Director M. Night Shyamalan comes off his successful low-budget horror movie "The Visit" with a more polished-looking scary movie starring James McAvoy. It's called "Split."

The trailer went live Wednesday and it looks like Shyamalan is going to showcase McAvoy in a role we've never seen him play before: a disturbed person with multiple personalities (23 to be exact). He's abducted three girls and it seems from the trailer they will endure all of the personalities during their time with him.

Get ready to be freaked out. The movie opens January 2017.

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There's never a bad time to dive back into the archives and watch some good movies.

And if you have some time on your hands, this might be a good time to binge some modern-day classics.

With that in mind, I've come up with 20 essential titles from the past 15 years that you should reexamine or, if you've never seen them, delve into.

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1. “Donnie Darko” (2001)

Jake Gyllenhaal was just starting to get on everyone's radar when he scored one of his first lead roles, playing a troubled teen who is tormented by visions of the future and a disturbing-looking bunny. "Donnie Darko" has become a cult classic, as it captured the angst of the youth who at the time the movie was in theaters were coping with the confusion of a post-9/11 world.

2. "Bowling For Columbine" (2002)

Michael Moore's fourth feature film, which won an Oscar for best documentary, might be his best. The controversial director uses the events of the Columbine High School massacre to address the US' addiction to guns. Sadly, 14 years later the issues explored in this movie are still relevant.

3. "City of God" (2002)

This incredibly stylish look at the slums of Rio de Janeiro charts the lives of two boys as they grow up among guns and drugs. The cast is made up mostly of nonprofessional actors, which gives an authenticity to the movie. But what's most surprising about this extremely violent film is how much comedy is layered into it.

Barack Obama is not only one of our youngest presidents — having been elected at age 47 — but also one of our coolest.

He's not just a fixture in politics, but in pop culture as well, and he isn't afraid to respond to mean tweets or parry with Zach Galifianakis between two ferns. He even dissed Kanye.

But knowing your way around pop culture isn't enough. It's also about taste.

Over the years, Obama has talked about the books, movies, and TV shows he likes the most. Taken together, they create a portrait of a man who’s deeply occupied with American stories, the nature of identity, and just getting away from being the leader of the free world for a while.

Let's take a look at Obama's pop culture picks:

Obama’s favorite movies are “The Godfather” and “The Godfather II.”

One of our most important clues about Obama's favorite works of pop culture is a Facebook post promoting the Trans-Pacific Partnership and defending the importance of copyright laws. In it, he said his favorite movies are the first two “Godfather” films. It’s a smart pick — the two movies are classic American stories and widely-regarded masterpieces of cinema.

“There’s this combination of old world gentility and ritual, with this savagery underneath,” Obama told MTV. “It’s all about family. So it’s a great movie.”

He’s also really into classics.

His other favorites include “Casablanca,” “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” and “Lawrence of Arabia,” all of which are Oscar winners.

As Obama said, “Who doesn’t like Casablanca?”

Him and Michelle watched “Do the Right Thing” on their first date.

At an event honoring the movie's 25th anniversary, Barack and Michelle Obama recounted the time they first watched the Spike Lee movie: their first date.

"He was trying to show me his sophisticated side by selecting an independent filmmaker," Michelle said. "It ended up being a pretty good movie."

"'Do the Right Thing' still holds up a mirror to our society, and it makes us laugh, and think, and challenges all of us to see ourselves in one another,” Barack Obama said.

Their first date was adapted into a movie itself, called "Southside with You."

Ariana Grande is 23, falling into the age span of what demographers and people who give TED Talks call "millennials." As such, she loves Harry Potter.

Grande loves Harry Potter so much that she bought a custom-embroidered jacket with a portrait of Albus Dumbledore's face on it, identifying her as a member of Dumbledore's Army.

It looks like it's made by a pair ofcustom designers. Just look at those details!

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Arguably no villain has become more flexible and usable for writers and filmmakers than Batman's arch nemesis, The Joker. Over the years the character has gone from a slightly unhinged clown, to a psychopathic mass murderer, and back again. His lack of a definitive origin story means that artists can do quite a bit with him, and sometimes they go all out. With the imminent release of "Suicide Squad", many fans have speculated wildly as to whether or not The Joker will have an insane new origin in the upcoming movie — something David Ayer has finally shot down once and for all.

