The arrival of San Antonio’s sultry summer season means outdoor movies, from the South Side to the heart of downtown.
Mission Marquee
The annual Outdoor Family Film Series at Mission Marquee Plaza kicks off Saturday night with Disney’s animated Beauty and the Beast from 1991, and ends October 21 with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
In between, popular movies unspool three per month, from 1980s throwback The Outsiders starring onetime heartthrob Patrick Swayze on Oct. 17 to this year’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania on Sept. 16.
Other old favorites include Selena starring Jennifer Lopez and Edward James Olmos on Sept. 21 and Hocus Pocus starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy on Oct. 19.
Animated films include Minions: The Rise of Gru on July 1, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 on Aug. 5, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish on Sept. 2 and Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas on Oct. 7.
Visitors are encouraged to bring blankets, lawn chairs and picnics to the pet-friendly grassy plaza. Admission and parking are free. Food trucks will be on hand.
A complete list of films is available online.
Main Plaza
The Main Plaza Conservancy lost a couple of Monday night movies to a rainy May and has extended its outdoor Golden Age of Mexican Cinema series to June 5 with Macario and June 12 with Enamorada.
At the Briscoe
For this year’s run of its annual Summer Film Series, the Briscoe Western Art Museum asks the question: Can science fiction and Western film genres exist together?
The museum answers with three films, Wild Wild West — billed as a “steampunk Western masterpiece” — on June 18, followed by Cowboys & Aliens starring Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford on July 16 and Jordan Peele’s genre-bending Western sci-fi horror film Nope on Aug. 20.
These Sunday afternoon films begin at 1 p.m. following short, informative presentations and are included with regular museum admission. Registration is recommended to ensure a seat.
Tobin Center
The 32-foot LED outdoor video screen returns to the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts for Cinema on Will’s Plaza, a series of free movies running monthly through December.
Remember when Beyonce was a Dreamgirl? The pop queen stars alongside Jennifer Hudson, Jamie Foxx, Danny Glover and Eddie Murphy in Dreamgirls running June 9.
Next up on July 19 is Lin Manuel Miranda’s movie version of the Broadway musical In the Heights, followed by the DreamWorks animated Shrek spinoff Puss In Boots: The Last Wish on Aug. 11.
Coco arrives Nov. 10 to extend Day of the Dead celebrations, and The Grinch greets the holidays on Dec. 8.
Further details and a complete list of Cinema on Will’s Plaza are available on the Tobin Center website.
Travis Park
The Travis Park Movies by Moonlight series runs Tuesdays through June and July, except for the week of the July Fourth holiday. The theme for summer 2023 is family-friendly sports classics.
The series begins June 6 with 1990s classic The Sandlot, an appropriate choice for a city newly burgeoning with sandlot baseball teams. Space Jam follows, with Cool Runnings arriving June 20 just as the weather really heats up.
Other Movies by Moonlight films include Rookie of the Year on June 27, The Karate Kid on July 11, Remember the Titans July 18, and A League of Their Own on July 25.
Food trucks and activities for kids complement free admission and free city parking. Leashed pets, lawn chairs, blankets and snacks are welcome.
More information and updates can be found on the Travis Park Facebook page.
Slab Cinema
Slab Cinema has its hands in many of the above outdoor movie series but also shows films in far-flung locations from Bulverde to the Tower of the Americas.
The portable inflatable screens will appear June 9 in Bulverde Community Park for a screening of DC League of Superpets, and at the Johnny McDow Sports Complex in Schertz for A League of Their Own.
Other Schertz events include Float N Flick films at Pickrell Park Pool with Hotel Transylvania 3 on June 24 and Jungle Cruise on July 15, Lightyear at Wendy Swan Memorial Park on July 28, and Hocus Pocus at Rhine Valley Park on Oct. 10.
The Rim will host Slab Cinema in June, July, August and September for screenings of Monsters University, School of Rock, The Sandlot and National Lampoon’s Vacation.
Slab Cinema will visit the Tower of the Americas monthly through the year, starting with Pirates of The Caribbean June 10 and ending Dec. 9 with The Santa Clause.
Check details and the complete Slab schedule online.
