An upcoming animated Netflix movie is following one of 2024’s weirdest and most disappointing movie trends, but this time it might actually work. 2024 has already established a couple of trends in movies, some more successful than others, and with half the year still to go, more movies are expected to follow these trends. Among them, and perhaps the weirdest one so far, are imaginary friends, who have already been the central theme in movies from different genres – unfortunately, not all of them had the desired success.

The theme of imaginary friends can offer a lot of creative possibilities in different genres, but the movies that have covered this topic so far haven’t succeeded. First was Blumhouse’s Imaginary, a supernatural horror movie that gave a terrifying twist to once-innocent imaginary friends. Next was John Krasinski’s IF, which mixed live-action and animation to bring a variety of imaginary friends to life. Neither movie succeeded with their target audience, and now Netflix has a movie coming up covering the same topic, but this one might actually work.

Netflix’s Imaginary Is Yet Another Movie About Imaginary Friends

2024 Has Seen Different Movies About Imaginary Friends

Among Netflix’s upcoming releases this year is the Japanese-animated movie The Imaginary. Directed by Yoshiyuki Momose and based on the 2014 novel of the same name by A. F. Harrold, The Imaginary was theatrically released in Japan in 2023 and will finally be released internationally through Netflix on July 5. The Imaginary takes the audience into a world where imaginations can live but also be eaten by others. Rudger is an Imaginary boy and can only be seen by Amanda, the young girl who created him.

However, Imaginaries are subject to an inexorable fate: dissolution when their creators forget them. When a man who hunts Imaginaries arrives at Amanda’s doorstep, Rudger sets out on an odyssey that leads him to the “town of Imaginaries”, a sanctuary for forgotten Imaginaries. Despite being yet another movie about imaginary friends released in 2024, The Imaginary is offering something completely different, and it could be the one that saves this weird and so far disappointing movie trend.

Why 2024’s Movies About Imaginary Friends Have Failed (& Why The Imaginary Could Work)

Imaginary Friends Hasn’t Been A Successful Theme So Far

Although the premise of Imaginary was promising, the movie ended up being a disappointment. Imaginary has a 24% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics pointing out that, while it had an interesting concept that could have made way for some truly scary scenes and story, Imaginary was full of clichés that didn’t let it reach its full potential. Ultimately, Imaginary not only became one of 2024’s worst horror movies but also a forgettable one.

Given Krasinski’s track record as a director and writer, IF was one of the most anticipated family movies of the year, but it was also a disappointment. IF has a 49% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes as critics found its plot to be unnecessarily complicated, lacking focus, and its world-building not being coherent. Other critics found that IF suffered from tonal shifts and uneven pace, and its “big twist” was quite predictable.

At the time of writing, The Imaginary has a 95% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics mostly praising its visuals and emotional story. It all points to The Imaginary having a clearer and more consistent story than Imaginary and IF, as well as more complex themes that are addressed through the concept of imaginary friends. The Imaginary looks to have fully seized the creative possibilities of the theme of imaginary friends, and is on its way to being the movie that saves this trend in 2024.