Gremlins 3 Unveils New Release Date & First Look

Published Sep 23, 2026, 7:41 PM EDT

Reports of the sequel being in the works go back as far as 2013, and in the 13 years since then, there has been uncertainty about whether Gremlins 3 would actually happen. In November 2025, it was confirmed that the next and untitled installment in the Gremlins franchise is being directed, written, and produced by Christopher Columbus, who wrote the original 1984 movie, and it was slated to be released in theaters on November 19, 2027.

Warner Bros. has now announced that Gremlins 3 will be released on October 6, 2028, instead of November 19, 2027. A teaser, which features the new release date, was also unveiled. The footage shows a Gremlin making noise while inside a backpack and saying, "Uh-oh." Check it out below:

The first weekend of October is a release window that has worked well for Warner Bros. before, including with Joker, which grossed $1.078 billion worldwide after premiering on October 4, 2019. There were no scheduling conflicts amid the ongoing Warner Bros. merger with Paramount, as Paramount did not have any movies slated to debut in theaters on November 19, 2027, nor do they have any for October 6, 2028.

All story details for Gremlins 3 remain under wraps. It will be the franchise's first movie since 1990's Gremlins 2: The New Batch, although an animated television series, Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, ran for two seasons on HBO Max from 2023-2025. The show revolved around Gizmo and 10-year-old Sam Wing, as they move from Shanghai to America before the events of the first film in which Randall Peltzer meets Gizmo.

Beyond his history with the Gremlins franchise, the upcoming movie's director, writer, and producer has an extensive filmography. Columbus 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 produced The Goonies and is also producing Gremlins 3, and Steven Spielberg is aboard as an executive producer as well. Columbus is only the franchise's second film director, as Joe Dante directed Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch.

With the Gremlins 3 release date pushed back almost an entire year, Columbus and the rest of the creative team now have more time to work on the franchise's long-awaited return to the big screen. Given the artistic medium, it will inevitably have a wider audience than the animated television series did, along with more expectations.

Gremlins 3 releases in theaters on October 6, 2028.

Release Date December 15, 2023

Writers Carl Ellsworth