Successful action movies always have a chance at getting a sequel, but not all of these follow-up movies are good ideas. Sometimes, it’s best to leave a great action movie as a standalone film, and there have been plenty of terrible, sorely misguided sequels that prove this point.
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If an action movie is conceived as a standalone story, it can be incredibly difficult to come up with a sequel that feels like a natural and worthwhile addition. Another problem that action sequels face is replacing actors or directors who don’t return for whatever reason. Without the same concept and the same key people, a sequel can seem pointless.
You are watching: 10 Action Movie Sequels That Shouldn’t Have Been Made
10
Independence Day: Resurgence (2016)
The Sequel Lost The Charm Of The Original
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Independence Day: Resurgence
PG-13
Adventure
Sci-Fi
Action
4/10
4/10
Release Date
June 24, 2016
Runtime
120 minutes
Director
Roland Emmerich
Writers
Nicolas Wright, Roland Emmerich, James Vanderbilt, Dean Devlin, James A. Woods
Prequel(s)
Independence Day
Cast
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-
Bill Pullman
-
Sela Ward
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Independence Day isn’t necessarily the finest piece of cinema ever produced, but its relentlessly entertaining nonetheless. In a way, Independence Day paved the way for the state of modern blockbusters, but 20 years later, Resurgence lacked the same original streak. The sequel is a rehash of the same alien invasion plot, without enough new ideas to make it worthwhile.
One problem with Independence Day: Resurgence is that Will Smith chose not to return for the sequel, and the movie sorely misses his charisma. A bigger issue could be that Resurgence takes place on an Earth boosted by two decades of alien technology, so it’s barely recognizable and the climactic action scenes devolve into CGI spaceship-on-spaceship shambles.
9
Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997)
Speed Shouldn’t Have Had A Sequel Without Keanu Reeves
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Speed 2: Cruise Control
PG-13
Action
Adventure
Thriller
Release Date
June 13, 1997
Runtime
125 Minutes
Director
Jan de bont
Writers
Graham Yost, Jan de bont, Randall McCormick, Jeff Nathanson
Cast
See All
-
Sandra Bullock
Annie
-
Jason Patric
Alex
-
Willem Dafoe
Geiger
-
Temuera Morrison
Juliano
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Speed is still one of Keanu Reeves’ best movies, so a sequel was always going to struggle without him. Sandra Bullock returned for Speed 2: Cruise Control, but her presence wasn’t enough to elevate a sequel that nobody asked for. Cruise Control takes the electric premise of Speed and tries to put a new twist on it. Unfortunately, this twist is much less exciting.
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Aside from the fact that a slow-moving cruise ship lacks the inherent dynamism of the speeding bus from the first movie, the much larger vessel also means that characters aren’t confined in the same pressure-cooker environment. Speed 2 starts to mimic Die Hard at times, which ignores all the strengths of the first movie.
8
Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018)
Guillermo Del Toro’s Absence Is Keenly Felt
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Pacific Rim: Uprising
PG-13
Sci-Fi
Action
6/10
5/10
Release Date
March 23, 2018
Director
Steven S. DeKnight
Writers
Guillermo del Toro, Travis Beacham, Zak Penn, Jon Spaihts, Derek Connolly
Prequel(s)
Pacific Rim
Franchise(s)
Pacific Rim
Cast
See All
-
Charlie Day
-
Scott Eastwood
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Pacific Rim might look like splashy, soulless action from the outside, but Guillermo del Toro manages to take its brash exterior and carve a surprisingly emotional and intelligent story. Without the Oscar-winning director, the sequel has no such surprises. Its only appeal is the giant mech-suit smashing action.
Creating a sequel without del Toro’s vision always ran the risk of turning Pacific Rim into something generic and uninteresting. With Charlie Hunnam and Ron Perlman also missing, the sequel resorts to a grab-bag of sci-fi action genre tropes to fill the time between its excessive, overblown fight scenes. Although Uprising was a critical and commercial flop, a new Pacific Rim TV show is on the way.
7
Taken 2 (2012)
The Premise Of Taken Didn’t Leave Much Room For A Sequel
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Taken 2
PG-13
Action
Thriller
5/10
9/10
Release Date
October 5, 2012
Runtime
92minutes
Director
Olivier Megaton
Writers
Luc Besson, Robert Mark Kamen
Prequel(s)
Taken
Cast
See All
-
Liam Neeson
-
Famke Janssen
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Taken was clearly only ever meant to be a standalone film, but it was such a huge success that a sequel seemed like a good idea. In hindsight, it might have been smarter to give Liam Neeson another original premise, leveraging his newfound status as an action star. He’s the real draw in the Taken franchise, while the concept is less important.
Once again, Taken 2 tells the story of Mills trying to save a family member after a kidnapping. Of course, this is less unique the second time round, and Taken 2 tries to overcompensate for this by creating some more outlandish action sequences. The grounded tone of the first film is abandoned, signalling the decline of the Taken franchise, which would only continue with another pointless sequel.
6
The Fast & The Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)
Tokyo Drift Seems Like A Strange Spinoff Now
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The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
PG-13
Action
Drama
Racing
6/10
7.6/10
Release Date
June 4, 2006
Runtime
104 Minutes
Director
Justin Lin
Writers
Chris Morgan
Prequel(s)
2 Fast 2 Furious, The Fast And The Furious
Cast
See All
-
Lucas Black
-
Bow Wow
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The Fast & Furious franchise has changed a lot over the years, growing from a movie about an undercover cop infiltrating a ring of dangerous street racers into an explosive action franchise with ridiculous stunts and a trip into space. Tokyo Drift was a stumbling block on this progression, and it now looks like an unnecessary detour.
