14 Movies That Deserve a Sequel

There are too many sequels made for films that are unworthy, and too few made for films that are begging for a continuation of the story line. Sadly — as it is in every industry — success is measured by the bottom line over critical acclaim. Through the years, there have been several films that have cried out for more adventure, or a new adventure with beloved characters, and we’re here today to honor those films. You’re here to read which ones they are. So, here ya go. 14 of ’em.

14. Willow

From the days of Val Kilmer’s badassery, there came a little fantasy gem entitled, Willow. This film starred Warwick Davis, Kilmer and a totally crushable Joanne Whalley, who went on to become Val Kilmer’s wife, and the mother of his children. Yeah. She was smokin’ hot in Willow. The film itself was full of sorcerers, wizards, magic, sword fights, long-haired heroes, dwarf farmers, stunts, fairly poor FX, but total perfection for 1988. This came at the height of Val Kilmer’s popularity, just a couple years from his turn as Iceman in Top Gun. The ideology of the most evil was destroyed in Willow, but the story line was set up perfectly for a sequel to be made when the baby, Elora Danan — the intrusion of the world’s stasis — would be an adult, and some manifestation of evil would return. We’re ready for it!

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13. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

This is not a long shot; this is a completely improbable shot. We’ll stop short of saying impossible, but that’s likely the realm of continuation for this story. To begin, the genius writer, producer, director, John Hughes, passed away, and he was the heart and soul of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. But thinking about the potential of another day off in the life of Ferris? There are so many ways this could be done. If something miraculous ever happens, the tonality must remain the same. It must be shot on film, in the similar, simplistic style of the first film. And Ed Rooney has to be in the mix. Maybe Ferris skips out on a big meeting at work, and grabs his kid from school for the greatest skip day ever? Or he bumps into Sloane Peterson, who is recently divorced, and they holler at Cameron for another wild adventure?

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12. Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

There has been chatter about another film featuring Roger Rabbit since the first film was released in 1988. Have producers ever been close to assembling a cast and giving it a go? Rumors would lead one to believe that they did get close, only to learn of Bob Hoskins retirement from acting after he was diagnosed with Parkinsons Disease. Hoskins passed away in 2014. Now, any rumors stemming from the world of Roger Rabbit swirl in the land of a prequel. A story setting up the world that reengaged a generation with their love of golden era cartoons and animation. Would another go ’round for Roger Rabbit be successful? Pppppplleaseee!? It’s exactly what an industry dependent on VFX, and green screen production needs. Some real interaction with analog-animated characters. How badly do we miss Benny The Cab?

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11. Cloverfield

Cloverfield ended just as it was getting really interesting. The “found footage” monster flick, produced by J.J. Abrams was panned and praised, and only looking back is it more easy to appreciate. It was built up as a phenomenon, but in reality, it was just a really well done science-fantasy docu-drama pandering to a tween, and adventure-loving audience. It certainly evoked the sense memory of digging into a really good choose your own adventure novel. The style puts the viewer in the shoes of the heroes and victims, and as the film ends, it leads one to offer a couple of questions: what happened before, and what happens after? If there is a war that is waged, a sequel would be the preference. It’d be cool to see a survivor hack their way through the hostile alien invasion.

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10. The Dark Knight Rises

Who was happy about the Christopher Nolan Batman offerings coming to an end? Not the masses — not according to box office results, at least. Too many were dissatisfied with The Dark Knight Rises, feeling it was too much of an effort to bring a trilogy to a close. Sadly, the shooting in Aurora, Colorado, kind of cast a dark shadow and funk over the film from the get-go. Fans started picking it apart and suggesting “holes.” It’s a superhero movie, people. If you can buy into the idea of a human being being a superhero, it’s not that difficult to imagine the holes filled through some thinking. Still, there was, and is a desire for more. Some things were suggested that people want answers to, and we don’t want the answers from Zack Synder. Got that, Warner Brothers? Bring back Nolan for another go ’round at some point.

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9. National Treasure 3

Love or hate Nicholas Cage, the Disney produced National Treasure movies are really fun. Classify them as guilty pleasures, or fun, family flicks, they’re always dealing with legendary, conspiracy-fueled, American treasures, and there are so many more to choose from. The chemistry between Nicholas Cage, Diane Kruger and Justin Bartha is great, and you simply can’t go wrong with a story that is rooted in digging for, and finding a treasure. It’s man vs. man, man vs. nature, man vs. himself in the first film, and the sequel and a third installment would round out the three as a pretty stellar trilogy. Bottom line, it’s Disney: the Mouse will put the money behind the film to ensure it’s done well and done right. If you dig around, you’ll find that National Treasure 3 is in treatment stages, but as it stands, everything is speculative.

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8. Boyhood

How special was Boyhood? Richard Linklater filmed two weeks out of the year for 12 years in order to piece together one of the most impressive character dramas that has ever been made. Chronicling the life of a kid named Mason, Boyhood was that reminder that life goes entirely way too fast. The cast was perfect, and now everyone wants to know what will happen in the life of Mason. They didn’t bother with hiding imperfections, wrinkles, acne — it was indie, and it was gold. Having access to a few Q&As with Rick Linklater and his cast, there was a common voice resonating via all personnel: they were missing the process after the film was cut and released. Ellar Coltrane, who played the lead role of Mason, suggested he’d be all-in if they wanted to continue filming as an experiment, but that it couldn’t be called, “Manhood.”

