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‘Predator: Badlands’  

Starring: Elle Fanning, Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi 

Director: Dan Trachtenberg 

In cinemas: Nov. 6 

The latest installment in the popular sci-fi action franchise is set on “the most dangerous planet in the universe,” where Dek, a young Predator who’s been outcast for being a runt, has decided to take a chance hunting down “the ultimate apex predator” to prove his worth. He’s assisted by Thia, a damaged synth created by Weyland-Yutani (the bad guys of the “Alien” franchise). But she brings her own set of problems into the equation, being opposed by another synth, Tessa. (Fanning plays both Thia and Tessa.) Trachtenberg has cited “Shane,” “Mad Max 2,” Clint Eastwood Westerns, and the seminal video game “Shadow of the Colossus,” among others, as thematic and stylistic influences.  

‘The Running Man’  

Starring: Glen Powell, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Emilia Jones 

Director: Edgar Wright 

In cinemas: Nov. 13 

The second adaptation of Stephen King’s 1982 novel about a dystopian near-future in which the titular lethal competition is the highest-rated show on television. Contestants, known as Runners, must evade professional assassins (Hunters) for 30 days to claim a huge cash reward. Powell plays Ben Richards, who’s persuaded to enter the show in a last-ditch effort to get enough money together to potentially save the life of his sick daughter. Director Wright has proven his ability to direct propulsive action with “Baby Driver,” and with Powell — one of the hottest properties in Hollywood — as the lead, this should be a lot of fun. 

‘Jay Kelly’ 

Starring: George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Laura Dern 

Director: Noah Baumbach 

In selected cinemas: Nov. 13; on Netflix: Dec. 5 

Baumbach’s coming-of-age comedy drama was nominated for the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival. Clooney plays the titular (fictional) actor — a big movie star, but a pretty hopeless human being and father — and Sandler plays his manager Ron Sukenick. The film follows the pair on a journey through Europe during which they begin to open up to each other about their relationships, their lives and their legacies. Baumbach co-wrote the film with British actress Emily Mortimer. 

‘Wicked: For Good’ 

Starring: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey 

Director: Jon M. Chu 

In cinemas: Nov. 20 

The adaptation of the second act of Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman’s multi-award-winning stage musical — an adaptation (of an adaptation) of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” — sees friends Elphaba and Glinda coming to terms with their new identities as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good. Elphaba continues her fight for animal rights, while Glinda finds herself the focus of the unwelcome attention of the Wizard and Madame Morrible. And when Dorothy Gale arrives in Oz from Kansas, their relationship is strained further. 

‘Zootopia 2’  

Voice cast: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Ke Huy Quan 

Directors: Jared Bush, Byron Howard 

In cinemas: Nov. 27 

Disney’s big animated release this winter sees Bunnyburrow police officers Judy Hopps (rabbit) and Nick Wilde (fox) team up once again. This time, they’re on the trail of Gary De’Snake, a mysterious pit viper who’s just doing his best to help his family, but leaves chaos in his wake. Judy and Nick go undercover and discover a reptilian population living as a hidden underclass in their city. 

‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ 

Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver 

Director: James Cameron  

In cinemas: Dec. 18 

The third installment in Cameron’s epic sci-fi series picks up a year after the events of 2022’s “The Way of Water.” As Jake and Neytiri’s family struggle to come to terms with Neteyam’s death, they encounter the Ash People — an aggressive tribe led by Varang, who has allied his people with Quaritch, Jake’s enemy. Pandora’s internal conflicts escalate with “devastating consequences.”  

‘Marty Supreme’  

Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A’zion 

Director: Josh Safdie 

In cinemas: Dec. 25 

Having pulled off an acclaimed portrayal of legendary singer-songwriter Bob Dylan earlier this year, Chalamet turns his attention to a lesser-known US hero, Marty Reisman, an obsessively driven table-tennis player whose life loosely inspired this comedy-drama set in 1950s New York, where Marty is a staple of the sport’s community, renowned for his skill and showmanship in equal measure. 

South Korean writer Han Kang’s “The Vegetarian” tells the story of Yeong-hye, a mild-mannered woman who abruptly decides to become a vegetarian — a decision that baffles her husband and sparks a family fallout. 

The novel explores how the protagonist’s life begins to unravel as her refusal to eat meat deepens into obsession, and she endures severe physical and emotional abuse at the hands of those closest to her.

First published in Korean in 2007, the novel earned Han the 2016 Man Booker International Prize for its English translation by Deborah Smith. In 2024, Han became the first South Korean author to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.

At a recent Kalimat Book Club meeting at Alkhobar’s Marfa cafe, readers discussed both the Arabic and English translations. The consensus seemed to be that the English version was more lyrical and poetic, while the Arabic seemed to be truer to the spirit of the original, with more rigid sentences and organic dialogue.

The book club also explored the novel’s three-part structure — told mostly from the male characters’ perspectives — with some suggesting this made Yeong-hye seem like a secondary character in her own life. Discussion also focused on the validity of some scenes and how each narrator framed the overall story.

Han’s imagery draws heavily from Asian folklore, in which people often dream of merging with trees, flowers or mountains in acts of punishment, transcendence or return.

Like the classic Japanese tale retold in Koji Yamamura’s 2002 Oscar-nominated animation “Mt. Head” — in which a grumpy old Japanese man unknowingly grows a cherry tree from his skull and morphs into a plant — “The Vegetarian” channels the animist belief that humans and nature are intertwined.

The question that lingers after reading and discussing the book is: Was the central character’s act one of empowerment or powerlessness?