Despite the fact that the anime live-action movie adaptation had a lot of handicaps holding it down, the first “Alita: Battle Angel” film still earned over $400 million worldwide. This is on top of having to contend with bad reviews from unsuitable critics, a niche audience, and effects that took some getting used to. With the rights of the franchise essentially belonging to Disney now, will “Alita: Battle Angel 2” be treated better by the company?

As Business Times points out, “Alita: Battle Angel” earned more than what many were expecting from its worldwide release. Granted, it didn’t bring in “Avengers” cash, but it more than broke even with what was invested in it. What’s more, the movie truly resonated with moviegoers and fans of the source material, which is what will have the biggest impact on “Alita: Battle Angel 2.”

If ever the sequel comes out, it’s a fair bet that there will be more people who will watch it since word of mouth is one of the biggest factors that saved the first film, in the first place. By hooking in a sizeable chunk of film enthusiasts, “Alita: Battle Angel 2” will likely have less trouble proving that it is worth gambling on for Disney.

The odds of “Alita: Battle Angel 2” being a major box office success skyrockets even further if it is reviewed by critics who actually understand what it is. The feedback to the first film showed one of the biggest disparities between so-called professional reviewers and the audience in movie history. Clearly, the people chosen to cover the movie were not the right persons for the job.

As for when fans can expect to see “Alita: Battle Angel 2,” it likely won’t be for a while even if it is greenlit. James Cameron is still working on his “Avatar” sequels, after all. As such, it’s possible for the sequel to come out no earlier than 2025.