Top 10 Upcoming Sequels That Might Suck

When the Jurassic Park franchise got the revival treatment in 2015, it roared back into theaters with a vengeance. Sure, it felt like a bit of a retread of the original 1993 classic, but fans were mostly just happy about the return to this incredible world. Unfortunately the second chapter in this sequel trilogy tried to expand that world in ways that didn’t necessarily work. It made some bold moves, but left the third instalment with almost too much material to work with. Considering the plot holes, cheesy dialogue and uneven pacing of “Fallen Kingdom”, some fear that this franchise has become too unwieldy to successfully navigate its own narrative.

When Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law teamed up with director Guy Ritchie to give this updated, stylish take on the classic pairing of Sherlock Holmes and Watson, it felt fresh and exciting. Just two years later we got a sequel, “A Game of Shadows”, which, despite bringing Holmes’ nemesis Moriarty out of the shadows, fell short of its predecessor. With RDJ being so busy with the MCU, it seemed as if this franchise was dead, but a third instalment is finally inbound. The question is… are people still interested in the Guy Ritchie version of this iconic character, or has Benedict Cumberbatch changed what audiences want from Sherlock Holmes? Only time will tell.

Fox found themselves a minor goldmine when they chose to adapt Mark Millar’s Kingsman comics. Cinemas are overstuffed with superhero comic adaptations, but this story of modern secret agents quickly found its audience. The first film introduced a charming cast of characters and the sequel expanded the mythology while still delivering quality action. Critics may have been less kind, but the fans were generally pleased. Crucial to the success of the franchise however, has been the charisma of young star Taron Egerton who sadly isn’t returning for the third instalment. Egerton has assured fans that he’ll return for later sequels, but can the franchise survive an instalment without him?

For many, James Cameron’s involvement is reason enough to believe that this sixth instalment will automatically be a return to form. There’s no denying his personal track record: “Terminator” and “Terminator 2: Judgement Day” are classics of the genre. The return of Linda Hamilton feels reminiscent of Jamie Lee Curtis’ reunion with Michael Myers, which certainly managed to save that floundering property. Here’s the thing though … Arnold is also coming back, and we’re starting to get a sense of deja vu. Don’t get us a wrong, Arnold will be THE Terminator, but we were pumped for his return in Genesys too - and look where that left us. Can Cameron redeem the franchise?

If you were a kid when the original film came out, you were probably blissfully unaware of the fact that it was not well-received by critics. Love it or hate it, “Space Jam” holds a special place in both the pop culture history books and the hearts of many. So the real question is not whether “Space Jam 2” will be good, but rather if it can live up to the legacy of the original. LeBron James showed us he can act in “Trainwreck”, so we have little doubt that he can fill Michael Jordan’s shoes, but considering how drastically animation has changed, we’re just not sure that it can recapture the magic of the original.

When James Cameron unleashed “Avatar” upon the world, it was unlike anything cinemagoers had ever seen. Audiences didn’t know how to describe or classify what they’d just watched. People were clamoring for a sequel, but this is James Cameron we’re talking about and so he’s been taking his sweet time delivering. Even by his slow-moving standards however, the “Avatar” sequels have felt really long in the making, and the multiple release date delays haven’t helped things. Some are worried that the Avatar franchise has turned into James Cameron’s “Chinese Democracy”, intended as a masterpiece but doomed to become an overwrought, bloated mess that was left too long in the creative oven. Here’s hoping they’re wrong.

The first “Now You See Me” was a convoluted but fun caper/thriller with a magic twist. While there was something novel about seeing one-time boy wizard Daniel Radcliffe play a role in the sequel, the movie wasn’t nearly as well received as its predecessor. Sure, it packed in even more twists and turns, but the big reveals lacked the wow factor of the first film. It still did well at the box office, but number 2 felt like the logical place to end the franchise. Apparently not! A third film is confirmed, but many worry that it will only double down on the mistakes of the second.

“Top Gun” is a unique film. It’s both beloved and frequently parodied in ways that only an 80s flick about fighter pilots can be. A perfectly over-the-top and unselfconscious “cool guy” movie, it became emblematic of the decade. But what place is there for “Top Gun” in the modern age? Nowadays, that sort of overblown competitive machismo feels out of place in any film outside of the “Expendables” franchise. In this sequel, Tom Cruise returns as Maverick and Miles Teller joins him as the son of Goose. Nostalgia can only carry the film so far though, and we worry about how Maverick fits into the modern world.

Despite critics tearing it apart, “Suicide Squad” did very well at the box office. Warner Bros. was anxious to get a sequel out, but that’s proven easier said than done. The film has gone through numerous directors, and the projected 2017 shooting date quickly came and went. Most recently, Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn has been tapped to write the sequel, and is rumored to be doing it with an eye to direct. Considering the film’s troubled development history thus far, we take this with a grain of salt. Also, while Gunn’s MCU work was excellent, not everything he’s written has been of comparable quality.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a couple of honorable mentions

“X-Men: Dark Phoenix” (2019)

“The Angry Birds Movie 2” (2019)

Can a franchise return to form after “nuking the fridge”? We have our doubts. In 2016 it was announced that all parties, including star Harrison Ford, were game to make a fifth Indiana Jones film. Though first scheduled for a 2019 release, it’s since been pushed back to 2021. We’d love to believe that this fifth instalment can redeem the franchise by polishing off the tarnish left behind by the fourth. But… considering Spielberg was reportedly happy with the “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” we have no reason to believe that this sequel will be course correction, and we’d rather get nothing than more of what the fourth film had to offer.