During a recent red carpet interview with Chris Van Vliet in Miami, "Suicide Squad"director David Ayer opened up regarding the fan theory that The Joker is actually Jason Todd a.k.a Robin. He said:

"That The Joker is Jason Todd. It ain't the case. He's not."

From day one this has been one of the most fascinating fan theories we have been able to find for "Suicide Squad" -- not to mention one of the most divisive. Many fans speculated that Jared Leto's Joker is actually Jason Todd, who had become warped into becoming the new Joker after a period of torture. This theory seemingly became further corroborated by the fact that The Joker's tattoos hint at a strong connection with The Boy Wonder, and the fact that Bruce Wayne laments how few good guys "stayed that way," during the events of "Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice."

We can't say that we're surprise by this revelation. The idea of Joker as Jason Todd was always a long shot, and this early on in the DCEU it likely could have represented a major gamble with such an iconic character; a vocal section of the Internet has already voiced vehement disapproval of the idea. Now it looks like the Joker we see in "Suicide Squad" will be the very same one who killed Robin, warped Harley Quinn's mind, and generally made Batman's life hell for two decades.

All that being said, there's still precedent for this sort of twist to happen in a live-action movie at some point. A version of this storyline was shown in the legendary animated film "Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker," in which Tim Drake became The Joker of Neo-Gotham. Additionally, the events that transpired in last year's "Batman: Arkham Knight" clearly showed another story in which Jason Todd's mind became warped by the manipulation of Mr. J himself. Did this fan theory present us with an absolutely bonkers storyline? Absolutely. Was it without merit? Absolutely not.

While Jared Leto's Joker probably won't turn out to be Jason Todd in "Suicide Squad," we're still insanely excited for what the rock star will do with the character. We will know for sure exactly what he brings to the legendary DC villain when David Ayer's "Suicide Squad" hits theaters on August 5. Stay tuned for more details!

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The opening song of "The Lion King" has some pretty distinctive lyrics, though few of us actually know what all of them mean.

"The Circle of Life," starts out in Zulu before switching over to English. Here are the immortal words of Elton John, Tim Rice, and the animals of the Savannah:

"Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba
Sithi uhm ingonyama

Nants ingonyama bagithi baba
Sithi uhhmm ingonyama
Ingonyama
Siyo Nqoba
Ingonyama
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala"

If you speak Zulu, it might be pretty underwhelming. But, those who aren't fluent in the language have likely never understood those lyrics. However, we're in luck, because now there's a the translation of the lyrics into English, via Genius. 

"Here comes a lion, father
Oh yes it’s a lion

Here comes a lion, father
Oh yes it’s a lion
A lion
We’re going to conquer
A lion
A lion and a leopard come to this open place"

From that point, the song segues into English lyrics. You probably know the rest of the lyrics by heart.

As the Genius annotations explain, it's notable that the opening of the song is sung in Zulu. It's a language of South Africa, while all the characters' names in "The Lion King" are in Swahili, a language of eastern and southeastern Africa. Some of the story's elements also pull from Masai tradition, which has its own language.

And so, "The Lion King" is less a product of one nation than of pan-Africanism, and of universal values.

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One of the great things about Netflix is that it has brought thoughtful, compelling documentaries to a much wider audience that filmmakers could only dream of a decade ago.

And with binge-worthy titles like “Making a Murderer” and the vast ESPN “30 for 30” library being just a click away, you can get a lot of great nonfiction viewing any night of the week. You'll learn a lot more about the world, but don't worry — you'll also be entertained.

Here are 15 documentaries we think you should stream right away on Netflix.

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1. “30 for 30” ESPN movies

Pretty much any “30 for 30” title is worth your time. The documentaries that highlight moments in sports that you may or may not be aware of are both entertaining and filled with emotion. A few we highly recommend: “No Crossover: The Tale of Allen Iverson”; “June 17th, 1994,” which looks at everything that happened in the world of sports at the time of O.J. Simpson's Bronco chase; “I Hate Christian Laettner”; and likely available in 2017 will be ESPN’s new masterwork, “O.J.: Made in America." 