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7. Serenity

Fellow Sci-Fan nerds lament… What is Sci-Fan, you ask? Why, Science-Fantasy, of course. Ultimately, that is the world in which Joss Whedon lives, and we’re so glad he does. Before Joss was in charge of this little series entitled, The Avengers, for Marvel, he was in charge of several shows that lived on the WB Network when it was a thing, and Serenity was one of the most beloved of any of his offerings. When it was prematurely cancelled, the powers who be were able to wrangle the money men (and women), and pitch a pretty sweet feature film that would conclude what the show had to offer. They did just that, and it was really good. Completely under the radar, but very enjoyable. But that’s not enough. Not for the incredibly loyal fan base of Serenity — it’s never enough.

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6. Mr. and Mrs. Smith

This sequel has worlds of potential. Worlds. The first film was a pleasant surprise. The premise seemed somewhat ridiculous, but Doug Liman was firing on all cylinders with this action-comedy that was unafraid to delve into some incredibly sexy sentiment. This was the film that paired Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as co-stars, and as we’re all well aware, that spilled into real life. A sequel could feature the two, finally on the same team, fighting against the same foes. Vince Vaughn could come back, and it could be a riotous, raucous good time. It’d be great to have Doug Liman calling the shots again. Doug, Brad and Angelina are honestly at their best. They’re in that fine wine stage of career and life, and a Mr. and Mrs. Smith sequel could literally go anywhere story wise, and all over the world for production.

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5. Leon: The Professional

Without Natalie Portman playing her first role in Leon: The Professional, movie fans would have no Hit Girl in a film like Kick-Ass. Leon: The Professional offered permission to “go there.” For a first time viewer, it’s a bit of “Woah!? Didn’t expect that.” It is borderline absurd, it is incredibly violent, almost inappropriate but so full of incredible action, unexpected comedy and sentiment. Natalie Portman stars opposite Jean Reno, and he mentors her in the skills of becoming a hit man. Natalie’s character, Mathilda, is left with an open door, and the promise of refinement at the end of the film… but it would be incredible to see something go down 20 years later. She wouldn’t be a hit woman, rather would have need to rely on her skills to offer retribution to a foe, or in this case, several foes.

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4. District 9

This one came out of left field, didn’t it? What a way to stick it to a group of studio financiers and producers that pull the plug on a Halo movie, after the artists had invested time to begin creating the world… South African writer-director, Neill Blomkamp, shocked everyone with the final product of District 9 when he borrowed some imagery from what would have been the Halo world. A social commentary steeped in action, stellar FX, full of sentiment and offering a reminder of the South African apartheid, District 9 starred Sharlto Copely, and took viewers on a journey. Due to exceptional, unexpected circumstance — no spoiler here — we’re left to wonder about Sharlto’s character, Wikus Van De Merwe. And it would be incredible to see more from that world, and what exactly happened to Wikus.

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3. Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade

Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade was the third of Indiana Jones’ adventures, and the last. What’s that, movie fans…? There were four Indiana Jones films!? But were there? Were there really? Or were there three Indiana Jones fans, and one impostor that was overly influenced by George Lucas, and a whole bunch of people sitting behind computers. We could rap all day and night about the disappointment of Kingdom of The Crystal Skull, but let’s focus on what could have happened. Frank Darabont wrote a script which everyone loved… everyone except Lucas. Now, powers who be, please give Frank the opportunity to write another, and bring this franchise home with Harrison Ford. It does not need a reboot. If people want someone else in a similar role — Chris Pratt — then develop another adventure series. Let’s do it, Steven Spielberg… old school style! On film. Stunts. Magic!

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2. The Incredibles

Of all the films ever made that need a sequel… there’s a reason why The Incredibles is hovering at the top of this list. The great thing about this Pixar offering: it’s so easy to buy superheroes in the world of animation. Everything is possible. Everything is believable. There are so many directions they could take the sequel. The kids could be grown, or it could take place shortly after the chronology of the first film. Either way, it’s something that fans want, and something that would crush the box office. So, what gives? There is this little morsel to consider: if you hop over to IMDb, you’ll see that a sequel has been announced, but that doesn’t really mean anything. Especially when it’s in the script phase. Things can go very wrong, or go to the back burner quickly before a script is green lit.

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1. Zombieland

Yes, superfans, the word is out: Zombieland 2 is happening. Except that it’s not. Not yet. What people have to understand about the development process: it doesn’t mean anything on this scale. The producers brought writers on to pitch story line, and it didn’t vibe. They’ve hired another writer at this point, and are hoping for the best, but at this point, that’s all it is. Wishful thinking. Sure, it’ll likely happen, but to think that a script equates to a green lit feature? Don’t count those chickens just yet. Fortunately, it seems the cast is really stoked about playing together again, and that’s huge, considering all of them command a pretty fat payday. When will it happen, if it happens? Don’t hold your breath. Keep breathing and hoping at this point. One thing is for certain… when… it’ll be something special.