Kristen S

Collider's 15 most anticipated blockbusters of 2012

As 2011 comes to a close, it's time to look forward to the movies set to open in 2012. While many are busy compiling their Top 10 lists from 2011, we thought it'd be a good time to run down the list of our 15 most anticipated blockbusters of the coming year. Will The Avengers deliver as the culmination of four years worth of Marvel movies? Just how much of a prequel to Alien is Prometheus? Will The Dark Knight Rises be the greatest movie ever made in the history of movies and awesomeness? There are a lot of unknowns, and we've learned that sometimes the best behind-the-scenes talent can still make a stinker (Cowboys & Aliens), but we're hoping for more than a few pleasant surprises (a la X-Men: First Class) to appease us in 2012. Hit the jump to check out our list.

Note: For the sake of this article, a "blockbuster" is considered a large-scale, big budget event film. Movies are listed in order of release.

Snow White and the Huntsman
Director: Rupert Sanders
Cast: Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, Sam Claflin, Noah Huntley, Nick Frost, Ray Winstone, Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins, Toby Jones, Eddie Marsan and Steven Graham
Release date: June 1st, 2012
Why we're excited about it: While the idea of two Snow White movies wasn't exactly the most appetizing thought, the first trailer for Snow White and the Huntsman was kind of badass. In his feature film debut, the first look at Rupert Sanders' iteration of the classic story definitely took a lot of people by surprise; it's much more Lord of the Rings than Alice in Wonderland. Charlize Theron is a delight any time she gets a meaty character to chew on, and she appears to be in fine form here as the Evil Queen. We haven't seen much from Kristen Stewart yet, but turning Snow White into a sort of reluctant warrior is definitely an interesting direction. Sanders' visuals are epic in scope, and I'm enticed to find out if this ambitious fairy tale delivers.