Hollywood loves a sequel. Even though some fans might bemoan them as a sign of an industry bereft of original ideas, the truth is that sequels have been produced since the days of silent film. The trend hasn’t subsided for over 100 years, and studios have only gotten more overzealous in trying to capitalize on their successes, which is why films like the new live-action Lilo & Stitch have plans for a sequel before they even hit theaters. This cinematic putting of the cart before the horse can often result in big drops in quality between movies and their sequels, but that doesn’t mean that fans will stop clamoring for more follow-ups to their favorite films.
That desire is especially prevalent for those movies that promised sequels but never followed through. Production delays, lawsuits, studio regime changes, actor salary disputes, and any number of other behind-the-scenes issues may be to blame for these sequels never coming to fruition, but that doesn’t stop fans from holding out hope, particularly in this era of belated revivals and legacy sequels. While the future is uncertain and these ten sequels may still be in the offing, they’re taking too damn long to get here.
10
‘The Legend of Conan’
Sequel to ‘Conan the Destroyer’ (1984)
The only other franchise besides The Terminator in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s career has been the one featuring the star as Robert E. Howard‘s pulp character, Conan. The first film, Conan the Barbarian from director John Milius, is generally beloved by fans of the genre, while the more family-friendly sequel, Conan the Destroyer, is more derided (and the less said about the Jason Momoa remake, the better). For a long time after the sequel’s release, a third film was in constant development flux, with one version eventually evolving into the Kevin Sorbo suckfest that was Kull the Conqueror.
Since 2012, there have been attempts to make a final film featuring an older, grizzled Schwarzenegger in the latter days of Conan’s life, but it never seems to gain any real traction. A streaming series featuring Conan, separate from Schwarzenegger, was in development but has seemingly been canceled, giving a new opportunity for the Austrian Oak to step back into the role and deliver one final action film that would be the perfect send-off to the character and his career.
9
‘The Return of the Killer Klowns From Outer Space in 3D’
Sequel to ‘Killer Klowns from Outer Space’ (1988)
The quintessential cult film Killer Klowns from Outer Space was never going to be a mainstream hit, but, of course, it found a very devoted following of fans after hitting home video. In this era where studios are mining every pre-existing property with an established fan base, a sequel would seem a no-brainer. To be sure, there have been multiple attempts put forth over the years to make a proper sequel, with The Chiodo Brothers themselves pitching several different iterations to follow up their cheesy ’80s horror film. The most recent iteration of this was a full remake of the film from Amazon MGM with Ryan Gosling on board as a producer.
While there’s no way to tell if the eventual film will be able to pull off a jump in quality from the original, it’s disappointing that the original creatives never got their version off the ground. For better or worse, the original Killer Klowns represents a clear creative vision, and the passion of The Chiodo Brothers filtered through the finished film to the fan following. The movie has had a more widespread resurgence recently, with a video game release as well as prominent merchandising in the hallowed halls of Spirit Halloween. Thus, why in the polka-dotted hell can’t the studio let the madmen who originally created the franchise get back in the kitchen and cook?
8
‘Bubba Nosferatu: Curse of the She-Vampires’
Prequel to ‘Bubba Ho-tep’ (2002)
For anyone who hasn’t seen the B-movie classic Bubba Ho-tep, describing its plot will sound like an acid trip crossed with a fever dream, and that’s exactly why it rules. It stars Bruce Campbell (of Evil Dead fame) as a man who claims to be the real Elvis and is wasting away in a run-down Texas retirement home until a supernatural threat in the form of a cowboy-hat-wearing mummy who has come to suck the souls of the elderly. Iconic Black actor Ossie Davis plays JFK. Based on a short story by Joe R. Landsdale, it’s completely bonkers, and the proposed idea for a prequel from director Don Coscarelli sounds even wilder.
Teased at the end of the first film, the prequel would’ve seen a ’70s-era Elvis facing off against a coven of vampires in New Orleans and featured Paul Giamatti as the infamous Colonel Tom Parker. What sounds like an amazing midnight movie was unfortunately hit by numerous production delays, and Campbell subsequently dropped out of the project, but Coscarelli has stayed optimistic about it. The cult director, who gained his fame from his signature Phantasm franchise, has always forged a unique indie path, and it would be a boon for the horror film community to see him return to the king of rock and roll for another adventure.
7
‘Trick r’ Treat 2′
Sequel to ‘Trick r’ Treat’ (2007)
Michael Dougherty‘s seasonal horror anthology Trick r’ Treat has only grown in popularity since its release, and the central character of Sam has become a legitimate Halloween icon. The director has since provided several spooky updates with regard to the potential sequel, but so far, nothing official has been announced. Anthology horror, by its very nature, has the potential to avoid becoming stale, and with Trick r’ Treat, Dougherty left the door open for all kinds of possibilities by embracing supernatural elements.
It’s a shame that Trick r’ Treat didn’t have the kind of immediate success of similar horror franchise V/H/S, which is now up to seven installments plus a couple of spin-offs. The setting of Dougherty’s film lends itself to annual installments, and, in a just world, audiences would have had years of sequels fulfilling their spooky needs. Perhaps streaming may be the answer to getting a follow-up off the ground, since any service would likely be happy to have a perennial horror franchise they can release on a regular timetable, and from which any number of spin-offs could be created. Consider yourselves on notice, HBO Max, or whatever the hell you’re calling yourselves these days.
