We’ve seen it happen over and over again: a new movie comes along that is both entertaining and fresh, only to be followed by countless sequels and spinoffs that are not only terrible in their own right, but also somehow manage to damage the credibility and popularity of the original film. Here are ten of the worst examples of rampant franchising that spoiled an otherwise great cinematic property.

The top 10 movies ruined by their franchise (in chronological order):

10. Planet of the Apes (1968)

The Original

Franklin J. Schaffner’s original film is a low budget sci-fi masterpiece. It follows a group of astronauts who crash-land on a bizarre foreign planet populated by a race of highly evolved apes. The scientists discover that not only are the apes the masters of this planet, but humans are a hunted species and beasts of burden. Featuring groundbreaking special effects and makeup, Planet of the Apes is a crucial part of American cinematic history.

The Franchise

While the original film benefited from a great cast led by Charlton Heston and a magnificent twist ending, the next five films were unable to capture the same spark or magic. That’s not to say that they were universally hated. They maintained a sense of cheesy, B-movie sci-fi fun for most of the subsequent films. A strong cult following arose surrounding the franchise…at least until Tim Burton’s 2001 remake disgraced the series and singlehandedly stripped the property of any credibility. (Editor’s note: the video clip is not from a sequel, it’s a mashup of Simpsons and POTA footage.)

9. Jaws (1975)

The Original

More than 35 years after its release, Jaws remains one of the greatest horror films ever made. In the film that established director Steven Spielberg’s career as Hollywood’s favorite director, a massive great white shark terrorizes the residents of Amity Island. After eating several swimmers, a rag-tag team comprised of a scientist, a marine biologist, and a shark hunter set out to kill the infernal beast. Infamous both for its iconic score and its technique of rarely actually showing the shark, Jaws helped set the standard for not only modern horror films, but the Hollywood blockbuster.

The Franchise

The Jaws franchise marks a steady decline in both technological prowess and quality. The sequels were content with showing the shark as much as possible, stripping the films of any kind of suspense. While the second film had its merits, the franchise really began to sink with Jaws 3-D, a film with a laughable plot and some of the worst special effects ever seen. But nothing could reach the depths of Jaws: The Revenge, which was so bad and unwatchable that it was nominated for the 1987 Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture.

8. Halloween (1978)

The Original

Still considered horror pioneer John Carpenter’s masterpiece, Halloween inspired a new genre of film: the slasher. But unlike many of its imitators, Halloween has the unusual distinction of being genuinely terrifying. It follows teenager Laurie Strode as she tries to escape from the wrath of a homicidal mental patient named Michael Myers. While most slashers depend on gore and shock effects, Halloween relied primarily on tension, atmosphere, and the cryptic, unstoppable personal of Michael Myers. Not only did it establish the slasher genre, it created the horror trope of the unstoppable, inescapable killer- later realized in the characters of Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger, and Pinhead.

The Franchise:

The Halloween franchise suffered a schizophrenic set of sequels. Halloween III: Season of the Witch was literally completely unrelated to the first two films and didn’t even feature Michael Myers. The next several films completely ruined the character of Michael Myers, giving him a ridiculous origin story and making him seem supernatural instead of just psychotic. The franchise withered under the weight of seven sequels before being revived in 2007 with a remake by Rob Zombie. Reactions to the remakes are mixed, with some saying that they brilliantly revamped the mythos while others claimed that they were just excuses for Rob Zombie to shove as much gore on the screen as possible.

7. Superman (1978)

The Original

The 1978 film Superman single-handedly invented the modern superhero genre. Featuring the superb direction of Richard Donner, the film followed the origin of Superman as the last survivor of the planet Krypton. As the champion of planet Earth, he must save the United States from a plot by Lex Luthor to annihilate the entire western seaboard. With the impeccable Christopher Reeve as Superman, the film brought the character, and the idea of the superhero, to life like never before. Featuring ground-breaking effects, Superman was a blockbuster before the blockbuster even existed.

The Franchise

Few franchises swan-dived as quickly and viciously as the Superman series. The first is a brilliant classic. However, things went downhill when Richard Lester replaced the director of the first movie, Richard Donner. Instead of embracing the epic mythos of the Superman universe, Lester injected the sequel with pointless slapstick and comedic relief. Still, the sequel was also regarded as a classic. However, the next two films almost single-handedly killed the superhero film genre for decades. Superman III was essentially a Richard Pryor vehicle and Superman IV featured some of the most laughable villains, plot holes, scientific inaccuracies, and errors to ever hit the screen. The series was rebooted in 2006 with a lackluster remake Superman Returns. At the moment, the series is planned for a second reboot with Zack Snyder directing.

6. Alien (1979)

The Original

To this day, Ridley Scott’s Alien is one of the scariest films ever made. It follows the fates of the crew of a mining ship that receives a strange SOS signal from a distant planet. Upon arrival, they are attacked and picked off one by one by a monstrous creature that seemingly can’t be detected or stopped. Famed for its incredible production and monster design, the film established two of the cinema’s most famous personalities: everywoman survivor Ellen Ripley and the sinister Alien, the latter of which has become one of the most famous film antagonists in history.

