King tops IMDb's list of most anticipated Indian films of 2026
Even in 2026, it appears that there is no substitute to stardom when it comes to film popularity. At least, this holds true for IMDb's compilation of the most anticipated Indian films of 2026. At the top of the list is director Siddharth Anand's King, starring Shah Rukh Khan. The anticipation for the film is understandable, especially considering the fact that it will be Shah Rukh's first release in theatres in three years. While the actor last appeared in a cameo role in son Aryan Khan's directorial debut The Ba***ds of Bollywood, his last feature film to hit theatres is director Rajkumar Hirani's Dunki. The film King brings Shah Rukh back together with Siddharth after 2023's Pathaan, which marked the actor's return to form after the box office failures of Jab Harry Met Sejal and Zero.
The list of the most anticipated Indian films of 2026 also has 19 other titles, comprising nine from Hindi, one each from Kannada and Malayalam, three from Tamil, and five from Telugu. Second on the list is director Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana Part 1, which stars actors Ranbir Kapoor as Ram, Sai Pallavi as Sita, and Yash as Ravan. Interestingly, Vijay's final film Jana Nayagan, directed by H Vinoth, finds the third spot on the list of the most awaited Indian films of 2026. Director Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Spirit, starring Prabhas and Triptii Dimri, and Geetu Mohandas' Toxic, starring Yash, are fourth and fifth on the list.
The rest of the films in the top ten are: Salman Khan's Battle of Galwan, directed by Apoorva Lakhia, Shiv Rawail's Alpha, starring Alia Bhatt and Sharvari, Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar 2, Anurag Singh's Border 2, and Vignesh Shivan's LIK: Love Insurance Company, starring Pradeep Ranganathan.
The only Malayalam film to find a place on the list is Mahesh Narayanan's Patriot, featuring Mohanlal and Mammootty, among others. Also starring Fahadh Faasil, Nayanthara, and Kunchacko Boban, among others, Patriot comes in at 19th on the list. The last film to feature on the list is Vishal Bhardwaj's O Romeo, featuring Shahid Kapoor. Its place is understandable because O Romeo's first look was only dropped a few days ago.
Here are the other films on the list:
11. Fauzi, directed by Hanu Raghavapudi, starring Prabhas
12. The Paradise, directed by Srikanth Odela and starring Nani
13. Peddi, starring Ram Charan and directed by Buchi Babu Sana
14. Dragon, directed by Prashanth Neel and starring Jr NTR
15. Love and War, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and starring Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal
16. Bhoot Bangla, directed by Priyadarshan and starring Akshay Kumar
17. Benz, directed by Bakkiyaraj Kannan, produced by Lokesh Kanagaraj, and starring Raghava Lawrence and Nivin Pauly
18. Shakti Shalini, directed by Ajitpal Singh and starring Aneet Padda
It is worth noting that the list applies only to films expected to release this year. SS Rajamouli's Varanasi, starring Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra, and Prithviraj Sukumaran, is not part of the list probably because its makers target a summer 2027 release.
IDMb looks at the number of views on each film's page from over 250 million visitors per month, to determine the rankings.