2. “The Act of Killing”

Joshua Oppenheimer’s Oscar-nominated doc looks at the Indonesian genocide by having death-squad leaders reenact their mass killings. The results are both comical and heart-wrenching. 

3. “Blackfish”

Why is Sea World going to end killer-whale shows? It’s because of this incredible movie that looks at the abuse these magnificent creatures have endured for decades.

Mel Gibson's first directing effort in 10 years is coming out in November, and it looks like it's going to be an emotionally charged war movie. 

Gibson found the peak of his success in front of and behind the camera with the bloody, Oscar-winning tale "Bravehart." His latest, "Hacksaw Ridge," looks at the unique story of WWII American Army Medic Desmond T. Doss, who served during the Battle of Okinawa but refused to kill people. His heroics would lead to him being awarded the Medal of Honor, the first ever given to a "conscientious objector."

Andrew Garfield plays Doss, and it certainly seems from this trailer that the movie and Garfield's performance will generate talk of potential Oscars.

Watch the trailer below. The movie opens on November 4.

SEE ALSO: Netflix just announced when all your favorite original shows are coming back

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Matt Damon sure has been busy of late. He was stranded on Mars in "The Martian," he's returning to the Bourne franchise with "Jason Bourne" (out this weekend), and now the trailer for his next movie, "The Great Wall," has hit the internet.

This one is a little more fantasy. He plays a British solider who finds himself working with the Chinese to fight foes attacking the Great Wall of China.

But it turns out the wall isn't there to keep out humans.

Directed by legendary Chinese director Zhang Yimou ("Hero,""House of Flying Daggers"), the thriller promises incredible visuals and fight sequences.

Watch the trailer below. The movie opens February 2017.

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"Suicide Squad" is in theaters this August, and while it may be one of the final films in the superhero genre for the year, there are plenty more in store for the next few years.

There are well over 30 superhero movies planned for the next five years. Below, we've gathered together the release dates that have been announced by studios so far. There are still a lot of movies up in the air like Channing Tatum's "Gambit" film and another "X-Men" film. We also know a "Deadpool" sequel is coming, but we don't have a release date yet for that either.

Check out all of the superhero movies coming after "Suicide Squad" below:

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The summer has seen a lot of sequels, but to the chagrin of Hollywood execs, many are bombing at the box office.

Analysts are crying sequel fatigue, but studios trying to bank on franchises isn't new. They're just doing it a lot more frequently, but with titles people care way less about seeing.

In looking at Box Office Mojo's ranking of some of the top-grossing franchises adjusted for inflation, it's clear that pursuing sequels has always been a roller-coaster ride.

Business Insider selected 15 franchises — the dominating fantasies as well as some animation, action, and horror films — from the top 100.

Of those 15, only three — "Toy Story,""The Lord of the Rings," and "Captain America"— have seen growth with every installment. The same can't be said, though, for "Iron Man," Marvel's other major solo-character series.

Every other franchise lacks a pattern, except that it seems that "Fast and Furious" reached a positive turning point in 2009 and no one wants more "Scream" movies at this point.

See how your favorite franchise did over its lifetime:

SEE ALSO: The sequels that are bombing badly at the box office this year

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Netflix isn't the only one in the streaming business.

With Amazon Prime, you can buy a discounted pair of sneakers and stream some great movies as well.

Amazon Prime contains a wide selection of new and old movies. To be honest, they are better than some of their competitors at getting new movies not long after they are in theaters. If you have a subscription, you have a great opportunity to catch up on a lot of recent movies you may have missed.

If you're looking for something that's somewhat off the beaten path, here are the 20 best movies streaming on Amazon Prime that you might know have heard of:

SEE ALSO: 20 modern classic movies everyone needs to watch in their lifetime

"99 Homes" (2014)

What it's about: An unemployed single father (Andrew Garfield) reluctantly works with the broker (Michael Shannon) who evicted him from his home. 

Why you should see it: Sure, the story takes some predictable, dramatic directions. However, it's really worth coming to see Michael Shannon play one of the most memorable onscreen villains in years. He's Gordon Gekko with an e-cigarette.

