As a lot as all of us lengthy for novel concepts and brand-new IPs, there could be one thing very satisfying—and even comforting—about revisiting a beloved franchise. Nonetheless, it is not at all times straightforward for studios to maintain these franchises feeling contemporary. Usually, recognizing the potential to make a fast buck, studios have centered on amount over high quality and have rushed sequels, spin-offs, and reboots to market with out paying any thoughts to script high quality.
Right here, we’re films that have been such disasters—both critically, commercially, or each—that they brought about what appeared like irreparable harm to their respective franchises, seemingly killing them off for good. Luckily, although, by the grace of God, they’ve managed to claw their approach again into the general public consciousness and discover their stride once more.
Listed below are 10 films that just about killed profitable film franchises.
10
‘The Matrix Revolutions’ (2003)
Difficult our total collective perceptions of actuality, The Matrix revolutionized sci-fi with its groundbreaking particular results and mind-bending narrative. A stable fixture in standard tradition for over 25 years, it was a vital and industrial success. Unable to withstand the temptation of capitalizing on this recognition, the world was hit with a double whammy, back-to-back franchise returns in 2003, with The Matrix Reloaded being launched in Could and Revolutions in November.
‘Matrix Revolutions’ Was Anti-Climactic
Reloaded picked up the place The Matrix left off, persevering with its predecessor’s penchant for stylized motion sequences and thought-provoking story themes. Whereas it did not have the identical affect as the unique, it was nonetheless typically positively obtained, scoring a good 74% on Rotten Tomatoes. Marketed because the epic conclusion to the Matrix saga, Revolutions, nonetheless, left a foul style within the mouths of many viewers who felt extraordinarily disenchanted by the film’s ambiguous, seemingly unresolved conclusion and underwhelming remaining battle—mirrored in its poor 33% Rotten Tomatoes rating.
The unique Matrix stays such a timeless traditional that its affect and iconic standing ensured the franchise by no means really light, sparking continued curiosity and an eventual revival within the type of The Matrix Resurrections in 2021, which tried to handle a number of the unique trilogy’s unresolved questions (although how efficiently varies massively from individual to individual).
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9
‘Terminator Salvation’ (2009)
Launched in 1984 and directed by James Cameron, The Terminator seamlessly blends science fiction with intense motion, making a gripping narrative that has stood the take a look at of time. Schwarzenegger’s iconic portrayal of the relentless and just about indestructible Terminator stays etched in cinematic historical past.
Following its success, the now extra skilled Cameron was given extra inventive freedom and a larger finances. The end result? Some of the visually spectacular, action-packed, thought-provoking sci-fi films ever made in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Drawing inspiration from horror and motion films, this genre-bending masterpiece cemented Cameron as one of many business’s most enjoyable administrators and Arnold Schwarzenegger as the most important motion star within the biz. Schwarzenegger returned as soon as once more in 2003’s Rise of the Machines, which, whereas it definitely couldn’t compete with the primary two, nonetheless held its personal.
The Collection Suffered Following the Departure of Its Star Actor
Sadly, 2009’s Terminator Salvation determined to take the sequence in a very new path—of venture that didn’t repay. Schwarzenegger was noticeably absent, and in his place was Christian Bale. Whereas his efficiency wasn’t dangerous, the story—which was set primarily in a post-apocalyptic future and shifted the main focus away from the time journey component so central to the earlier entries—did not resonate with audiences and critics. Because of this, the film at present holds the bottom Rotten Tomatoes rating within the franchise at simply 33%.
There has since been renewed curiosity within the franchise, with Schwarzenegger returning to the fold and the newest entry, Terminator: Darkish Destiny, being thought-about a return to type, scoring 70% on Rotten Tomatoes.
8
‘Planet of the Apes’ (2001)
The films of the primary Planet of the Apes trilogy, by which people and clever apes conflict for management, are among the many most iconic movies throughout the sci-fi style. In 2001, Tim Burton tried to reboot the franchise, however his bold challenge—which concerned making important modifications to the established Planet of the Apes lore, resembling altering the social construction and the world-building—upset many present followers. Because of this, it did not recapture the identical magic, and the poor response led to any plans for additional sequels being deserted.
Luckily, the Franchise Has Since Been Revived
Due to the next 2011 reboot and its sequels, Planet of the Apes is as soon as once more among the best franchises in Hollywood—one the place audiences can get unimaginable motion, but additionally considerate character moments and philosophical questions.
