Best films released in the UK this month: December 2025
Highlights include Sentimental Value, Marty Supreme and The Housemaid.
As 2025 comes to a close, there's a chance you've already started compiling your list of the best films of the year – but you might want to hold of finalising that list just yet.
That's because there are still some pretty major films set to arrive in UK cinemas throughout December, from long-awaited blockbusters like Avatar: Fire and Ash to major awards hopefuls like Sentimental Value and Marty Supreme.
There's also fantasy romcom Eternity, video game horror sequel Five Nights at Freddy's 2, and horror comedy reboot Anaconda, while those who have read Freida McFadden's 2022 best-seller The Housemaid will be very excited about the starry adaptation led by Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney.
Meanwhile, two A-list stars are stepping behind the camera for the first time, with Scarlett Johansson's Eleanor the Great and Kate Winslet's Goodbye June among the more intriguing new releases of the month.
To help you pick out the highlights, we've put together a selection of some of the best films to watch this month – check out the video above or read on for our choices.
Best films released in the UK this month: December 2025
Eternity
Release date: Friday 5th December in cinemas
Elizabeth Olsen, Miles Teller and Callum Turner star in this afterlife-set love triangle romcom from director David Freyne.
The plot sees the soul of a recently deceased woman named Joan (Olsen) given one week to decide where to spend eternity, as she finds herself "torn between the man she spent her life with, and her first love, who died young and has waited decades for her to arrive".
It Was Just an Accident
Release date: Friday 5th December in cinemas
This thriller from legendary Iranian director Jafar Panahi won the prestigious Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival.
It follows a man after he bumps into the man he firmly believes to be his former torturer, although the latter strenuously denies this having been the case – which leads to some major doubt creeping in.
Five Nights at Freddy's 2
Release date: Friday 5th December in cinemas
Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail and Matthew Lillard return in this sequel to the hit video-game adaptation, which once again sees some terrifying animatronic creatures wreaking havoc.
According to the official synopsis, it sees 11-year-old Abby (Piper Rubio) sneaking out to reconnect with the animatronics, which "sets into motion a terrifying series of events that reveal dark secrets about the true origin of Freddy's".
Fackham Hall
Release date: Friday 12th December in cinemas
Comedian Jimmy Carr co-wrote the script for this period drama spoof which boasts a starry cast including Damian Lewis, Katherine Waterston, Tom Felton and Thomasin McKenzie.
Set in the 1930s – and clearly designed to ape the likes of Downton Abbey – the official synopsis teases that it sees a "new porter form an odd bond with the youngest daughter of a well-known UK family" at the same time as that family deals with "the epic disaster of the wedding of their eldest daughter to her caddish cousin".
Eleanor the Great
Release date: Friday 12th December in cinemas
Scarlett Johansson makes her directorial debut with a drama about a 94-year-old Holocaust survivor played by June Squibb.
It follows her when she moves from Florida to New York after the death of her dearest friend, as she attends a support group for Holocaust survivors and "tells a tale that takes on a dangerous life of its own".
Goodbye June
Release date: Friday 12th December in cinemas (24th December on Netflix)
Another directorial debut from an A-lister – this time Kate Winslet steps behind the camera for an all-star Christmas-set drama.
According to the synopsis, it sees a man and his four adult children navigate messy family dynamics when his wife's health takes a turn for the worse during Christmastime.
Silent Night, Deadly Night
Release date: Friday 12th December in cinemas
Halloween Ends star Rohan Campbell has the lead role in this remake of the classic festive slasher about a killer Santa.
Campbell is Billy, a man who – after a scarring incident in his youth – "dons the red suit and embarks on a blood-soaked massacre to feed his twisted sense of justice" every Christmas.
Ella McCay
Release date: Friday 12th December in cinemas
Emma Mackey stars as an idealistic politician in this comedy-drama from iconic writer/director James L Brooks – his first film in 15 years.
It follows her as she navigates difficulties in both her personal and professional life, with the starry supporting cast including Jamie Lee Curtis, Woody Harrelson, Alfred Brooks, Jack Lowden and Ayo Edebiri.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Release date: Friday 19th December in cinemas
The third adventure in James Cameron's mega-successful sci-fi franchise explores another new frontier in the land of Pandora.
The synopsis doesn't give too much away, but teases that, "Jake and Neytiri's family encounter a new, aggressive Na'vi tribe".
Sentimental Value
Release date: Friday 26th December in cinemas
Norwegian auteur Joachim Trier follows up his 2021 hit The Worst Person in the World with this moving family drama, which looks set to be a big awards player.
The cast includes Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas and Elle Fanning, with the film exploring events after a renowned director (Skarsgård) tries to cast his actress daughter (Reinsve) in his next film after years of estrangement.
Marty Supreme
Release date: Friday 26th December in cinemas
Timothée Chalamet is Oscar-tipped for his role in this '50s set comedy-drama from Josh Safdie, a fictionalised tale loosely based on the life of champion table-tennis player Marty Reisman.
The incredibly eclectic supporting cast includes Gwyneth Paltrow – in her first on-screen role in more than five years – in addition to Odessa A'zion, Kevin O'Leary, Tyler Okonma (aka Tyler the Creator), Abel Ferrara and Fran Drescher.
The Housemaid
Release date: Friday 26th December in cinemas
Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried have the lead roles in this adaptation of Freida McFadden's best-selling novel of the same name.
It follows events after young woman (Sweeney) is hired to become the live-in maid for a wealthy couple only to learn that they harbour some sinister secrets – with plenty of twists and turns along the way.
Anaconda
Release date: Friday 26th December in cinemas
This sequel to the 1997 horror-comedy of the same name – which is billed as a meta reboot – stars Jack Black and Paul Rudd in the lead roles.
The synopsis teases that "a midlife crisis inspires Doug (Black) and Griff (Rudd) to head into the Amazon rainforest to remake their favourite film from their youth" with but everything changing when "a real giant anaconda shows up, turning the comically chaotic set into a deadly situation".
Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
