This summer, Indian theatres will be dominated by Hollywood. Reason? There are as many as eight English biggies releasing in the next three months. April started on a good note, with The Pope’s Exorcist and the animated film The Super Mario Bros Movie finding takers. In fact, the former eclipsed the collections of the Aditya Roy Kapur and Mrunal Thakur-starrer Gumraah.

Devang Sampat, CEO, Cinepolis India, says that summer has been ruled by English films even in the past. “There are only about four-six Bollywood blockbusters in a year and summer has always belonged to Hollywood. They mostly release their big films around this time.”

However, this time around, the gap between Bollywood and Hollywood is glaring, with no Bollywood film releasing in May. Trade analyst Komal Nahta says, “Production was low last year. Films weren’t doing well, so people in Bollywood were not sure what was happening. They wanted to introspect.”

Currently, all eyes are on the Salman Khan-starrer Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, which releases on April 21. After that, with big Hollywood titles such as Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, Fast X, The Little Mermaid, Spider-Man: Across The Spider Verse, Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts, The Flash and Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny releasing, it’s sure to be international films shining all the way.

Later, (actors) Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan, Ajay Devgn’s Maidaan, Prabhas’ Adipurush and Kartik Aaryan’s Satyaprem Ki Katha could help Bollywood shine again. “Everyone is looking forward to Bollywood releases in June. As of now, Jawan’s release date is confirmed for June 2,” shares Rajender Singh Jyala, chief programming officer, PVR Limited.

Trade expert Atul Mohan adds, “Hamare paas titles hi nahin hain abhi. So, there’s no competition between Bollywood and Hollywood.”

However, exhibitor Akshaye Rathi says franchises such as Spider-Man and Fast & Furious aren’t seen as outside films, because they have a huge following in India: “Tom Cruise and Dwayne Johnson are superstars in India too. Their films will have a solid impact, but I also have to give it (credit) to our industry for fighting tough times. We saw what happened with Pathaan and a bunch of films before that. It’s only a matter of time before we get back in a big way all over again.”

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3 — May 5

Fast X — May 19

The Little Mermaid — May 26

Spider Man: Across The Spider Verse — June 2

Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts — June 9

The Flash — June 16

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny — June 30

Jawan — June 2

Adipurush — June 16

Maidaan — June 23

Satyaprem Ki Katha — June 29