After a mixed-bag year, 2026 seems promising for the Kannada industry. The year is set to witness a mix of star-driven movies and unique attempts from young filmmakers.
Will star movies be worth the hype? Will fans encourage the young voices of the industry? Only time will tell. Here are the Kannada movies that are expected to make some noise in 2026.
Toxic
Not just Kannada, this is one of the most anticipated Indian movies of 2026. Yash returns to the big screen after four years. The KGF films have propelled him to superstardom, and the film industry is eagerly awaiting his next offering. Yash, as writer and actor, teams up with acclaimed director Geetu Mohandas for Toxic. The former has built a successful career on enjoyable and wholesome entertainers, while the latter’s works (Liar’s Dice, Moothon) are more intense and niche in nature. The film has been in the making for a long time, with Hollywood action expert JJ Perry (John Wick) choreographing the stunt sequences.
The magnum opus, billed as a stylish retro-themed gangster drama, is co-produced by Yash and also stars Kiara Advani, Nayanthara, Rukmini Vasanth, Huma Qureshi, and Tara Sutaria. A success will establish Yash as a pan-India brand. On March 19, it will not have it easy at the box office, as it is set to clash with the Ranveer Singh-starrer Dhurandhar 2, the sequel to the biggest hit of 2025.
Billa Ranga Baasha:
Kichcha Sudeep has turned December into his month. After Max on December 25, 2024, Mark was released exactly a year later. Both movies were similar in nature. They were filmed in five to six months, and the plot revolved around a ferocious cop with less than 24 hours to solve a tricky case.
With Billa Ranga Baasha, Sudeep gets back into pan-India mode after Vikrant Rona. He joins hands with director Anup Bhandari, and the duo has a perfect chance to make amends for Vikrant Rona, which was criticised for being similar to the director’s RangiTaranga. Anup’s technical mastery was evident in Vikrant Rona, and he is expected to go all out in his dream project, a period actioner. And once again, Sudeep is eyeing a December release.
KD: The Devil
Four years in the making, KD: The Devil carries the typical pre-release hype expected of director Prem. Still, viewers know that a long wait does not automatically mean quality. Prem has a lot to prove as none of his recent movies, including the Shivarajkumar-Sudeep starrer Villain, impressed the audience.
Dhruva Sarja has had a challenging run, with Martin and Pogaru failing to make an impact. The film is a big-budget production, and stars Sanjay Dutt, Shilpa Shetty, Reshma Nanaiah, Ramesh Aravind, and Ravichandran. Prem and his team have a great responsibility to ensure the film is not a colossal disaster.
Love Mocktail 3
It is interesting how Darling Krishna and Milana Nagaraj, a real-life couple, continue to believe in a third instalment of what social media is calling a saturated franchise.While Darling Krishna dons the roles of actor, director, and co-writer, Milana handles acting and writing responsibilities, apart from managing production. The plots have not been extraordinary so far, but the couple has struck gold with two visually appealing films that featured soulful songs and earnest performances from Milana. They would hope to be lucky a third time.
666 Operation Dream Theatre
After Hemanth Rao paused his ambitious Bhairavana Kone Pata owing to veteran Shivarajkumar’s health concerns, the ace director quickly moved onto another big project. Hemanth is currently busy shooting 666 Operation Dream Theatre, starring Dhananjaya and Priyanka Mohan in lead roles and Shivarajkumar in a prominent role. Produced on a massive scale and set to release in Kannada and Telugu, the movie is set to transport fans back to the 1970s. Hemanth, known for his great attention to detail, promises to offer an authentic retro feel with his movie. The first-look posters of the lead characters are a testimony to Hemanth’s hold on the technical department.
Apart from the big-budget mainstream projects, here are a few promising content-oriented movies that could impress the audience:
Mango Paccha
The film stars Sanchith Sanjeev, the nephew of superstar Sudeep. It marks the directorial debut of Viveka. A crime thriller, the movie is shot in Mysuru and is a fictional story set in the mid-2000s. If Mango Paccha works, the Kannada film industry might have a young star in the making.
Jingo
Dhananjaya, known for backing newcomers, is starring in a movie directed by Shashank Soghal, who made the delightful yet thought-provoking college drama Daredevil Musthafa. If the title-revealing video is anything to go by, we might have a sharp political thriller on cards.
Video
After his critically acclaimed time-travel thriller Blink, young filmmaker Srinidhi Bengaluru is gearing up for the release of his sophomore film. A found-footage thriller, the film might revive the dead genre of horror in Sandalwood.