Watch it here>>

"Amelie" (2001)

What it's about:The titular Amelie tries to help others and searches for love in a fairytale like version of Paris.

Why you should see it: Watching "Amelie" is sort of like looking at a beautiful, moving painting. This is a must watch for anybody who is familiar with the term mise-en-scène, which refers to the arrangement scenery in a frame.

Watch it here>>

"Amy" (2015)

What it's about: This documentary explores the troubled life of singer Amy Winehouse, who died following a drug overdose at age 27.

Why you should see it: The Oscar winning "Amy" is both in-depth and tragic. It manages to completely humanize someone who was once known as a tabloid punchline.

Watch it here>>

After being stuck beneath the yearlong financial struggle of production company Relativity Media, the trailer for "Masterminds" is out and it looks like this comedy will finally make its way to theaters. 

Based on the 1997 Loomis Fargo Bank robbery, which at the time was the second-largest cash robbery in US history, the movie stars Zach Galifianakis as the mastermind behind the robbery. His crew includes the likes of Kristen Wiig and Owen Wilson. Jason Sudeikis, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones also star.

Watch the trailer below. The movie opens September 30.

SEE ALSO: The trailer for Mel Gibson's new war movie is here, and it looks like his big comeback

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The first trailer for "The Great Wall" just dropped and it looks amazing. Starring Matt Damon, it's the most expensive Chinese film ever made.

Video courtesy of Legendary Pictures and Universal.

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It's looking more and more like Hollywood will want to forget the 2016 summer movie season. Ticket sales are down about 10% from last summer as a slew of blockbusters ("Alice Through the Looking Glass,""Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows,""The BFG," to name a few) have underperformed.

And it looks like the end of the summer isn't going to be any better.

Early projections suggest that Paramount's "Ben-Hur" will open with between $14 million and $15 million at the domestic box office, according to The Hollywood Reporter. For a movie that cost just under $100 million to make, according to THR, that's a horrific prediction for the latest adaptation of Lew Wallace's novel. The classic 1959 film of the story starring Charlton Heston won 11 Oscars.

Paramount certainly wasn't looking for that kind of performance for its update. In fact, it seems this time around the movie will have a more uplifting feel as opposed to the 1959 version, in which Heston's Ben-Hur was fueled by revenge. As director Timur Bekmambetov ("Wanted") told Business Insider earlier this year, "It's not a story about revenge but a story about forgiveness."

With three weeks left before the film opens on August 19, marketing will be focused on faith-based audiences to help the opening weekend, according to THR.

The movie stars Jack Huston ("Boardwalk Empire") in the title role. Morgan Freeman also stars. 

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Since “The Big Lebowski” became a cult hit and one of the most quotable movies for a generation, people have naturally wondered if there will ever be a sequel.

The writers/directors behind the 1998 comedy classic, Joel and Ethan Coen, aren't the type to make a sequel. But that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t pass the reins to a worthy filmmaker.

The brothers did just that when Noah Hawley wanted to make their movie “Fargo” into a TV series (the Coen brothers are executive producers but have little creative input on the FX show), and the same goes for actor John Turturro’s interest in making a spiritual sequel to “Lebwoski,” focusing on his character in the movie, Jesus.

Turturro has been trying to get the project off the ground for years and recently told The Hollywood Reporter that though the project is in “a very complicated legal situation” that he can’t get into, the project isn’t dead.

If the project does go forward, according to Turturro, the Coens won't direct, but it would “be something they would support with me.”

Business Insider brought up the latest news about a “Lebowski” sequel to The Dude himself, Jeff Bridges, while he was doing press for his next movie, “Hell or High Water” (opening August 12).

“I’ve heard that for years, John saying that,” Bridges told Business Insider. “I think it’s a great idea.”

And would he reprise his iconic role if called upon?

“Yeah, it might be fun playing a little cameo as The Dude.”

But Bridges has his own idea for a sequel.

“I’m hoping they make a little Lebowski [sequel] because it’s all set up,” he said. “I impregnated Maude [Julianne Moore]. As The Stranger [Sam Elliott] says, ‘There’s a little Lebowski on the way,’ you know?”

So whether it’s a sequel about Jesus or the Lebowski offspring, it’s good to know that Bridges is up for whatever — assuming whatever actually happens. The Dude always does abide.

