The most highly anticipated movies headed to theaters this fall

Someday they’re going to make movies about the crazy election year of 2016. The possibilities are endless: hard-hitting dramas, conspiracy thrillers, slapstick comedies — the sky’s the limit.

Maybe the high entertainment value of this zany campaign season explains why the fall movie slate looks bland by comparison. Who needs fiction when the real world is a three-ring circus?

To be fair, the autumn’s films promise variety. The summer onslaught of sequels and remakes gives way for — well more sequels and remakes, but also a few serious films and awards-worthy pictures.

Tom Hanks makes a water landing and cracks another Da Vinci code, Ben Affleck takes up accounting, and J.K. Rowling returns to the “Harry Potter” universe. We’ve got vampires, cowboys and peculiar children. And fans of comic-book movies will have “Doctor Strange” to fret over.

There’s plenty of distraction to take us through Election Day. Then when Thanksgiving arrives, and half the country is figuring out how to move to Canada, we’ll start the rush of holiday films and heavy-duty Oscar contenders.

This isn’t the entire roster, and release dates change constantly. Still, here are some of the most highly touted fall releases:

Sept. 9

“Sully.” Tom Hanks plays the pilot who landed the passenger jet on the Hudson River — which sounds like a five-minute movie. The film looks at the aftermath as well, and the ways that public image doesn’t always conform to reality — something director Clint Eastwood has been good at exploring in the past. Laura Linney co-stars.

“The Disappointments Room.” That locked door in the attic of that new isolated mansion you just moved into? Do not open it, or you might just be severely disappointed. That’s the horror behind this new shocker with Kate Beckinsale, which is, we are told, “based on a true story.”

Sept. 16

“The Beatles: Eight Days a Week — The Touring Years.” A documentary — directed by Ron Howard — about the Fab Four circa 1963-66, with an emphasis on live performance footage. Whatever this is, it is going to sound really, really good.

“Bridget Jones’s Baby.” It’s a new phase for the irrepressible Brit Bridget Jones, once again played by Renee Zellweger. After a long layoff from movies, and a rather dramatic change in appearance, Zellweger might be wise to opt for a character she’s played expertly before. The loyal Colin Firth returns.

“Blair Witch.” The witch is back, as director Adam Wingard (who did the ingenious “The Guest”) puts a new group of young people into the haunted woods. Expect more of an action-movie vibe this time.

“Snowden.” Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as the document-leaker Edward Snowden. The subject matter, though controversial, could possibly be the basis of a thoughtful, calm consideration of recent history — but with Oliver Stone directing, don’t count on it.

Sept. 23

“The Magnificent Seven.” Complaints about remaking classic movies might be blunted in this case: the beloved 1960 Western was itself a remake of “The Seven Samurai.” And hey, we’re due for a big Western. Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt and Ethan Hawke lead the gunslingin’ cast.

“Queen of Katwe.” Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o and David Oyelowo star in a true tale of a Ugandan girl who dreams of becoming a chess champion. Director Mira Nair (“Monsoon Wedding”) shot this inspirational Disney production on location in Africa.

Sept. 30

“Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.” There are some rather odd residents of Miss Peregrine’s home, including a few supernaturally talented kids whose gifts seem more horrifying that peculiar. The best-selling novel by Ransom Riggs is adapted here by — who else? — Tim Burton, with a cast that includes Eva Green, Samuel L. Jackson, and “Hugo” star Asa Butterfield.

“Deepwater Horizon.” The 2010 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig is brought to life from the perspective of the workers at the location (Mark Wahlberg and Kurt Russell among them) and an anxious wife (Kate Hudson) back home. Director Peter Berg did “Lone Survivor” with Wahlberg, so expect more ground-level heroism and blunt action.

“Masterminds.” A bank heist picture in which the title refers to characters played by Zach Galifianakis, Owen Wilson and Kristen Wiig. So there may be some irony afoot. The director is “Napoleon Dynamite” guy Jared Hess, which means the silliness factor could be high.

Oct. 7

“The Girl on the Train.” A best-selling novel by Paula Hawkins comes to the screen, its story transplanted from the U.K. to the U.S. Emily Blunt leads the cast, as a woman whose daydreams while staring out the train window turn out to be something quite different in reality. Directed by Tate Taylor (“The Help”).

“The Birth of a Nation.” This movie came roaring out of the Sundance Film Festival as an Oscar favorite, although its luster has clouded in the wake of renewed publicity about director-star Nate Parker’s college involvement in a rape case. The movie itself is a no-holds-barred account of the slave uprising led by Nat Turner (and presumably a response to the 1915 movie titled “Birth of a Nation”).