7
‘Jurassic Park 3’ (2001)
Jurassic Park 3
- Launch Date
-
July 18, 2001
- Runtime
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92 minutes
- Director
-
Joe Johnston
Directed by the legendary Steven Spielberg and starring Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, and Sam Neill, it is laborious to imagine that Jurassic Park is now over 30 years previous. On the time of its launch, it rapidly grew to become the highest-grossing film of all time—a document it held till 1997’s Titanic. Its sci-fi story of dinosaur chaos was charming and compelling, the appearing was top-notch, and the consequences have been completely jaw-dropping and groundbreaking.
The Franchise Confronted Extinction Following the Vital Failure of ‘Jurassic Park III’
Retreading a lot of the identical floor, the sequel, The Misplaced World, did not recapture the unique’s magic—however by the point of the third installment, they significantly appeared to be working out of concepts. Not solely was it unoriginal and missing the innovation of the unique, it was additionally devoid of any relatable characters value rooting for. Garnering the worst vital suggestions of the sequence thus far, the franchise was seemingly deserted, mendacity dormant for 15 years.
It was resurrected, nonetheless, in 2015 with Jurassic World, which grew to become one of many highest-grossing films of all time, saving the franchise from extinction and spawning an additional two mega-successful sequels.
6
‘Ghostbusters’ (2016)
Directed by Ivan Reitman, Ghostbusters is a timeless traditional that seamlessly blends supernatural spookiness with laugh-out-loud humor. It follows a workforce of eccentric ghost hunters who change into the town’s first line of protection on the subject of the paranormal. Ghostbusters and its sequel have firmly secured themselves as all-time comedy classics which have really stood the take a look at of time.
Many Weren’t Open to Change
In 2016, a reboot that includes an all-women Ghostbusters workforce was launched, providing a contemporary tackle the beloved idea. Nonetheless, it did not seize audiences’ imaginations in the best way it had hoped, and the brand new path grew to become the topic of a lot controversy. Turning into one of the vital polarizing films in Hollywood historical past, it sparked debates over gender illustration in Hollywood and on-line harassment directed on the solid.
Regardless of being a average success on the field workplace, the backlash seemingly put a halt to any additional plans involving the franchise—till followers have been handled to a legacy sequel within the type of the well-received Ghostbusters: Afterlife and its sequel, Frozen Empire.
5
‘Lara Croft: Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life’ (2003)
Primarily based on one of many best-selling and most beloved online game franchises of all time, the primary Tomb Raider films hit theaters in 2001, with Angelina Jolie donning the enduring cargo shorts, utility belt, and ponytail as Lara Croft. Regardless of poor vital reception, the sequel Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life was launched in 2003 and fared even worse with critics.
‘Cradle of Life’ Suffered from Its Fashion-Over-Substance, Motion Method
The film was criticized for relying too closely on motion sequences and particular results rather than character improvement and a compelling story. Luckily, many of those pitfalls have been prevented within the extra grounded 2018 reboot. Followers of the enduring IP are at present ready with bated breath as information concerning the troubled manufacturing of a brand new film, tv sequence, and recreation slowly trickles out.
4
‘Batman & Robin’ (1997)
Batman is arguably DC Comics’ largest and most enduring superhero by way of recognition, and he has been delivered to the display screen in lots of iterations. The primary big-screen, live-action adaptation got here within the type of the critically acclaimed, blockbuster hit Batman. Directed by Tim Burton, Batman marked a darker and edgier tackle the hero, breaking away from the campy Nineteen Sixties sequence. Michael Keaton’s brooding Batman and Jack Nicholson’s iconic Joker helped redefine superhero movies, mixing model, grit, and psychological depth. Burton took issues even darker with Batman Returns in 1992, which once more obtained vital acclaim and was successful on the field workplace.
Joel Schumacher Introduced an Undesirable Layer of Lightness to Batman’s Darkish Knight Persona
The tides started to vary, although, when Joel Schumacher took the reins and adopted it up with Batman Eternally, which adopted a barely lighter strategy. It was Batman & Robin, although, that seemingly put the ultimate nail within the coffin. The film undid all the things Tim Burton had delivered to the franchise and was a campy farce that’s thought-about among the many worst superhero films ever made. It suffered from an uneven tone that verged on parody, with poor makes an attempt at humor, campy motion sequences, and unconvincing particular results—regardless of an enormous finances.