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For the past few years, Disney has been taking another look at its old movies and spinning them into gold.

It's a tricky terrain. One bad movie, and you can spoil decades of goodwill towards a movie. But "Mary Poppins Returns" — about the nanny helping the Banks children during a bereavement in 1930s London — is playing it smart.

It's casting Meryl Streep.

Disney's recent trend of updating their old movies started out with "Maleficent" in 2014, which updated 1959's "Sleeping Beauty" and made more than $750 million at box office. Then came 2015's "Cinderella" and this year's "Jungle Book,""Finding Dory," and "Alice Through the Looking Glass." In the future, we're getting "Pete's Dragon,"a "Beauty and the Beast" remake with Emma Watson, another "Maleficent" movie, a "Cruella" movie with the villain of "101 Dalmations," a live-action "Dumbo" remake, and half-a-dozen "Star Wars" movies.

It's nothing new. Intellectual property is the most valuable thing in the entertainment industry. Universal is even taking yet another look at its classic monsters— like Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, and, uh, The Wolf Man — for a new slate of movies. But with its princesses, Marvel superheroes, and "Star Wars," Disney is king.

Some studios are tempted to make forgettable, possibly profitable remakes and updates just as a way of cashing into a brand. Look no further than 2014's "Annie" remake, which had the wisdom to cast Quvenzhané Wallis and Jamie Foxx, but then dashed its promise with incompetent production. And sometimes movies are so bad that they can set careers on hold — have you seen Aaron Eckhart in anything since 2014's "I, Frankenstein"?

Disney is playing it smart. The apex of this decision is casting Meryl Streep in "Mary Poppins Returns." Streep is the greatest actor alive, and casting her represents an investment in quality.

Disney wants more than to just get the butts of "Mary Poppins" fans into theater seats. It wants people to love, watch, and buy "Mary Poppins Returns" for generations, just as they did with the original 1964 movie. By having people like Streep, Emily Blunt, Lin Manuel-Miranda, and director Rob Marshall on the movie, they can make that happen.

Things can go wrong, of course. "Alice Through the Looking Glass" was a flop. It indulged too much in the bad taste of director Tim Burton and star Johnny Depp. But if Disney reins them in, like they've done with the Marvel movie directors, they can end up with something solidly entertaining.

For some time, Disney did go in the cheap cash-in route, with straight-to-DVD and Disney Channel movies like the "Aladdin" sequel "The Return of Jafar" and "The Lion King 1½." They're beloved in certain corners of Disney fandom, but they just don't have the same acclaim as the originals. 

By investing in real talent, Disney doesn't just want to make a quick buck on a popular franchise, they want to make movies that families will enjoy for generations.

SEE ALSO: Disney is planning 18 live-action remakes of its classic animated movies — here they all are

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Marvel fans are dying to see characters from the Netflix series like Daredevil and Jessica Jones show up in the movies, but the president of Marvel Television explained why it's unlikely. 

Speaking before an audience at a panel on the upcoming "Luke Cage" Netflix show at the Television Critics Association, Jeph Loeb said that the realities of shooting a TV show might prohibit any small screen characters from hanging out with the Avengers. 

"I can tell you that part of the challenge of doing this sort of thing is that the movies are planned out years in advance of what it is that we are doing,” Loeb said, according to SlashFilm. “Television moves at an incredible speed. The other part of the problem is that when you stop and think about it, if I’m shooting a television series and that’s going to go on over a six-month or eight-month period, how am I going to get [Mike Colter, the actor who plays Luke Cage,] to be able to go be in a movie? I need Mike to be in a television show.”

Loeb said it's not impossible, though, and remarked that he recognized how much fans appreciate the sense of interconnectedness withing the Marvel Cinematic (and television) Universe.

He also explained that Marvel doesn't like to do crossovers just for kicks — they have to mean something.

"We’ve always been big fans of providing Easter eggs for our fans, but we never want to be known as an Easter egg farm," he said. "It has to work within the story. We never want to do Luke Cage gets into a cab as Foggy Nelson and Matt Murdock are getting out of the cab."

"Luke Cage" drops on Netflix on September 30.  

