Unexpected Sequel Success: Movie Franchises That Surprised Us with Stellar Sequels

Source: Next Best Picture

And over the years I have seen many sequels that have not lived up to my expectations and that has led me to be a bit more cautious about the sequels I wish for. But I am not alone, film lovers all over have become more cautious about the sequels they want to see. But there are a few gems that we did not want but they turned out to be great.

Toy Story 4

The first film on the list is Toy Story 4. I am a huge fan of the Toy Story franchise and loved the first three films but when the fourth installment of the franchise was announced I was a bit skeptical about it. I thought the creators might be stretching it but to my surprise Toy Story 4 was an absolute masterpiece and I will even say that Toy Story 4 might just be the best film of the franchise. It had a great story and an ending that brought tears to my eyes. I have never been more glad about being so wrong about any film.

Mad Max: Fury Road

I don’t think this sequel was even on anybody's mind until the film was announced. It had been almost three decades since the last Mad Max dropped and then out of nowhere, we were all bracing for Mad Max: Fury Road. And it was one ride you cannot forget that easily. This Mad Max flick is one of the best action movies I have seen. Breathtaking stunts and awesome chase scenes through the wasteland brought everything together. The movie reinvigorated the love we all had for the road warrior but do you know that there’s a fan fiction that’s floating around. According to the fanfiction Max in Fury Road was actually the feral kid from Mad Max 2 who took on the identity of The Road Warrior.

Fast Five

This is the second action film on the list and it comes from a massive franchise that started back in 2001. Yes, almost two decades but the Fast & Furious franchise wouldn’t have been running for this long if it wasn’t for this particular installment in the movie series. Fast Five is one of the integral movies in the series that revived the franchise after the world tragically lost Paul Walker. With the introduction of new characters like Luke Hobbs (played by Dwayne Johnson) the Fast Saga was back on the top of the action-genre mountain.

Psycho II

If you are into mystery and thriller then I am sure Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho is high up on the list of your favorite films. And it’s only befitting that the 1983 sequel to the thriller would be equally good. Following up on such an iconic film is never easy and many sequels fail because they can’t live up to the original. But the creators of Psycho II knew exactly what they needed to do and very cleverly remade Norman Bates into a hero and with all the suspense intact led to a shocking twist at the end.

Top Gun Maverick

I loved Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt in the Mission Impossible franchise and we all know Cruise has all it takes to bring a franchise back to life. We have seen him do it with Mission Impossible and he also nailed it with Top Gun: Maverick. The film was not just a success but also became Tom Cruise’s biggest onscreen success. And this film might be my favorite sequel on the list.

So tell us which is your favorite movie sequel down in the comments.