Top 10 Teased Movie Sequels That Never Got Made

In 1954, Godzilla made his first appearance in the Japanese movie of the same name. Since then, there have been dozens of movies about the monstrous character. 1998 saw the first American version hit the big screen. Brought to you by the writer-director duo that gave us “Independence Day,” the movie was set to be the first of a planned trilogy. The final scene depicts one of Godzilla’s eggs hatching and a roar being heard by audiences before cutting to black. Despite the film’s modest financial success, it was panned by critics and the studio quickly axed any plans for sequels.

Long before Marvel became a movie titan of its own, it licensed many of its characters to other studios. Sure, this resulted in some great films, but also some lackluster ones, including prior “Fantastic Four” films. So when Fox released 2015’s iteration, there were high hopes and plans for sequels, with the final scene teasing the team’s official formation. Sadly, it wasn’t meant to be. Plagued by production issues, studio interference and lengthy reshoots, the movie was a box office bomb. Shredded by critics and hated by fans, the scheduled sequel was quickly canceled. Thankfully, Disney’s acquisition of Fox in 2019 brought the movie rights back to Marvel, and an MCU “Fantastic Four” is currently being developed.

In the summer of 1996, audiences were struck with shock and awe as giant beams of light obliterated the Empire State Building and White House. “Independence Day” was a massive success for 20th Century Fox and helped put Will Smith on the map as a bonafide movie star. It took twenty years for a sequel to appear and when it did, the film ended with the characters looking to bring the fight to the alien homeworld. The credits rolled, and… nothing. Any plans for a sequel were quickly tossed when the movie failed to deliver the success of its predecessor. It’s probably good that “Resurgence” wasn’t marketed as the first of a two-parter as originally intended.

You might be saying to yourself, “Surely you can’t be serious about a sequel!” We are, but don’t call us Shirley and don’t expect to see “Part III” anytime soon. The original “Airplane!” movie was written and directed by legendary parodists Jim Abrahams and David and Jerry Zucker, none of whom were involved in the sequel. At the very end of the film’s credits, a title card is shown for “Airplane III,” which is then immediately mocked by William Shatner’s character Buck Murdock. Producers did try to make the film happen, but Ted Striker actor Robert Hays initially refused to do another one, stating that, “You were really looked down upon if you did sequels.” Well, we looked down on this sequel, in any case.

Imagine pitching this idea to a movie studio: What if an elderly Elvis Presley and a black John F. Kennedy came together in a retirement home to fight an undead mummy? That’s essentially the plot to the 2002 movie “Bubba Ho-Tep” starring “Evil Dead’s” Bruce Campbell and Ossie Davis as Elvis and JFK, respectively. Despite the uncanny premise, the movie was a critical success, and included a title card at the end of the credits saying that Elvis would return in “Bubba Nosferatu: Curse of the She-Vampires.” Originally conceived as a joke by the director, scripts were reportedly written and plans made, but no movie ever materialized. Guess it’s back to the tamer Elvis conspiracy theories, then.

The first MCU appearance of the Hulk came in Edward Norton’s portrayal of the green rage monster in 2008. During the film, Bruce meets Samuel Sterns whom he’d been collaborating with online to find a cure for his condition. Sterns himself is later exposed to Bruce’s blood, and can be seen on the floor with a pulsating forehead. This teased audiences with the possibility of him becoming the comic character’s alter ego the Leader in a future film. However, Marvel’s plans for Hulk changed when he was recast for 2012’s “The Avengers.” There is hope however, as “The Incredible Hulk” villain Abomination did appear in “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” so maybe we’ll see the Leader, too, eventually.

The “Green Lantern” movie was originally planned to be the kickstarter to the DC Extended Universe, but that all fell apart once it hit theaters. Plagued by terrible reviews, terrible special effects, and widespread fan disappointment, any chances of a sequel or franchise died the moment Ryan Reynolds did his best to pretend he was wearing a CGI superhero costume. By the mid-credits sequence wherein Sinestro’s true villainy is teased, we all already knew that wouldn’t come to fruition. Since then, there have been shifting plans of a reboot movie in the DCEU and even an HBO Max series, but whatever we get next, it’ll have a big shadow to step out of.

This was the third installment in the “Divergent” franchise, based on the YA book series. Similar to “The Hunger Games,” the filmmakers decided to split the final book into two movies, giving us “Allegiant” in 2016 with an expected follow-up “Ascendant.” “Allegiant” ends with the heroes emitting a call to action, but the call was never answered as the final film never materialized. “Allegiant” tanked at the box office, and even had star Shailene Woodley almost quit acting as a result of the poor quality of the film. The studio tried to transition the fourth film to a TV series, but people seemed even less interested in that prospect. They really should’ve just made one final movie while they had the chance.

When Sony announced it was rebooting the “Spider-Man” franchise so closely after the release of “Spider-Man 3,” it drew a lot of criticism. Thankfully, Andrew Garfield’s portrayal of the web-slinger impressed fans enough that a second “Amazing Spider-Man” film got made. The studio had planned to create an entire universe around this franchise, as evidenced by the plethora of Sinister Six villain teases at the end of the film. All that seemingly ended when “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” failed to impress audiences. But not all may be lost. Since Garfield’s return in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” fans have been clamoring for Sony to finish the trilogy. Who knows what the future will bring?

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

“Batman & Robin” (1997)
We Never Did Get to See More of Alicia Silverstone’s Batgirl

“History of the World, Part I” (1981)
Also More of a Joke, but Who Wouldn’t Want to See “Jews in Space?”

“Eragon” (2006)
What Happened to Galbatorix’s Dragon, Anyway?

“The Mummy” (2017)
The Dark Universe Died as Soon as It Began

“Masters of the Universe” (1987)
Skeletor Returned, but Not This Iteration of the Character

It was supposed to be DC’s version of “The Avengers,” with a collection of major heroes taking on the mightiest of bad guys. Instead, fans were given some great action sequences mashed together with a villain that lacked any real gravitas. The post-credits scene features a conversation between Lex Luthor and Slade Wilson a.k.a. Deathstroke in which Lex proposes they build their own “league” of villains to counter the titular one. However, the poor reception to the film had this feeling like they were counting their chickens before they hatched. The much better received alternate cut, “Zack Snyder’s Justice League,” features another version of the scene, wherein Luthor reveals Batman’s identity, but who knows if anything will come of this either.