Oct. 14

“Underworld: Blood Wars.” Amazingly, this is the fifth installment of a franchise that seemed played out long ago. But here’s Kate Beckinsale again, still game to get into the middle of the great vampire-werewolf wars that just keep dragging on.

“The Accountant.” Hey Hollywood, enough with the sexy titles, OK? This one promises to be a rip-snorting thriller about a small-town CPA (Ben Affleck) who covertly balances books for some very shady organizations. Anna Kendrick and J.K. Simmons co-star.

“Kevin Hart: What Now?” The comedian-turned-movie-star returns to his stand-up roots for a concert film (he’s said he’s retiring from stand-up films after this, but we’ll see how long that lasts). The show was filmed in Philly before an audience of 50,000.

Oct. 21

“Jack Reacher: Never Go Back.” A follow-up to the 2012 “Jack Reacher,” which gave Tom Cruise a solid role and provided a welcome dose of hard, well-executed action. The sequel finds the tough loner Reacher helping a colleague (Cobie Smulders) and going outside the law. You know — again.

“Ouija: Origin of Evil.” You always knew those Ouija boards were Satan’s playthings, right? Here’s the proof, in a sequel to “Ouija” (2014), which apparently scared up enough bucks to justify another installment. Just in time for Halloween, too.

“Boo: A Madea Halloween.” Tyler Perry puts on his dress and fright wig again to play the indomitable Madea — a character who’s probably been the basis for many Halloween costumes already.

“Keeping Up with the Joneses.” Suburban couple Zach Galifianakis and Isla Fisher suspect that new neighbors Jon Hamm and Gal Gadot (that’s “Wonder Woman”) are spies. Or something really glamorous and cool, anyway. This one’s directed by “Superbad” helmer Greg Mottola, and that cast is promising.

Oct. 28

“Inferno.” Tom Hanks resumes his role as Dan Brown’s erudite hero, renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon, this time waking up an amnesiac in Florence. Expect lots of skullduggery and hocus-pocus and ancient secrets brought to light with lemon juice and ultraviolet light, or something. Once again Ron Howard directs.

“American Pastoral.” Philip Roth’s sprawling novel of postwar life gets a big-screen treatment — and, intriguingly, it’s also the directing debut of actor Ewan McGregor. He stars in the film, along with Dakota Fanning and Jennifer Connelly.

“Rings.” Maybe you thought there was no more life left in “The Ring,” that horror series begun in Japan. But here we go again — except that nobody watches VHS tapes any more, the basis of the original. Technology marches on, but so do horrible vindictive ghosts.

Nov. 4

“Doctor Strange.” Benedict Cumberbatch, Tilda Swinton, Mads Mikkelsen — man, the cast makes this look like the coolest hipster film ever. But no, it’s another chapter in the Marvel Comics plan to take over the culture. The good doctor is a chap who can navigate this world and the unseen one, which makes him handy when the future of humanity hangs in the balance.

“Hacksaw Ridge.” Mel Gibson’s first film as director since the dynamic “Apocalypto” is the true story of a conscientious objector (Andrew Garfield) who served courageously at the Battle of Okinawa while remaining steadfast in his refusal to kill other people.

“Trolls.” A big animated release examines the previously unexplored inner lives of those 1960s-era toys. Whatever the movie might be, it’s certainly a shortcut on the marketing aspect of cartoon films: the tie-in dolls already exist.

“Loving.” Tipped as a big Oscar favorite, this period piece documents the legal battle of Mildred and Richard Loving (Ruth Negga, Joel Edgerton) to not be thrown in jail because they had married each other. The legal fight took place in the 1960s in Virginia, where their marriage was illegal because they were of different races.

Nov. 11

“Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk.” Lots of reasons to anticipate this one, from Oscar-winning director Ang Lee to a wildly varied cast (Kristen Stewart, Chris Tucker, Steve Martin) to the tale of a war hero recalling his service in Iraq. Most intriguingly, the film is shot in a new technology that uses hyper-sharp photography, the latest rumored game-changer in how we watch movies.

“Shut-In.” Most spooky-kid movies have just one child; here, there are two boys giving Naomi Watts trouble. If nothing else, this Gothic outing should give the actress a chance to act up a storm.

Nov. 18

“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.” J.K. Rowling expands her “wizarding world” to include a tale that occurs decades before the kids from the “Harry Potter” series were around. The plot concerns an English wizard (Eddie Redmayne) who finds adventure in 1920s America. The fun supporting cast includes Colin Farrell and Katherine Waterston.