In these summer months, it seems that all Hollywood cares about are sequels and franchises. That’s a trend that isn’t likely to change any time soon. Yet for some reason, a lot of movies that actually deserve sequels don’t get them. For this week’s Roundtable, we’d like to suggest some movies that we’d pay to see good sequels for.
Aaron Peck
Pixar has been churning out sequels recently. We’re already up to ‘Toy Story 3’ and there are rumors of a fourth. We’ve just had ‘Cars 2’, and in a couple years we’ll have a prequel to ‘Monsters, Inc.’ called ‘Monsters University’. While I’m not really all that happy that Pixar is finally doubling back and making sequels to every one of its big franchises, I’ve often wondered why there’s never been a peep about an ‘Incredibles’ sequel. If any Pixar movie deserves a sequel, it’s ‘The Incredibles‘. Pixar has endless possibilities for storylines to work with when doing stories about superheroes. Still, it seems like Pixar doesn’t even want to touch that one again. I’d rather have another ‘Incredibles’ movie before another ‘Monsters, Inc’. or ‘Toy Story’.
M. Enois Duarte
This is a rather difficult choice for me since I don’t always find myself enjoying too many sequels, which normally tend to be more of the same mindless action as the original. But being just after the 4th of July and all, why not get into the spirit of the idea and imagine a follow-up to ‘Independence Day‘? We can call it ‘Independence Day 2: The 5th of July’. Put the emphasis on the 5th, and we have a really menacing title right there. I can picture the tagline right now: “The Aliens Are Back and They’re Packing a One Year Subscription to Norton Antivirus.” Ooh, how are the Amurricans gonna get passed that one and save the world once again? Will Smith can return as the cocky pilot who can fly literally anything, but Jeff Goldblum is replaced with Jason Schwartzman as the stereotypical, cynical and self-deprecating Jewish guy. Kat Dennings can play his wife. And who wouldn’t want to see a slightly heavy-set Data make another appearance anyways? Except now, he’s a permanent fixture of the alien society as translator and ambassador. I mean, come on, the idea sells itself, especially once we attach Michael Bay as director.
Luke Hickman
Even though there have been rumors about a ‘Kick-Ass‘ sequel in the works, nothing is official yet and comic book creator Mark Millar says that he doubts it will happen. ‘Kick-Ass’ is one of the most wild, well-written and over-the-top comic book movies ever made. It has a perfect balance of everything you want in movies: action, violence, comedy, romance, story and solid characters. It’s tragic that terrible comic book films like ‘Fantastic Four’ and ‘Wolverine’ get sequels that they don’t deserve, yet the bold, unique ones like ‘Kick-Ass’ and ‘Sin City’ (most likely) do not.
Adam Tyner (DVDTalk)
‘Bubba Ho-Tep’ sports a premise that’s even more gleefully ridiculous than its title hints at. An elderly, impotent Elvis and a dyed-black JFK fight a soul-sucking mummy in an old folks’ home. Directed by Phantasm creator Don Coscarelli and starring genre legend Bruce Campbell as the King, ‘Bubba Ho-Tep‘ was tailor-made to be a cult classic. And… well, that’s exactly what it wound up being. The movie raked in enough cash on DVD for Coscarelli and company to start poking around at a follow-up, but nearly a full decade later, ‘Bubba Nosferatu: Curse of the She-Vampires’ still hasn’t gotten any traction. Just like the original movie, I’d blindly buy ‘Bubba Nosferatu’ just on its title alone. After hearing what the actual story would be (a prequel about a lost Elvis movie from the ’60s, and while shooting on location in Leeziana, the King has to square off against an army of busty bloodsuckers), I kind of desperately need to see it. One day…maybe one day…
Dick Ward
Try as I might – and I honestly didn’t try that hard – there’s just no movie I can think of that really needs a sequel. Everything I really enjoy has either already been sequelized or, like ‘Harold and Maude’, ‘Network’ and ‘Citizen Kane’, just wraps up nicely at the end. There’s no need to dig those up again. I can think of plenty of films that needed better sequels though, and the number one flick that comes to mind is ‘Jurassic Park‘. The original movie blew my mind. It was one of those films that forever changed the way I feel about movies and made me realize just what kind of amazing things were possible in the medium. The sequels were atrocities. As standalone movies, they might be decent enough, but following in the shadow of one of my favorite films, I found them to be cheap and obvious attempts to cash in on all the dinosaur love that was floating around at the time. We can do better.
