Highway 18 Outdoor Theater re-opens this week
Drive-in movies return to Jefferson, Wisconsin on May 21
Scroll down for Now Showing in Madison, May 19–May 25, 2026
Tuesday weekly posts feature some short notes on various cinematic topics, followed by the Now Showing in Madison guide to commercial theaters and alternative venues.
Sometimes a little good news can really brighten your outlook. I’m very happy to report the return of the Highway 18 Outdoor Theatre near Jefferson, Wisconsin.
The first season under new ownership begins Thursday, May 21 with a double feature of The Greatest Showman and Bohemian Rhapsody. It looks like they’re slowly re-vamping the theater’s website, highway18.com, but there’s no schedule information beyond this week posted yet.
You can read about the new owner, Jason Feige, and his plans for the theater at the Leader Independent online local newspaper. It appears that there will be a new push to keep the Highway 18 Outdoor Theater Facebook page active and updated.
This is all very good news. I’ve been a big fan of the Highway 18 Outdoor Theater since I took a tour of all the drive-in theaters near Madison for an Isthmus article back in 2001 (see first page, below). In recent years, leading up to its (now temporary) closing in 2025, I tried to make it to Highway 18 at least once a summer.
The key to going to the drive-in is not to care about what is playing. So I know what you’re thinking when you see this week’s double feature: do I really want to drive all the way out there to see The Greatest Showman and Bohemian Rhapsody? The answer is yes, you do. If you’ve been saying to yourself, “I should finally go to a drive-in movie,” don’t wait for the perfect or ideal double feature to do it.
Starting next week, I’ll include the Highway 18 double features in the Now Showing listings. And maybe I’ll have some updates to the tips for drive-in first-timers that I wrote about back in 2001. Stay tuned!
Now Playing In Madison: May 19–May 25, 2026
Please confirm showtimes with the venues (follow venue links where provided). The commercial theaters update their weekend listings on Wednesdays. Another valuable source that posts on Wednesdays with now playing lists is The Horizon Line Madison. When possible, I will provide links to reviews by Rob Thomas at Not That Rob Thomas, who gets around to far more proper reviews than I do.
Comments here are not reviews of the films, they are usually a response to the trailer, a summary of the buzz I have heard, or just snark. They are not always particularly accurate, according to reader feedback. I add trailers to new films of interest that you might not know about (American indies, international features, etc.).
Cinesthesia at Madison Public Library Central Branch
MENACE II SOCIETY (Allen & Albert Hughes, 1993), Wednesday May 20, 6:30pm.
Commercial Theaters:
AMC Theatres
Flix Brewhouse
Marcus Theatres (Palace and Point)
BEING TOWARDS DEATH at AMC.
Chinese comedy-drama about a man who survives a suicide attempt, and takes a job as a caregiver in a cancer ward. The critically ill patients inspire the man to convert an ambulence into a “wish-fulfillment tour bus.”
BILLIE EILISH - HIT ME HARD AND SOFT: THE TOUR at Flix, Palace, and Point.
Billie Eilish concert film. I have to admit, Billie Eilish is one of the few current female pop stars who I enjoy listening to during interviews. But I have mixed responses to most of the music, so I’ll pass on this one for now.
CORPORATE RETREAT at Point.
Horror film that appears to tap into everyone’s contempt for corporate culture.
CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON at AMC.
Worth seeing on the big screen if you didn’t get a chance back in 2000.
DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2, THE at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
GODZILLA MINUS ONE at AMC.
Re-release of 2023 film which managed to win an Oscar for special effects. I actually liked this film quite a bit, but my preference of recent Godzilla films remains Shin Godzilla (2016)
GREY, IN THE at Flix, Palace, and Point.
If you have been to any film in any theater in the last month or so, there is a very good chance that you’ve seen this trailer for the latest Guy Ritchie action drama starring Henry Cavil, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Eliza Gonzalez. Might be fun, but appears to be getting mediocre to negative reviews.
HOKUM at Palace.
I LOVE BOOSTERS at Point.
Crime comedy from rapper/filmmaker Boots Riley, lead vocalist of The Coup, whose Sorry to Bother You (2018) was a surprise hit. Good buzz on this from advance screenings.
IS GOD IS at Flix, Palace, and Point.
I seem to have had the wrong impression about this last week…it is actually getting some decent reviews, 98% on Rotten Tomatoes in fact. It still seems a bit over the top, but I’m intrigued.
KARUPPU at AMC.
