Sequels already have a reputation for creative bankruptcy. They continue the stories purely for profit, often leading to uninspired plotting and character assassination. That’s what happens when you create something out of obligation instead of passion. However, some examples reach new heights of laziness.
Certain sequels are shameless retreads of their predecessors. Sure, they might swap the names or upscale the set pieces, but the narratives are eerily familiar. Such recycled structures usually result in diminishing returns, sending a clear message that the filmmakers are bereft of ideas. This, in turn, prevents the series from growing. Granted, a few examples admittedly turn out well, but they pale in comparison to the disappointments. Originality is just too much to ask.
Related: 10 Things Famous Filmmakers Regret About Their Classic Movies
10 Die Hard 2: Die Harder (1990)
Table of Contents
Fans lament the Die Hard series for turning a normal protagonist into a glorified superhero. The original 1988 film sees disgruntled cop John McClane (Bruse Willis) visit his wife during Christmas. Unbeknownst to either of them, a band of terrorists seizes their building and takes hostages. McClane must then sneak through the complex, fighting off crippling injuries to stop the bad guys and save the day. Little did he know that this would become a regular occurrence.
Die Hard 2 once again takes place during the holidays. While trying to pick up his traveling wife, McClane witnesses the airport being taken over by another gang of thugs. The hero narrowly avoids the villains and begins gradually picking them off. Like last time, he uses stealthy ingenuity to overcome impossible odds. The ordeal cements the series’ Christmas reputation, but it also makes McClane less relatable, which completely misses the point.[1]
9 The Hangover Part II (2011)
The appeal of The Hangover (2009) is how unexpected it is, but that novelty wears off on repeat. The movie centers on three guys who come together for their friend’s wedding. After drinking a little too much at the bachelor party, they wake up with no memory of the previous night and no idea where the groom is. They frantically retrace their steps to find him, but they also learn just how insane they were while under the influence. You’d think they’d learn their lesson, but no.
The Hangover Part II takes the three idiots to another crazy bachelor party. They inexplicably black out for a second time and wake up in Bangkok. Only by piecing together the preceding evening can they hope to find their missing friend and make it to the wedding. The journey either recycles the same gags or replaces them with more outrageous ones. Suffice it to say, this series should sober up.[2]
8 Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992)
Christmas seems to be a common factor in recycled sequels. Home Alone (1990) centers on young Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin). Angry with his huge family, he gets his wish when they accidentally leave him behind during a vacation. He now has the whole house to himself. Although that’s fun for a while, he soon grows to miss his annoying family. Amid that loneliness, he must thwart a pair of bumbling bandits trying to plunder his home. The resulting film is a bizarre mix of wholesome joy and brutal slapstick. The same goes for the follow-up.
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York looks different on the surface, but it’s just a new paint job. Although this oversized family embarks on a Christmas vacation together, Kevin boards the wrong flight and winds up in New York City. His dad’s credit card provides some temporary enjoyment at a ritzy hotel, but it’s not enough to stave off the inevitable sense of isolation. Compounding the problems are the same two crooks whom Kevin must outwit with another house of pranks. Given these incidents, the parents need to keep this kid on a leash.[3]
7 The Incredibles 2 (2018)
People laud The Incredibles (2004) for its unique take on superheroes. The film presents a world where these powerful do-gooders are outlawed due to their immense damage. Mr. Incredible, now a disillusioned family man, stumbles on a chance to recapture his former glory when a mysterious organization requests his help. He embarks on several secret missions for these shadowy individuals, unaware that their true goal is to eliminate supers entirely. They’re not the last ones to attempt such a purge.
The Incredibles 2 opens by reinforcing the superhero ban, leaving the family without purpose. One day, a mysterious company contacts them with a proposal: send one of them out as an active agent and use the positive PR to make supers legal again. This time, though, the one in the field is Mr. Incredible’s wife, Elastigirl. She also loves reliving past thrills, but that fun is cut short when the company reveals its true colors. The CEO’s sister wants to forever tarnish superheroes’ image so that they’ll be permanently outlawed. Illogic aside, the plot is just a gender-flipped version of its predecessor.[4]
6 Mary Poppins Returns (2018)
Mary Poppins (1964) introduces a magical nanny in charge of two neglected children. With the help of a chipper chimney sweep, she takes them on a whimsical journey of discovery. The party traverses both 1910s London and a fabulous wonderland of 2D animation, complementing the quirky scenarios with a slew of songs. Along the way, Mary (Julie Andrews) brings the children closer to their parents with the calm confidence of an old hat.
The belated sequel, Mary Poppins Returns, makes her miracles a regular occurrence. This follow-up sees the kids from the first film have children of their own. The mystic nanny reappears to heal their strife through song. As expected, the process involves exploring the period setting through both live-action dance numbers and animated romps. The group even has a cockney escort, albeit a lamplighter instead of a chimney sweep. The creators go through all the familiar beats, musical or otherwise. Think of a popular song getting an inferior cover, and you have this film.[5]
5 Escape from L.A. (1996)
Way to ruin a good idea! Escape from New York (1981) is a dystopian tale where the major city stands abandoned, at least by the law-abiding populace. The sprawling metropolis now functions as an oversized prison for the world’s worst criminals. That becomes a problem when an abduction strands the U.S. president in this dangerous den. The rescue operation falls to a convicted soldier named Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell). If he saves the president from the hellish jail and the psychos within, then he receives a pardon. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance, but the sequel nixes that notion.
