Hollywood has demonstrated time and again that studios will stop at nothing to construct a franchise around a successful film. If an idea works, it’s frivolous to waste time and effort trying to make something novel. It’s much easier to explore new avenues within a pre-existing story than to create a new one altogether. Thus, the industry typically pours its resources into these projects. Unsurprisingly, many movie sequels coming in 2025 boast the highest budgets of any other тιтles.

Even the large majority of the highest-grossing movies of all time are sequels. The bottom line is that these films make money, but they still need to maintain a degree of innovation. Typically, there is already a set path for the story. A franchise like the Infinity Saga particularly benefited from this quality. Other times, all that’s necessary is a new character or conflict. On the rarest of occasions, a sequel will change the original movie’s genre entirely.

10

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

Directed By Joe Dante

In 1984, Joe Dante introduced the story of the beloved cuddly creatures in Gremlins. They’re as cute as can be until they get near water or eat after midnight. If that happens, they turn into literal serial killers. The film was a smash hit when it was released and remains a fan favorite to this day. Six years later, the director delivered a follow-up with Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Most were expecting a thoughtful continuation of the first movie, and that’s not what they got.

The original was a horror comedy by all measures, but the sequel turned up the absurdity to the max. Dante dropped the somewhat scary aspect altogether and created a hysterical rollercoaster of pure insanity. While some tend to prefer the first movie, there’s no denying that the second is way more interesting. It isn’t clear what the thought process behind the change was, but it was ᴀssuredly the right move. Although the second installment hit theaters over 40 years ago, Gremlins 3 recently received a reᴀssuring update.

9

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)

Directed By Dan Trachtenberg

Dan Trachtenberg’s 10 Cloverfield Lane presents an interesting example of franchise continuation. The movies in the series are technically sequels to one another, but it isn’t initially clear how the Cloverfield ​​​​​​movies connect. The original 2008 film, Matt Reeve’s Cloverfield, was a found-footage style horror sci-fi that followed a mᴀssive creature destroying a city.

10 Cloverfield Lane didn’t continue that story in any way, and the tone took a mᴀssive shift. The sequel primarily takes place in an underground bunker during a supposed apocalypse, following Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) who doubts the sincerity of her fellow survivors. It’s more of a psychological thriller compared to its action horror predecessor. The entertainment comes from hysteria, and the sci-fi aspect doesn’t make itself known until the end of the film. Although it wasn’t the follow-up that audiences were expecting, it’s arguably better than the original.

8

The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre 2 (1986)

Directed By Tobe Hooper

It isn’t clear what exactly went wrong with the creation of Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre 2. The original film is easily one of the best horror movies of all time, and there isn’t much of a debate. It managed to create a bone-chilling atmosphere that was almost tangible. Given how terrifying Leatherface was in the first film, there were high hopes for an equally scary sequel.

Audiences were met with a movie that felt like a parody of its source material. Even within the first few minutes of the runtime, it’s woefully apparent that the sequel is completely absurd. The gritty tone of the original was completely thrown out the window, and the director adopted a campy style that made everything seem like a joke. There’s no doubt that The Texas Chainsaw Mᴀssacre Part 2 is a fun ride, but it’s confusing why the genre change was so sudden.

7

Cars 2 (2011)

Directed By John Lᴀsseter

Cars is one of the many jewels in the fabled Pixar animation studio’s crown. Disney doesn’t seem to miss a beat in creating intriguing story concepts, and this film was no exception. The idea of cars as sentient beings is interesting enough, but they built it into a truly heartwarming story. Out of the million avenues the creators could’ve gone with for the next installment, the choice was completely unexpected.

One of the original film’s main strengths was its simplicity. The core plot was about racing, but it tied in a funny contrast between Lightning McQueen’s (Owen Wilson) bougie lifestyle and the rural town of Radiator Springs. Cars 2 disregarded both of these things and suddenly added international espionage into the lives of the automobiles. The spy comedy direction felt completely unnatural in the context of the first movie, and unsurprisingly, the reception was less than stellar. Although there is still demand for a Cars 4, there haven’t been many updates.

6

Evil ᴅᴇᴀᴅ II (1987)

Directed By Sam Raimi

It’s a common practice for horror franchises to adopt a more comical aspect with later installments. Even the genre’s “big three,” Halloween, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street all begin to take a campy direction eventually. It’s usually due to a lack of other ideas, so it’s interesting when a sequel takes the humor route immediately. In the case of the Evil ᴅᴇᴀᴅ movies, this is exactly what happened.