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1
Tokyo Drift tells a new story with new characters, bringing the franchise’s momentum from 2 Fast 2 Furious to a screeching halt. By introducing Han and director Justin Lin, it made at least two valuable contributions, but its story adds nothing to the franchise. Of course, Fast and Furious recovered, and Fast 11 could be the biggest entry yet.
5
RoboCop 3 (1993)
RoboCop Completely Changed Its Tone
The original RoboCop is a brilliant sci-fi action movie, but it has been followed by sequels and a reboot that failed to live up to its standards. While RoboCop 2 still has plenty of saving graces, RoboCop 3 is often derided as a pointless sequel that completely ignores the tone and style of the original.
|
The RoboCop Franchise’s Critical Reception |
||
|
Movie |
Rotten Tomatoes Score |
Audience Score |
|
RoboCop (1987) |
92% |
84% |
|
RoboCop 2 (1990) |
28% |
37% |
|
RoboCop 3 (1993) |
9% |
15% |
|
Robocop (2014) |
50% |
49% |
RoboCop is darkly satirical, but still gritty and mature. RoboCop 3 betrays this style by leaning into camp, excessive sci-fi. The sequels tried to broaden the appeal of the franchise by adhering to a PG-13 rating, which stripped RoboCop of its shocking violence. Without Peter Weller or Paul Verhoeven, RoboCop 3 should never have been made.
4
Road House 2 (2006)
Road House 2 Was A Weak Imitation
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Road House 2
Action
Drama
Franchise(s)
Road House
Cast
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-
Jake Gyllenhaal
Main Genre
Action
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While Road House is still held in high regard as a slice of ’80s action schlock, the direct-to-video sequel has been largely forgotten about. Without Patrick Swayze, and with a much lower budget, Road House 2 was only ever meant to cash in on the goodwill people still felt toward the original.
Amazon Prime Video’s franchise reboot has already gotten the go-ahead for a sequel, but this new version of Road House 2 has Jake Gyllenhaal returning. This immediately makes it a different prospect to 2006’s Road House 2, which has been widely panned as a cheap knock-off without the goofy fun of the original.
3
Indiana Jones & The Dial Of Destiny (2023)
The Franchise Was Always Unlikely To Turn Things Around
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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
PG-13
Action
Adventure
6/10
18
7.4/10
Release Date
June 30, 2023
Runtime
2 hours and 2 minutes
Director
James Mangold
Writers
Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, David Koepp, James Mangold
Prequel(s)
Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Cast
See All
-
Boyd Holbrook
-
Thomas Kretschmann
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The original Indiana Jones trilogy that came out in the 1980s would be a perfect action-adventure franchise, filled with Steven Spielberg’s singular magic and graced by Harrison Ford’s performance. The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a big step down when it came out in 2008, but it was a worthwhile experiment. The Dial of Destiny was always destined to be a dud.
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The odds that The Dial of Destiny could have revived a franchise that had already had one false dawn were slim, especially when it was confirmed that Steven Spielberg wouldn’t be returning. James Mangold constructs a couple of great action scenes, but it’s not enough to justify wheeling Indy out one more time for a misjudged sequel.
2
The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
The Matrix Ends Without The Need For Sequels
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The Matrix Reloaded
R
Action
Adventure
Sci-Fi
8/10
Release Date
May 15, 2003
Runtime
138 Minutes
Director
Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski
Writers
Lilly Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
Cast
See All
-
Keanu Reeves
-
Laurence Fishburne
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The Matrix Reloaded has a few incredible action sequences, as the Wachowski sisters once again push the limits of their unique concept. The highway chase in particular is still sure to excite action fans, but the story doesn’t live up to the same standards, which is a shame considering how the first movie is so intelligent and thought-provoking.
The Matrix never needed a sequel, since the story wraps up so nicely. Neo reaches his full potential and transcends his existence. The obvious question that a sequel needed to answer was where a story could possibly go from there. The Matrix franchise never recaptured the magic of the original, starting with The Matrix Reloaded.
1
Expend4bles (2023)
The Expendables 3 Should Have Finished The Franchise For Good
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Expend4bles
Thriller
Action
Adventure
8/10
Release Date
September 22, 2023
Runtime
103 Minutes
Director
Scott Waugh
Writers
Spenser Cohen, John Joseph Connolly, Max Adams
Prequel(s)
The Expendables, The Expendables 2, The Expendables 3
Cast
See All
-
Dolph Lundgren
-
Randy Couture
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The poster for the first Expendables movie proudly displays the names of its action genre titans in bold letters. Stallone, Statham, Li, Lundgren, Willis. The fact that Expend4bles takes the same approach with a much less impressive list of names shows that the franchise probably should have wrapped things up much earlier.
The Expendables franchise is a throwback to the heady days of ’80s and ’90s beat-em-up action flicks. It offers simple thrills and a nostalgic trip. As soon as the franchise started trying to sustain itself by introducing new blood, it lost sight of the appeal. The Expendables 3 was the first sign of real decline, and the franchise didn’t need to return nine years later.
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Category: Entertainment