Junie Ray
I’d like a sequel to ‘The Big Lebowski‘. I’m not saying it would be an easy script to write. It would have to strike just the right mix of entirely new plot direction and characters with a few key cameos and references to the original. I for one would love to watch more of the Dude.
Nate Boss
Please, no one try to tell me that ‘Elektra’ works as a sequel to ‘Daredevil‘ when I say I want to see more of the blind lawyer/superhero/Ben Affleck. It doesn’t fly, especially since the one Affleck scene in ‘Elektra’ got cut. We have the origin story of the hero, as well as two villains in Bullseye and Kingpin who would work just fine in a sequel, in any capacity. The original set up a sequel in the way that neither villain died, only the heroine of the story. Was poor reception the reason this Marvel franchise didn’t become a film franchise? I have yet to hear a single negative word about the extended “Director’s Cut” of the film, which turns a fairly bad flick into an absolute winner. The tone found there, the pace, the setups – it screams for a sequel, yet it hasn’t and won’t happen. A reboot is more likely, and that’s a damn shame. If the abomination known as ‘Ghost Rider’ can get a second movie, then a film featuring Ben Affleck being completely blind (rather than just blind about his career for that four, five year period) should also be given a chance. Sure, he won’t fit into an ‘Avengers’ storyline, but a real dark, gritty film featuring the Kingpin running business from behind bars would be great. Fox has to do something to keep the franchise in its control. Why remake it and tell the origin story yet again, when we can continue on in a darker, grittier fashion?
Chris Boylan (Big Picture Big Sound)
‘Blade Runner 2: Rise of the Replicants’, in which Deckard discovers that he’s also a Replicant and that he and Rachel are actually able to make little Replicant babies. (More human than human, indeed!) Their progeny go on to lead a rebellion on Earth against their evil human masters. Michael Bay needs to direct this one as Ridley Scott is just too subtle and cerebral for the job.
On second thought, maybe one was enough.
Josh Zyber
The end credits of ’80s cult sci-fi flick ‘The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the Eighth Dimension‘ promise a sequel to be called ‘Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League’ that was never to materialize. The original film doesn’t quite work. It tries too hard and too self-consciously to be a cult movie, and the tone is just a little too deadpan for its own good. But it’s chock full of great, fun ideas and is a supremely weird movie in ways that are truly fascinating. A better director might have gotten a lot more out of the material. That’s why I think a sequel could have been an improvement on the original. And honestly, the amount of time that’s passed now isn’t too much of an impediment to trying. I’m sure he’d never even consider it, but just imagine what Terry Gilliam could do with something like this. The mind reels!
—
Those are our picks. What movies would you like to see get sequelized?
Alex
Don’t know if you guys saw this, but there’s a shockingly similar list over at Hitflix:
http://www.hitfix.com/galleries/25-movies-hollywood-should-have-given-sequels
I swear, I’m not advertising for them! I just happened to be reading it this morning.
Josh Zyber
AuthorComplete coincidence, honest. Guess it’s just that time of year. Some interesting picks on that list, and a few really bad ideas.
I’d support a Roger Rabbit sequel wholeheartedly. Wish I’d thought of that, actually.
Alex
I’d go for Roger Rabbit too, but if I had my druthers, there would be film sequels to Stargate. I know that there’s SG-1 and that’s supposed be the follow up, but I never was able to get into the show. It always felt too bogged down by its own incredibly expansive mythology. Plus, I want James Spader and Kurt Russell back in their roles.
CK
I would have gone with a sequel back around the time Roger Rabbit came out, but I’d be afraid of what they’d do with it now. If they tried to update it with The Simpsons, Family Guy and South Park type stuff, even though I like some of those, I don’t think they have the right tone and it would have the charm of the first. Also, no Mel Blanc would mean no Bugs Bunny or Daffy Duck! What kind of a cartoon movie would be complete without them?
