequel to that 1977 film, it has been noted that Spielberg's new movie will answer questions from Close Encounters. Covering similar territory, with a grounded look at alien life, Disclosure Day looks to be an evolution on his earlier alien project, and is assured to be a necessary watch in sequence.

Josh O’Connor And Emily Blunt Are Two Of The Best Actors In 2026

Emily Blunt and Josh O'Connor with wires attached to their heads looking at the sky in Disclosure Day

Many of the biggest and best names in Hollywood have lined up to be a part of Spielberg's projects. The casting of Emily Blunt and Josh O'Connor in Disclosure Day is then a very exciting prospect, and picks up two performers at the tops of their respective careers.

Emily Blunt has had an incredible year. Blunt starred in The Smashing Machine alongside Dwayne Johnson, where she gave one of the best performances of her career, and has more recently dominated the box office with The Devil Wears Prada 2. Disclosure Day is an incredibly exciting next project for her.

Just as exciting is O'Connor, who has also had several fantastic years. A powerful presence seen in Challengers, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, and many smaller projects, including The Mastermind, O'Connor is on a meteoric rise in the industry. His unique charisma is the perfect fit for this new project.

The rest of the cast is also stunning. Academy Award winner Colin Firth, Michael's Colman Domingo, and Thunderbolts* star Wyatt Russell are only a few of the great and accomplished names who fill out the larger cast list.

Disclosure Day Is More Relevant Today Than Ever Before

A graphic of people walking towards Washington D.C. while a UFO hovers overhead.

People have always wondered if aliens are real, and how much the world's governments really know about them. This has reached a fever pitch in the last few years, with an increased proliferation of leaks, documents, and rumors. The 2025 UFO documentary The Age of Disclosure was a popular movie that looked into many of these details.

As access to information becomes more readily available, transparency around these topics becomes more and more necessary. There has also been an increase in comments from those assumed to be in the know, including Barack Obama in 2024, that many have construed to be confirmations of alien life.

Those with greater power would then have greater access to this information. With the full third act of Disclosure Day left out of the marketing, there is rampant curiosity about if Spielberg knows more about the reality of aliens than he is saying. Seeing how the director explores that in this new film is among Disclosure Day's most thrilling prospects.

Audiences Yearn For A Unique Event Film, And Disclosure Day Provides It

The box office has changed in recent years, and has clearly shown that audiences have a great appetite for projects that are new and unexpected. While familiar sequels and comic book adaptations continue to do well in cinemas, tastes have changed, allowing more original films like Project Hail Mary to be among the biggest releases of 2026 so far.

With an incredible box office run for Obsession currently occurring, the results for this summer are anyone's guess. Seeing films like Top Gun Maverick, Barbie, and the Emily Blunt-starring Oppenheimer dominate the box office in recent years has been an encouraging sign. Even last year's new IP adaptation The Minecraft Movie was a shockingly huge global hit.

Audiences want some details they recognize, but with something new thrown in. Iterating on the Steven Spielberg brand with a new science fiction story that channels much of his past successes could be the perfect recipe for 2026. Certainly, few movies are coming soon with even half as much potential as Disclosure Day.