CinemaCon 2024: Gladiators, Deadpool and Dwayne Johnson dominate

Dwayne Johnson appeared with Polynesian dancers to introduce Moana 2

The annual meeting of cinema - or movie theatre owners - as they're better known in the US, has been taking place in Las Vegas, where stars and executives showcase their latest productions.

CinemaCon often has a huge number of talking points and this year has been no exception.

There's been appearances from the likes of Ariana Grande and Dwayne Johnson and teaser trailers from upcoming releases such as Moana 2 and Joker: Folie à Deux.

A double dose of Disney

Walt Disney Studios had two major reveals for fans - unreleased clips from Deadpool and Wolverine plus Moana 2.

Deadpool's Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman opened the presentation (albeit virtually) by appearing in a nine-minute extended trailer of the much-anticipated release.

Those in attendance got a first look at Jackman's Wolverine, and were also treated so several jokes pointed towards Fox and even Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige.

After the disappointment of the Deadpool stars not being there in person, Disney made it up to the audience by bringing on none other than Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

He joined in with a performance by Polynesian dancers and introduced a clip of Moana 2, in which he reprises his role as Maui.

We're going back to the Colosseum

Chris Aronson, President of Domestic Distribution at Paramount Pictures arrives onstage at CinemaCon dressed as a Gladiator.

Paramount Pictures couldn't pass up the opportunity to share the first trailer of Gladiator II on the stage of The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

The hotel's luxurious re-imagining of Ancient Rome looks pretty different to the one in Ridley Scott's new film though - which follows on from historical drama released in 2000.

A star-studded cast of Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal and Joseph Quinn appear in the all-action clip, with Mescal seen facing off against rhinos and baboons.

Scott promised the film, which is scheduled for release in November, would be "well worth the wait."

More nights at Freddy's

The boss of film studio Universal, Donna Langley, took a moment to reflect on her company's success in the last year - namely its film Oppenheimer being a box office and awards show hit.

Universal Pictures were celebrating the success of Oppenheimer

But she said "that's not enough for us" and said the studio had its best years ahead of it - despite the challenge cinemas are facing in getting people through the doors.

One of Universal's announcements was a sequel to the globally successful Five Nights at Freddy's, which is set for an autumn 2025 release.

The video game adaptation made £107m globally in its opening weekend, and the studio is hoping to replicate its success with the film's second helping.

The Wicked hype keeps growing

Luckily for Cynthia Erivo, who plays "bad witch" Elphaba in the forthcoming adaptation of the musical film Wicked, her appearance at CinemaCon didn't involve the character's signature green face paint.

She was dressed in the colour though, keeping up the theme alongside co-star Ariana Grande, who plays Glinda the Good Witch and was appropriately dressed in pink.

The pair were on stage to introduce an extended trailer of the film, which featured snippets of the songs Popular and Defying Gravity.

"We both felt such a tremendous responsibility to honour these women and to pour our hearts, our souls, our tears - so many different pairs of lashes," Grande said.

Erivo added: "I'm really grateful for this journey that we've taken together."

A minion takeover is around the corner

It's time to dust off your finest suit, because the release of Despicable Me 4 is coming soon.

The franchise's third film caused chaos in UK cinemas back in 2022, and the boss of animator Illumination introduced some new characters entering the minion world.

CinemaCon attendees got a first look at newcomers to the cast - Will Ferrell, Sofia Vergara and Stephen Colbert.

The film, which is out in July, follows Gru (played by Steve Carell) as he joins forces with Poppy (Joey King) to steal a honey badger, getting help from other minions and Gru's new baby son.

A bold prediction about David

The Sound of Freedom exceeded the studio's expectations

Angel Studios, which was behind last year's controversial Sound of Freedom, which explored human trafficking and proved a big global box office success, predicted their next release, the Biblical epic David, will be the most successful animated film of all time.

It's about David, the shepherd boy who battles the giant Goliath, and against the odds, slays him.

Chief marketing officer Alex Nielsen announced that an initiative they brought in for Sound of Freedom, which allowed people to donate money to pay for tickets for others, would be brought back for this film.

Nielsen estimated that it had helped almost two million people to see the film.

Angel Studios boldly suggested they want this film to be the top-grossing animated film of all time. But to do that, it's going to have to beat the 2019 adaptation of The Lion King and earn more than $1.7bn worldwide.

We're going Gaga for Joker: Folie à Deux

The trailer for the long-awaited sequel to Joker was shown for the first time, with fans getting a look at Lady Gaga's version of Harley Quinn.

Joaquin Phoenix reprises his Oscar-winning role as Joker, with Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn

Joaquin Phoenix reprises the title role, for which he won an Oscar for in the original.

• Read more: Seven things we spotted in the Joker 2 trailer

The pair seemingly meet and fall in love in Arkham Asylum before apparently escaping and forming a musical duo.

Director Todd Phillips said it isn't a musical, as had been rumoured, but that music is "an essential element".