These are the films showing over the Christmas period at Preston cinemas including the new Spider-man and The Matrix blockbusters

Fans of the Ghostbusters, Spider-man and Matrix franchises will be thrilled this December as Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Spider-man: No Way Home and Matrix: Resurrections hit the big screen, bringing back some our favourite characters.

So let's go down the rabbit hole and find out a little bit more about those films and some of the other festive offerings you can see ...

Ghostbusters: Afterlife - now showing

In Ghostbusters: Afterlife, when a single mum and her two kids arrive in a small town, they begin to discover their connection to the original ghostbusters and the secret legacy their grandfather left behind.

Starring: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard

Running time: 2hrs 4mins

House of Gucci - now showing

Spanning three decades of love, betrayal, decadence, revenge, and ultimately murder, we see what a name means, what it's worth, and how far a family will go for control.

Starring: Lady Gaga, Adam Driver, Jared Leto, Al Pacino

Running time: 2hrs 38mins

Encanto - now showing

Walt Disney Animation Studios' Encanto tells the tale of an extraordinary family, the Madrigals, who live hidden in the mountains of Colombia, in a magical house, in a vibrant town, in a wondrous, charmed place called an Encanto.

Starring: Stephanie Beatriz

Running time: 1hr 49mins

Eternals - now showing

From Marvel Studios, this epic story, spanning thousands of years, features a group of immortal heroes forced out of the shadows to reunite against mankind's oldest enemy, The Deviants.

Starring: Gemma Chan, Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden

Running time: 2hrs 36mins

A Christmas Carol (2020) - December 3

A Christmas Carol follows a Victorian family as they prepare a toy-theatre for their annual performance of A Christmas Carol.

Starring: Andy Serkis, Carey Mulligan, Martin Freeman

Running time: 1hr 36mins

West Side Story

Who doesn't know the story of West Side? Well in case you didn't, rival gangs the Jets and the Sharks face a stalemate over New York City’s Upper West Side. But when the Sharks’ leader’s sister, Maria, falls for Jets member Tony, tensions really begin to hot up between the two sides. The classic Broadway musical inspired by William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet gets a film remake, with Steven Spielberg directing and a cast that includes Rachel Zegler, Ansel Elgort and Rita Moreno.

Starring: Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose

Released: December 10

Spider-Man: No Way Home

For the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a Super Hero.

Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jon Favreau, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei

Released: December 15

The King's Man

When a group of villains devises a plot to kill millions around the world, a nobleman and his protegee must step up to stop them. Action-packed prequel to the acclaimed Kingsman film series.

Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Rhys Ifans, Matthew Goode, Tom Hollander, Daniel Bruhl, Djimon Hounsou, Charles Dance, Harris Dickinson

Released: December 22

The Matrix Resurrections – December 22

The long-awaited fourth film in The Matrix saga, the groundbreaking franchise that redefined a genre. It reunites original stars Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss as Neo and Trinity, the iconic roles they made famous in The Matrix.

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Ann Moss, Neil Patrick Harris, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II

Released: December 22

There's also a host of festive blasts-from-the-past showing at selected cinemas, including Home Alone, Love Actually and The Grinch - check your nearest cinema for showtimes.