6
‘Hellboy 3’
Sequel to ‘Hellboy II: The Golden Army’ (2008)
The long and contentious history behind Guillermo del Toro‘s potential third Hellboy film is a sore spot for many a fan of the director. The first two films featuring Ron Perlman as the big red demon ended with the tantalizing tease of the character becoming a father to twins. Unfortunately, despite the enthusiasm of del Toro and Perlman for the film and general critical success, the studio instead eventually went the route of a full reboot, which starred David Harbour in the lead role and became a notorious bomb.
A second attempt at a reboot came in 2024, but Hellboy: The Crooked Man was a mixed bag at best and doesn’t come near to del Toro’s success with the character. Perlman has stated that he will only play Hellboy again for del Toro, who has definitively moved on to other things, so holding out hope may be a pipe dream. Alas, stranger things have happened in Hollywood, and an old man Hellboy film would be a nice alternative to the creatively bereft superhero status quo.
5
‘The Real RocknRolla’
Sequel to ‘RocknRolla’ (2008)
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Guy Ritchie has failed to launch more than a few franchises in his career, but perhaps the one that gets the least amount of attention was the follow-up to his underrated gangster comedy, RocknRolla. Featuring an absolutely stacked cast of established and rising stars, it’s a shock that a studio wouldn’t want to try and gather them back together, particularly after Ritchie had bigger-budgeted successes, and the cast only became more bankable.
The sequel was teased in the end credits of the film, but its muted response from critics and audiences seemed to put the project on the back burner. Ritchie has appeared to move on to other properties, but a cast this good would absolutely kill, even if they have more salt than pepper in their hair at this point. A new Ritchie joint featuring Gerard Butler, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, Mark Strong, and Toby Kebbell is too promising an idea to let go, even if it is highly unlikely.
4
‘Sherlock Holmes 3’
Sequel to ‘Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows’
More than any other desired sequel to any film in Ritchie’s filmography, the third Sherlock Holmes film has kept fans on tenterhooks since 2011, when the character was revealed to have survived his plunge into Reichenbach Falls with Professor Moriarty. Ritchie’s two-fisted take on the Arthur Conan Doyle character was well-liked enough at the time, even if some fans weren’t as keen on the series being more action-oriented. Still, time has been really kind to the films, which are low-key more rewatchable than Robert Downey Jr.‘s Marvel movies.
Downey and Jude Law had electric chemistry as Holmes and Watson, and age certainly wouldn’t be a huge factor in reteaming the actors, since there is no need for their characters to be young and spry. Multiple attempts at making the third film have been made over the last decade, including an announcement that Downey would be developing an extended universe set within the world of Ritchie’s films, but, alas, development has remained elementary.
3
‘The Adventures of Tintin 2’
Sequel to ‘The Adventures of Tintin’ (2011)
Another would-be franchise starter from the 2010s, Steven Spielberg‘s animated adventure based on the classic comic character created by Hergé, was always intended to have a sequel, which would’ve been directed by producer Peter Jackson. Despite a tease from Andy Serkis that the sequel might still happen, there hasn’t been any real movement, likely due to do with how overlooked the first film was, including an outrageous Oscar snub in the Animated Feature category.
There’s certainly no shortage of source material to pull from, with Spielberg listing Prisoners of the Sun as the preferred storyline for the sequel. Even if he and Jackson were looking for something smaller in scale to produce, the fan-favorite Tintin in Tibet would make for great family entertainment. The performance capture technology used on the first film has only gotten better in the decade-plus since, meaning Weta could really flex their digital muscles on a sequel, and the medium also means that the advanced ages of the cast would be a non-issue. In short, it’s all the more egregious that audiences haven’t gotten a follow-up to the best Spielberg adventure film since Jurassic Park.
2
’23 Jump Street/MIB 23′
Sequel to ’22 Jump Street’ (2014)
Despite the fact that 22 Jump Street ended with a string of fake movie titles poking fun at the idea of a franchise running out of steam, fans have continually been clamoring for one more entry in the R-rated buddy comedy series. The first two films, directed by Chris Miller and Phil Lord, found increasingly inventive ways to sell their premise, and Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill made for a dynamic duo. The original proposed third film would have taken an even wilder swing through a crossover with the Men in Black franchise, which is an idea so great Hollywood had to kill it.
Tatum has stated he’s still hopeful for a third film, and has apparently even seen a script for it, though what premise that script is based on has not been revealed. More recent R-rated two-handers like Wolfs and The Instigators failed to find much traction with audiences, but that may have more to do with the fact that both were dumped on Apple TV+ instead of given proper theatrical releases. With the Jump Street films both being unqualified successes, now would be a good time to bring back Tatum and Hill for one last ride.
- Runtime
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109 minutes
- Director
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Phil Lord, Christopher Miller
- Writers
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Michael Bacall, Jonah Hill, Patrick Hasburgh
1
‘Mad Max: The Wasteland’
Prequel to ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ (2015)
Mad Max: Fury Road is the best action film of the 21st century, and maybe of all time. Director George Miller had planned two follow-ups to his high-octane masterpiece, both prequels focusing on Max and Furiosa. The latter got her prequel in 2024, and despite being an awesome epic action adventure that expanded the idea of what a Mad Max movie could be, Furiosa failed at the box office. While that film’s underwhelming performance didn’t officially put the brakes on a Max-centric prequel, it certainly pumped them pretty hard.
Miller is an action auteur, and at eighty years old, audiences are unlikely to get many more films from him. The fact that the final entry in the Fury Road saga may not come to be under his direction (or worse, get handed over to some streaming service) is an absolute affront to the gods of filmmaking. It may not be too late for one last ride, shiny and chrome, into Valhalla, but it seems like the chances for this prequel are running on fumes.