Shayne Blakeley
Different topic, but this made me think a reboot of Cool World might not be a terrible idea.
Josh Zyber
AuthorCK, pondering your comment got me to thinking of a great idea for a Roger Rabbit sequel. Move the setting forward to the present day. Because Toons don’t age, traditionally animated characters like Roger and Jessica are still around, but have been pushed aside in favor of slicker, quasi-photorealistic CGI. Instead of hanging out with the Disney and Looney Toons bunch, they have to interact with the Na’Vi or Zemeckis’ own Polar Express/Christmas Carol characters. And they can’t get work because the kids today don’t respond to traditional animation anymore.
The plot can concern some Toons that are trying to pass as human, but fall into that uncanney valley where real humans find them creepy and soulless.
Of course, Robert Zemeckis would never do this, because it would be too much of an indictment against the motion capture crap he’s been pushing for the last decade. But give this to Pixar and let it be their first attempt to mix CG with live action and traditional animation all at once, and it could really be something.
M. Enois Duarte
Wow. That’s an excellent idea, Josh. I love it! That would make for an awesome film.
Jimmy
I agree with Josh, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the Eighth Dimension needs a sequel or hell I would love to even see the remake of it.
Dail Whiteley
i would love a sequel to serenity. i just love that movie and the way joss whedon comes up with forwarding the storyline.
Alex
I would love it too, but (trying not to put a spoiler in here) he’d need to come up with a clever way to include some of the beloved characters who didn’t quite make it through the first movie. Their absence would be sorely felt on the Serenity.
Jane Morgan
Alan Moore’s ‘Lost Girls’ adapted by Wes Anderson.
Shayne Blakeley
Still waiting for the “sequel” to Dr. Horrible. Would love a Ghostbusters 3 if and only if everyone came back and kicked ass as fat old men, no passing the torch to Shia Laboof or some shit. I’ve heard rumors they’re working on a second Silent Hill, I’d be all for that. Last but not least, I think they could do a hell of a lot with a higher budget sequel to Primer.
Chaz Dumbaugh
Silent Hill 2 is already filming I believe, most of the original cast is returning too, hopefully it pulls off the atmosphere the first one did, loved Silent Hill the games and the movie 🙂
Shayne Blakeley
I know a lot of people hated the movie, but I thought it was excellent. It didn’t make a whole lot of sense, but it was creepy as hell. More Pyramid Head!
Aaron T. Starks
I find it flabbergasting that Pixar would choose to make another cars or Monsters Inc over their one film that begs for a sequel: The Incredibles.
I’d even take another Wall-E or Finding Nemo.
EM
Another Sky Captain flick.
Chaz Dumbaugh
Incredibles just wasnt that great IMO, I really dont see what a sequel would do for anyone, another superhero story in the middle of all these superhero movies, its Pixar so it would bring in people like crazy, but what can they really do that isnt already being done in all the superhero movies that are out or coming out?
As much as I liked The Incredibles for its more mature story mixed very well with a family film, I felt its overall the weakest story, to me it felt like it was done before, not like Wall-E or Monsters Inc or even Cars, all their movies were highly original but The Incredibles just felt too common place to me, maybe its because of the “real” people, not too sure, but its just not as good as everyone thinks it is IMO
Shayne Blakeley
I actually felt that way about Monsters Inc. Like they really hoped the audience never saw ‘Little Monsters.’ Actually same goes for Toy Story in regards to ‘The Christmas Toy.’ As phenomenal as Pixar is, they get a little too much credit in the originality department.
Jane Morgan
‘Kill Bill 3’ would be near the top of my most-wanted list. Rumor has it, its going to release in 2014, in 3D, with Daryl Hannah returning as a blind samurai.
‘Predators’ grossed $130M worldwide off a $40M budget. I would sit on my couch for a sequel to that, if they could imagine a story 3x more epic.
My toes are still crossed for ‘The Matrix 4-5-6.’
And, of course, ‘Star Wars 7-8-9.’
BostonMA
i usually hate all things sequels but yeah, Kill Bill 3, even though ‘Kill Bill’ stands alone as a two-parter perfectly, is probably the #1 on my list (but a large part of that is because QT’s developing it).
another sequel i would pretty much want due to the director’s rumored planning of it is Mulholland Dr. II.
