Gremlins 3 Gets New 2028 Release Date And First Look

Gremlins 3 is now scheduled to hit theaters on October 6, 2028, with a new release date and first look revealed for the long-awaited sequel.

Plans for a third Gremlins movie have been discussed since at least 2013, but the project spent years uncertain as to whether it would actually move forward. That changed in November 2025, when it was confirmed that Christopher Columbus would direct, write, and produce the next installment in the franchise. Columbus previously wrote the original 1984 Gremlins movie. The film was initially scheduled for a theatrical release on November 19, 2027.

Warner Bros. has now moved Gremlins 3 to October 6, 2028. The early-October release period has previously worked well for the studio, including with Joker, which opened on October 4, 2019, and went on to earn $1.078 billion worldwide. The new date also does not currently conflict with Paramount’s theatrical schedule, despite the ongoing Warner Bros. merger with Paramount.

Story details for Gremlins 3 are still being kept secret. Hannah Marks is writing the screenplay, following an earlier draft developed by Columbus, Zach Lipovsky, and Adam B. Stein.

The movie will be the first theatrical Gremlins film since 1990’s Gremlins 2: The New Batch. In the meantime, the franchise returned through the animated series Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, which ran for two seasons on HBO Max between 2023 and 2025. The series followed Gizmo and 10-year-old Sam Wing as they traveled from Shanghai to America, taking place before the events of the original movie and Randall Peltzer’s meeting with Gizmo.

Columbus also brings an extensive filmmaking background to Gremlins 3. He directed the first two Harry Potter movies, Home Alone, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Rent. He also wrote the screenplay for The Goonies.

Amblin Entertainment, which produced The Goonies, is also producing Gremlins 3, while Steven Spielberg is attached as an executive producer. Columbus will become only the second director to helm a Gremlins movie, following Joe Dante, who directed both the original film and Gremlins 2: The New Batch.

With Gremlins 3 now delayed by almost a year, Columbus and the creative team have additional time to develop the franchise’s long-awaited return to theaters. As a feature film, the sequel is also expected to reach a broader audience than the animated series, bringing additional attention and expectations to the franchise’s return.