Not every installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is under obligation to nod towards future events, although the vast majority of them do contain at least a little bit of connective tissue to knit the overarching mythology even closer together.
Despite being a sequel to the Saw mythology that went to great lengths in the marketing to distance itself from Jigsaw, director Darren Lynn Bousman was constantly fielding questions about Tobin Bell's involvement, or lack thereof.
Longtime fans of the Rocky franchise were left equal parts surprised and saddened when it was confirmed by both Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone that the Italian Stallion wasn't part of Creed III, which marks the former's directorial debut.
Bradley Cooper might be best known for his exploits in front of the camera, but he's been making some serious waves as a filmmaker and producer away from his day job as one of the most acclaimed talents of his generation.
Having made his feature directorial debut on the underrated 2014 crime thriller Son of a Gun starring Ewan McGregor, Brenton Thwaites and Alicia Vikander, Julius Avery looks to be establishing himself as the go-to guy for high concept genre pieces.
Christian Bale tends to be very selective when it comes to choosing his projects, but he'll always make time in his schedule for Scott Cooper, with the duo having become close friends after working together on slow-burning thrillers Out of the Furnace and Hostiles.
Adam McKay cemented his transition from the director of broad Will Ferrell vehicles like Anchorman, Step Brothers and The Other Guys into the realms of star-studded sociopolitical satire when The Big Short and Vice landed two Academy Award wins from a combined total of thirteen nominations, and Netflix's Don't Look Up is set to continue in that vein.
Jackass star Johnny Knoxville leading a comedy produced by the Farrelly brothers hardly promises sensitivity or subtlety, so plenty of people were wary when The Ringer was first announced.
After much talk that the project was in danger of being scrapped altogether during the star and producer's legal battles with Disney over Black Widow's release, it was confirmed once the two parties had resolved their differences that Scarlett Johansson was still set to headline the Mouse House's Tower of Terror.