Escape from L.A. separates Los Angeles from the rest of the country. After a series of tyrannical laws by the president, the place becomes a convenient storage area for crooks and anyone unwilling to support the new regime. Snake Plissken is back on the unlawful roster, but he gets another chance for freedom by infiltrating the city and retrieving a stolen piece of tech. As if the premise wasn’t predictable enough, this tool is in the hands of the president’s daughter. Although the specifics are sillier, both the job and the reward are the same.[6]
4 Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
In trying to revitalize Star Wars, Disney hearkens back to what fans love. The 1977 classic—retroactively titled Star Wars: A New Hope—introduces a vast galaxy oppressed by an evil Empire. Plucky farm boy Luke Skywalker stumbles into the conflict when he receives a mysterious droid with plans to the villains’ devastating new weapon. Luke must get this bot to the Rebels so that they can destroy their enemies’ terrible tool. Along the way, an aged mentor teaches Skywalker his lineage as a peacekeeping Jedi. The whole ordeal is the classic hero’s journey, but that doesn’t mean Disney has to copy it.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens takes the galaxy forward in time. Despite the Rebels’ victory in the original trilogy, the Imperial remnants regain control thanks to a planet-sized weapon capable of destroying solar systems. An unassuming scavenger named Rey proves to be the heroes’ best hope for success, as she rescues the very droid with the weapon’s schematics. With those plans in tow, the Rebels can scrap the bad guys’ new toy. All the while, Rey gets her own mentor, who opens her eyes to the wider world of the Jedi and the Force. The creators clearly respect the source material, but maybe a little too much.[7]
3 Desperado (1995)
Humble beginnings breed a bombastic follow-up. El Mariachi (1992) is a low-budget gem about an unlucky guitar player. A misunderstanding makes this musician a target for drug dealers. Inadvertently armed with a guitar case full of guns, the hero must quickly learn to kill or be killed. He finds unlikely love along the way, but both she and his livelihood fall victim to his pursuers. The conflict culminates in an explosive shootout at the villains’ fancy villa. Writer-director Robert Rodriguez pulls off the action flick with a shoestring budget, and its success put him on the map.
He later used that stardom to craft Desperado. This sequel continues the guitarist’s crusade as he pursues the man in charge of the criminal enterprise. While the crooks try to kill the singer, he swiftly mows them down with his newly acquired arsenal. His private war eventually lets him find love again, soothing his pain. However, that doesn’t stop him from confronting his quarry at another high-end villa. The entire scenario is familiar yet fresh, thanks to Rodriguez upping the blockbuster ante and refining his skills. Plenty of directors remake their own work, but rarely as a sequel.[8]
2 Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
How ironic that a time-traveling franchise recycles its storylines. James Cameron’s The Terminator (1984) is a tense chase revolving around Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton). Her son, John, will eventually lead humanity to victory in a cataclysmic war with intelligent machines. To avert their loss, the malevolent mechs send a cyborg assassin back in time to wipe Sarah from history. Countering that threat is a human soldier sent to protect the unsuspecting woman. The premise paves the way for a harrowing action flick where the human heroes outrun an unstoppable adversary. Sadly, good ideas breed copycats, and many examples are close to home.
Most of the Terminator series reuses the first film’s setup. It starts when Cameron essentially remakes his classic as Terminator 2: Judgment Day. True, the killer is a more advanced machine, and the protector is a reprogrammed robot. However, the plot itself proceeds in much the same manner, complete with both futuristic visitors dying at the end. The other sequels also fit that mold, tweaking certain aspects while maintaining the narrative foundation. The only exceptions are Terminator Salvation and The Sarah Connor Chronicles. The rest might as well be part of a time loop. Speaking of James Cameron…[9]
1 Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Avatar (2009) is an alien story with earthly themes. As humanity scours the universe for resources, the explorers come upon Pandora, a planet rich in precious minerals. Of course, the forest-dwelling natives don’t want their sacred environment pillaged for profit. Enter Jake Sully, a soldier recruited to occupy his brother’s alien avatar and convince the inhabitants to stand down. The plan has the opposite effect, though, as Jake soon feels more at home with these extraterrestrial felines, ultimately aiding them against the human invaders. The experience is essentially an overproduced knockoff of Dances with Wolves, but the sequel is somehow more blatant with its copycat antics.
Avatar: The Way of Water shifts its setting while keeping the plot. The humans return to Pandora in a second attempt to exploit its resources. They repeat their prior strategy to undermine the natives through avatar infiltrators. However, Jake and his family head them off yet again, leading to another destructive battle between the natural world and the imperialistic colonizers. Aside from the larger cast, the only major difference is the focus on underwater natives rather than woodland ones. If this movie proves anything, it’s that James Cameron loves repackaging his work as sequels.[10]