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The following story contains a major spoiler for "Suicide Squad." Read at your own risk.

We've known from almost the very beginning that Batman would be making his second DC movie appearance in "Suicide Squad.” However, we now know that he's not the only hero who will be featured in the film. After recent rumors began to swirl about that "Suicide Squad" would see an additional superhero cameo, the official credits have been released by Warner Bros., and right there, in black and white, is the name of the hero and the actor. This is your last chance. If you don't want to know, you can hang out with the above guys that you already knew were in the movie. All good? Okay, here we go!

The official credits of "Suicide Squad" confirm that Ezra Miller will be making an appearance in the film as The Flash. What's more, it appears that we'll be seeing him fairly early in the proceedings, and exactly in the spot where we thought we would. The rumors that The Flash would appear in "Suicide Squad" started earlier this week after fans who analyzed the film's San Diego Comic-Con footage found this picture of Boomerang being blasted back by a flash of lightning.

When compared to the shots of Ezra Miller's super speed that were shown in the"Justice League" footage, they look very similar. We can now confirm with a fairly high degree of certainty that this is exactly what's happening. Not only is Ezra Miller listed in the film's credits as The Flash, but the cast is listed "in order of appearance" and The Flash is listed immediately after Boomerang. What's more, we can also guess that this scene will be fairly early in the movie, as The Flash is listed prior to other members of the Squad itself, like Killer Croc, Diablo or Rick Flag.

If we were going to make some educated guesses here (and we are) we'd surmise that "Suicide Squad" will open with a series of scenes showing how each member of the team ended up being locked up in the first place. Boomerang, who is traditionally a nemesis of The Flash, was apparently caught by him. After we see Boomerang get nabbed, we'll move on to scenes where we see Killer Croc and Diablo get grabbed.

Of course, for as many things as the credits list answers, it still asks other questions. For one, neither Batman nor Ben Affleck are listed anywhere. Considering Batman is the one hero that the trailers have shown us, having him uncredited seems odd. Maybe Affleck isn't actually in the movie and Batman is just portrayed by a stuntman? It goes against much of what we've heard, but without knowing for sure, anything is possible.

This will make The Flash's second cameo in as many movies. Will he have a scene next year in "Wonder Woman" too? Probably not, but he will for sure return for "Justice League" in late 2017, followed by his solo movie in March 2018.

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NOW WATCH: 9 minutes of behind-the-scenes footage of the making of 'Suicide Squad'

There has been no shortage of stories of what actors did on the set of "Suicide Squad"— from Jared Leto's disturbing "gifts" to Margot Robbie giving tattoos— but the latest one is still pretty bizarre.

In an interview for the UK magazine Empire, as reported by Yahoo, actor Jai Courtney, who plays Captain Boomerang in the movie, said that on a Skype call with director David Ayer about the role he was on drugs and put out cigarettes on his arms.

"That night I happened to eat some mushrooms," he is quoted as saying, "and I did self-inflict some burns."

The story ran wild on the internet as another example of the wild antics by the actors to prepare for their "Suicide Squad" characters — insane villains from the DC Comics world who are brought together to combat a greater evil.

But while talking to Business Insider on Friday, Courtney tried to clear the air about the comments.

"I've heard so many versions of that story," Courtney said. "It's just a silly thing when s--- gets misconstrued."

When asked if it was a case of joking around with a reporter, he said, "Yeah, I was f---ing around a little. But then that's me having to learn when to put the brakes on because, when a conversation turns into print, it's a little harder to grasp the concept."

So he didn't go to the length of getting high and putting out cigarettes to get the part?

"No. I would never do that," Courtney said.

Yet the stories about Ayer having the cast do exercises leading up to filming — like hitting one another and enduring police interrogations — are true, and Courtney believes that they did elevate everyone's performance.

"It's not like he's complicating anything with this stuff," he said. "It's fueling. It's fanning the fire. It's a really cool way to shake up the usual pattern of preparation for a job."

We'll see if audiences agree when "Suicide Squad" opens in theaters on August 5.

SEE ALSO: Jeff Bridges says he's all for starring in a 'Big Lebowski' sequel

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NOW WATCH: Here's how the 'Suicide Squad' cast looks compared to their comic-book counterparts