The Franchise

Let me make one thing clear: this has nothing to do with the sequel Aliens by James Cameron. Many would argue that Aliens is not only as good as the original, but superior. No…this is referring to the abysmal sequels Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection. Both films represent giant steps down from the amazing special effects and visceral storytelling of the first two films. Not only that, but many would argue that they irredeemably damaged the first two films by heartlessly killing off many of its characters. As for the Alien vs. Predator films…the less said, the better.

5. Highlander (1986)

The Original

A fantastically entertaining film, the original Highlander was an old school sword and sorcery flick set, in all places, in New York City. The film follows Connor MacLeod, a member of a race of immortals that has existed since the dawn of time. We watch as MacLeod discovers the truth of his own immortality in the Scottish Highlands of the 16th century, his training, and eventual showdown with a fellow immortal who has been killing their fellows and draining their power. Highlander is a unique fantasy film that managed to create its own distinct, creative mythology and inspired a dedicated cult following.

The Franchise

The Highlander series has become the poster child for horrific franchising within the industry. Hot off the success of the first film, a sequel, Highlander II: The Quickening, was released. To this day, it is regarded as one of the worst films of all time, featuring a plot that completely revamped and ruined the characters and mythos of the first film, featured one of the worst screenplays of the decade, and some of the worst special effects imaginable. The worst part is, the sequel isn’t as bad as it gets. Hollywood seems like it has no intentions of letting this franchise die, as it has suffered through five sequels, each miraculously worse than the one before.

4. Batman (1989)

The Original

While the superhero genre had already been established long before its debut, Tim Burton’s Batman renewed the public’s interest in the genre and in its titular character. The film follows billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne who fights crime at night as the masked vigilante known as Batman. He must grapple with a new and powerful enemy who threatens to spread chaos and death throughout his beloved Gotham City: the psychotic Joker. With its amazing performances and stunning visuals, Batman remains to this day as one of the quintessential examples of the superhero genre.

The Franchise

Again, this is not a slam against its sequel. Batman Returns was a brilliant film that some argue was superior to the first. I’m referring to what happened after Joel Schumacher took over. Instead of continuing Tim Burton’s vision of a dark, hyper-stylized universe for Batman to brood in, Schumacher returned the franchise to its camp roots of the 1960s television show. The third film, Batman Forever, was tolerable, although it definitely had its weaknesses. The fourth film, Batman and Robin, has literally been crowned as one of the all time worst films ever made, ranking up there with the likes of Plan 9 from Outer Space. Schumacher killed the Batman franchise. Thankfully, Christopher Nolan successfully revived the franchise with the one-two punch of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.

3. The Matrix (1999)

The Original

One of the most influential science fiction films of all time, The Matrix was a film that asked bold, daring questions about the nature of reality and free will. It concerns Neo, a computer programmer who learns that the world as we know it is a simulated reality created by sentient machines in order to harvest humanity’s body heat as a source of energy. He joins a group of rebels in an attempt to fight back against their mechanical overlords. Containing special effects that rewrote the rulebook and some of the greatest action sequences ever filmed, The Matrix changed the face of science fiction cinema.

The Franchise

The problem with most of these entries was that the original films that they were based on weren’t intended to have sequels. As a result, the ensuing films had to rewrite and expand upon the universe that the originals so carefully crafted; usually ruining them in the process (see Highlander). One of the worst victims of this trend is The Matrix series. The first film was entirely self-contained and ended in a way that was intended to end its story. Therefore, the two sequels were forced to invent pointless plot points, characters, and twists in order to keep audiences interested. While they did have great effects and fight scenes, the laughable dialogue and monstrous plots infuriated audiences the world over.

2. Shrek (2001)

The Original

The original Shrek was a high-energy farce of fairy tales that featured lovable characters, incredible animation, and a quotable, hilarious script. It was the story of a massive green ogre called Shrek who departs to save a princess from a castle guarded by a dragon all in a quest to save his swamp home. Along the way, he finds companionship with a loudmouth donkey that helps him rescue the fair damsel who has quite a secret of her own. The film helped establish DreamWorks as a major animation competitor to Pixar and won the first ever Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

The Franchise

This is another example of a franchise that should just be stopped. The first film was amazing. The sequel was decent. The third film was unnecessary. The fourth film was just painful to watch. Each film saw delineation from what made the first film so lovable and memorable towards random pop culture references and cameos. The franchise is now a pale shadow of what it once was. The creators have become so strained for ideas that they have devoted a new film, Puss in Boots, to a third-rate character from the second film.

1. Pirates of the Caribbean (2003)

The Original

The original Pirates of the Caribbean was an action packed throwback to the swashbuckling pirate films of old. Although the film was based on a Disneyland ride, it astonished audiences with breathtaking action, magnificent special effects, and memorable characters. At the heart of this film was Johnny Depp’s performance of Captain Jack Sparrow, who has become one of the most beloved and recognizable characters of the last decade.

The Franchise

The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise suffered not necessarily from bad filmmaking, but from trying to do too much. The first film had a great balance between action and drama, giving the audience time to breathe and recover from each fight scene. The sequels tried to fill the screen with too many special effects, fighting, and explosions. As a result, both sequels were top heavy and were confusing to the audience members who tried to follow the actual story. The third film, At World’s End, was nearly three hours long and featured a plot that left audience members bored and puzzled. Maybe there is still hope for this franchise, as the fourth film, On Stranger Tides, is set to be released this year.

Liked it? Take a second to support Toptenz.net on Patreon!

Other Articles you Might Like