Indian Tamil-language courtroom drama / action film with mythological fantasy elements, starring Prakash Raj and Suriya.
LEGALLY BLONDE 25TH ANNIVERSARY at Point.
MAMMA MIA! at Flix.
MAY CONTAIN: MY LIFE at AMC.
Documentary about the dangers associate with living with food allergies.
MICHAEL at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
Apparently people didn’t know how much they needed a Michael Jackson music-filled bio-pic that doesn’t go beyond the Bad tour in 1988. I guess that makes sense to someone my age, I seem to recall disliking almost everything in the Michael Jacksons ouvre after (and including) Scorsese’s Bad video. As of this writing, Michael is the fourth-highest grossing film of 2026.
MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM HATHAWAY: THE SORCERY OF NYMPH CIRCE at AMC, Palace, and Point.
MORTAL KOMBAT II at Flix, Palace, and Point.
OBSESSION at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
Horror film with the ol’ Be Careful What You Wish For theme. Young man buys a supernatural toy and wishes that his crush would fall hopelessly in love with him. Dude, you know you should have added “while respecting ourselves as individuals and providing sufficient space when needed.” This seems to be getting a strong response from viewers beyond horror fans.
PASSENGER at AMC, Flix, Palace and Point.
Supernatural horror film about a young couple on a road trip who are pursued by a demonic stalker. That old saw. Latest film from André Øvredal (Trollhunter 2016, Voyage of the Demeter 2023)
PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO at AMC.
Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy, a “spiritual sequel” to Pati Patni Aur Woh (2019, translates as “Husband, Wife, and Her”).
PRESSURE at Point and Palace.
Adaptation of a play by David Haig, about the meteorologist James Stagg (Andrew Scott) who advises General Dwight D. Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) on whether or not to proceed with the D-Day invasion. Early Memorial Day access, 2:00pm screenings on May 25.
PROJECT HAIL MARY at Flix, Palace, and Point.
Read Rob Thomas’s review.
SECRET WORLD OF ARRIETTY 4K, THE at AMC.
Can’t lose with Studio Ghibli. This time it’s directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi, loosely adapted from The Borrowers by Mary Norton.
SHEEP DETECTIVES, THE at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
Okay, I have no idea if this is any good. Word-of-mouth so far is that it is seems to be better than the first impressions I had from the trailer. In fact, several friends have said that they enjoyed it on social media. But does it need a New Yorker think-piece from Jill Lepore (who just won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for History) titled, “What ‘The Sheep Detectives’ Doesn’t Understand About Sheep”? Someone behind the paywall can tell me if it is worth it.
SHREK 25TH ANNIVERSARY at AMC, Flix, Palace, and Point.
STAR WARS: THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU at Flix, Palace, and Point.
Well, here’s some more if you want it.
SUPER MARIO GALAXY MOVIE, THE at Flix, Palace, and Point.
THAT THEY MAY BE ONE at Palace and Point.
Faith-based documentary examining the concept of the Holy Spirit across denominational lines. A Fathom presentation.
TOP GUN 40TH ANNIVERSARY at AMC, Palace, and Point.
TOP GUN: MAVERICK RE-RELEASE at AMC, Palace, and Point.
You know, when I finally caught up with this, I really regretted not having seen it on a big screen. I’m not quite sure if I’ll take the time to do so this particular week, but it is very tempting.
WIZARD OF THE KREMLIN, THE at AMC, Palace, and Point.
Yesterday I posted a review/discussion with Rob Thomas about the film, and you can also read Rob’s review at Not That Rob Thomas. It’s an interesting history lesson following a fictional character inspired by Russian avant-garde theater director / businessman / politician / bureaucrat Vladislav Surkov. But a history lesson does not always translate into a compelling drama.
Have you used the Now Showing in Madison listings at least once to find something interesting to see? Have you discovered a film that you didn’t realize was playing in town? Please consider supporting these efforts directly by clicking the “Buy Me a Popcorn” button and making a modest donation on those occasions when you find this resource valuable to your moviegoing in Madison.
Looking Ahead:
Local filmmaker Michael Doyle Olson has started what he hopes to be a comprehensive, collaborative public calendar of alternative film screenings in Madison. It is still a work in progress, but check it out at www.mdo.me/film.
UW Cinematheque & WUD Film
UW Cinematheque will resume with “Bleak Week” from Wednesday, June 24 through Tuesday, June 30.
Side Room Cinematheque
Consult Instagram @sideroomcinematic for screening details, second Thursday of the month, and last Monday of the month.