Because of this, the franchise lay dormant for 10 years earlier than it was resurrected by Christopher Nolan’s Darkish Knight trilogy, which is broadly thought-about the best period within the franchise’s historical past—in addition to being essentially the most financially profitable.
3
‘Halloween: Resurrection’ (2002)
Launched again in 1978, John Carpenter’s Halloween is likely one of the most beloved and iconic horror films of all time, virtually writing the blueprint for the slasher style and influencing numerous movies that adopted. Sadly, most of the films that adopted inside its personal franchise served largely as pale imitations of the unique masterpiece. With that being mentioned, the sequence did develop a robust cult following amongst horror buffs, with one film standing out particularly amongst these followers.
Halloween H20 was thought-about by many as a return to type for the sequence, with specific reward directed at Jamie Lee Curtis’s highly effective and grounded efficiency and the novel and brutal kills.
‘Resurrection’ Was a Disappointing Sequel to the Finest Halloween Entry in Years
After as soon as once more piquing the curiosity of the franchise’s fanbase, it was all of the extra disappointing after they have been met with such an appalling follow-up. Resurrection adopts a tacky, campy tone and introduces a gimmicky actuality TV present premise, which feels misplaced and inconsistent in tone with the remainder of the sequence. Followers have been additionally, understandably, devastated by the swift killing of Laurie Strode early within the film, which felt like a disservice to the enduring character and her long-standing arc within the franchise.
The franchise took years to completely get better from the poor reception of Resurrection. Rob Zombie tried to reboot the sequence in 2007, however many diehard followers of the unique have been disenchanted together with his new path. He did return to direct a sequel, nevertheless it was a vital and industrial disappointment, and the franchise was as soon as once more in limbo. It wasn’t till 2018’s legacy sequel Halloween that the franchise lastly discovered its mojo once more.
2
‘Godzilla’ (1998)
Godzilla
- Launch Date
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Could 20, 1998
- Runtime
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139 Minutes
With over 20 Japanese films already below its belt, Godzilla was one of the vital famend and iconic ‘creature function’ franchises on this planet. However imagine it or not, it wasn’t till 1998 that Hollywood sank its claws into the IP and determined to create a big-budget adaptation of its personal. With a gargantuan finances of round $140 million, expectations have been sky-high—however as an alternative of the roaring success all of us hoped for, the film was, as an alternative, a colossal catastrophe.
‘Godzilla’ Holds the Report for the Longest Constantly Operating Movie Collection
The film was a muddled mess riddled with questionable appearing and much more questionable character selections. Other than its nonsensical plot and over-reliance on particular results, the movie made two deadly errors.
Firstly, Godzilla was stripped of any character or identification. This differed from a lot of the Japanese variations, the place—typically a villain, typically a protector—Godzilla is greater than only a large lizard; it has a character, giving audiences one thing to attach with on a deeper stage.
Secondly, it selected to attend till the center of the film to exposit the characters’ backgrounds as an alternative of doing so within the first act—that means viewers had already made up their minds about them based mostly on surface-level impressions, making it close to inconceivable to change these perceptions afterward.
The film was universally panned, ensuing within the cancellation of a deliberate trilogy. Luckily, the sequence has since skilled a renewed curiosity due to more moderen American diversifications that prevented the aforementioned pitfalls and remained extra devoted to the supply materials.
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1
‘Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem’
The unique Alien and Predator films are each thought-about timeless and spawned a number of profitable (and not-so-successful) sequels. Pitting two of Hollywood’s most iconic and terrifying creatures collectively—tapping into a long time of hypothesis and crossover potential—had all of the components for one thing unforgettable.
A Crossover Was a Nice Concept on Paper
The primary time the 2 franchises crossed paths was in 2004’s Alien vs. Predator, however as an alternative of the darkish, intense showdown many had hoped for, it leaned right into a PG-13 score and felt tame and watered down, squandering untold potential. Pondering issues couldn’t get any worse, Alien vs. Predator – Requiem went on to strip away the epic, otherworldly really feel of each Alien and Predator. As an alternative of exploring the wealthy lore or elevating the stakes, it delivered a bland, generic small-town motion horror devoid of any soul.
Perhaps sooner or later we’ll get the crossover we’ve all been eager for, however within the meantime, each franchises have been steadily making an attempt to undo the harm performed to their legacies within the fallout of Requiem. With Predator‘s Prey and Alien‘s upcoming Romulus serving as returns to type for each IPs, it appears there would possibly simply be life left within the franchises in spite of everything.