Mulholland Dr. itself is my pick for the best film of the 2000s and it falls in my first tier of favorite films, and it stands 100% fine on it’s own but, returning to its well could work and even more of a reason for why i want it is so it will bring Lynch out of his unofficial retirement.
time will tell if it does come to light.
Aaron T. Starks
It would actually be Kill Bill 2. Kill Bill 1 was one movie split in half for release.
João Guilherme
Jane Morgan, do you have a webpage?
Gareth Callenby
One on the Hitflix list I would love to see is a sequel of “Hot Fuzz,” but I’ll take whatever non-story trilogy capper they have for their “Blood and Ice Cream” series. “Paul” doesn’t quite count, but it was one of the funnier things I’ve seen in a theater this year.
Tony Mariani
Event Horizon 2. The Ship is Back. Again! I would rent out my own IMAX theatre for just myself if that happened.
Andrew Rowland
Actually, Brad Bird said he’d do an Incredibles sequel but only if he has a good enough story to stand beside the original.
He just hasnt got the right idea yet.
Andrew Rowland
And Zemeckis is actually trying to push a Roger Rabbit sequel and they did a test to see how CGI would look on a 2D character and it looks great! check it out! http://www.slashfilm.com/roger-rabbit-2-update-and-1998-cgi-test-uncovered/
Daniel O'Reilly
I’d second Kill Bill 3, though QT is such a cinephile I doubt he’s in love with 3D enough to ditch using film.
Ryan Megan
I’m afraid if Kick Ass 2 doesn’t get started real soon, the chance for a proper sequel (with Chloe Moretz at right age ) will be lost forever.
Which seems a given at this point. Seems the excitement and love it had with it’s creators has been squashed under the a gigantic mutant foot.
Julian
I’d love “The Goonies II”. Donner & Spielberg have tried to start production, the cast was all ready, but Warner wasn’t interested in revisiting a (then) 20-year old movie.
Makes me wonder why they butchered “The Lost Boys” with “Lost Boys – The Tribe”.
Thulsadoom
I’d like to see Josh’s choice too! 😀 Such a bizarrely fascinating film…
Right, sequels I’d like…
Firstly John Milius ‘Conan – Crown of Iron’ that almost got made before Arnie became governor. Conan needs that true sequel to the incredible first film, that gives a satisfying conclusion. Destroyer, while guilty fun, is simply a terrible note for the character to have finished on (Even though it looks like the new film will make it seem like Shakespeare).
Secondly, the next Star Wars movies. Contrary to everyone else, though, I still want Lucas to be fully in charge. I just think he should have someone to co-write the scripts with, to avoid the terrible humour and keep to the story. Oh, and someone to help with better casting.
Thirdly, The Thing sequel made by John Carpenter, that he’s always wanted to make.
Fourthly, a Robocop sequel helmed by Verhoeven.
Finally… No sequels by James Cameron…
Josh Zyber
AuthorI’m no fan of Avatar, but let’s be fair to Cameron. He made great sequels out of both Aliens and Terminator 2. It’s possible that an Avatar sequel could be an improvement over the original.
I would have liked a True Lies sequel as well. Too bad that didn’t happen.
Shannon Nutt
I always thought they should call the next Independence Day movie “Memorial Day” and use the tagline “The day they come back.” (the tagline for the original was “The day we fight back.”)
Josh Zyber
AuthorI always thought that the sequel to Independence Day should be called “Independence Day: Invading Other Territories.” That would make for the best acronym on the poster. 🙂
Julian
Best of all, the director isn’t a native speaker so he won’t notice! Brilliant, Josh. Submit it now!
Josh Zyber
AuthorAnd the plot of this sequel could be about how we fly to the alien home planet to kick their asses and blow up their monuments for revenge. I’m sure that Emmerich would love that. He’s destroyed the entire Earth in his other movies to date. This would give him a whole new playground to thrash around in.
João Guilherme
Titanic.
Kidding. 🙂
I think Pulp Fiction. But in fact, at the same time I would want it, I think it should not have a sequel.
I would love to keep having many Bourne movies, but, with Mat Dammon and Paul Greengrass.