Sam Raimi’s The Evil ᴅᴇᴀᴅ is a prime example of classic horror. Filled with all the quintessential tropes of the genre, it’s a genuinely scary film that’s impressive in light of the modest budget. Evil ᴅᴇᴀᴅ II, however, was nothing like its predecessor. Raimi packed in more comedy than was ever present in the original, but the result was fantastic. The new style was more entertaining, and it gave a more complete feel to the movie as a whole.

5

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Directed By Taika Waiтιтi

Taika Waiтιтi brought a necessary breath of fresh air to Marvel’s god of thunder in 2017 with Thor: Ragnarok. The first few franchise installments kicked off the story in a thoughtful manner, but both films featured relatively unexciting experiences overall. Thor was missing the right aesthetic, and Waiтιтi delivered. The sequel dropped the somewhat bleak tone of the previous movies and added a splash of color.

Suddenly, a short-haired Thor gets blasted out of the Bifröst and winds up on a whimsical planet where his first main task is to fight Hulk in a mᴀssive arena. It’s exactly what the audience wanted to see. The film still falls under the superhero genre but with an entirely different style. The once-stern plot was now filled with hysterical moments. Considering what the state of the franchise looks like today, it makes the tone shift of this sequel look like a mistake. Nevertheless, Thor: Ragnarok is easily the best of the Thor movies.

4

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Directed By James Cameron

In 1984, the renowned James Cameron kicked off a mᴀssive franchise with The Terminator. The director managed to turn a major profit despite the odds, pulling in $78.3 million at the worldwide box office against a modest budget of $6.4 million. It isn’t a shock that audiences were so enthralled by the sci-fi classic. When it finally came time for a sequel, Cameron was backed by much heavier resources.

The first film had a sinister ambiance that had strong elements of horror, but Terminator 2: Judgment Day went down a different road. Cameron took the original premise and overloaded it with high-octane action. This was carried out in conjunction with an array of innovative special effects, making for a sequel that was arguably superior to the first movie. It felt like a standalone installment for all the best reasons.

3

Fast Five (2011)

Directed By Justin Lin

When it comes to the Fast and Furious ​​​​​​movies, it’s hard to know where to even begin. What once started as mischievous friends’ street racing has seemingly transformed into life-or-death space missions where the fate of the entire world is at stake. Most would think that the creators would run out of steam, but sure enough, another installment pops up every few years. The franchise is more absurd than ever, but it all started earlier on.

Although the abandonment of the original premise slowly crept up with each release, Fast Five represented the biggest genre shift. When Dwayne Johnson finally shows up in the cast, it’s bound to get interesting. This sequel witnessed the classic crew in Rio de Janeiro, where their street-level antics have suddenly risen to an international scale. Fast Five introduced the possibility of heists, and they immediately became the spectacle of the series moving forward. Love it or hate it, the creators chose a new direction and stuck with it.

2

Rambo: First Blood Part II (1982)

Directed By George P. Cosmatos

If someone is only familiar with the latter installments of the Rambo franchise, they would be completely blindsided by the tone of Rambo: First Blood. It’s the film that started it all, but by most measures, it’s a completely different genre from the other тιтles in the collection. The themes explored in the original bear no resemblance to any of the sequels that came after it. In typical Hollywood fashion, the action got turned up to the max.

It’s a shame that the Rambo movies evolved in the manner that they did. Although John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) is awesome as an epic action hero, the first film was a story about the mental troubles that plagued a war veteran. The action was present, but it was built around an intriguing narrative about post-traumatic stress disorder. Rambo: First Blood Part II, on the other hand, only remembers the character’s capacity as an action hero. His mission is suddenly on a much larger scale, and the thoughtful drama of the original is tossed to the side.

1

Aliens (1986)

Directed By James Cameron

It’s an incredibly rare occurrence for audiences to have conflicting opinions on the superiority between an original and its follow-up. Typically, sequels are never held in higher regard than their source material. In the case of Aliens, James Cameron defied the odds and delivered an absolute masterpiece. Like many other franchises do, this film brought in heavy action, but it worked out for the best. To put it simply, Aliens utilized the potential of the malicious Xenomorphs in an energetic setting.

The original was a bleak, atmospheric slow-burn about a creature hunting its prey. Nobody understood what the life form was, and it made the experience all the more unsettling. The sequel was just the opposite. In Aliens, the enemy has already been established, and it’s time for the humans to fight back. Cameron managed to blend action and sci-fi in a way that few have done since. Regardless of personal preference between the two films, there’s no question that the genre change ended up working out. 40 years later, the franchise is still going strong, with Alien: Romulus being the most recent installment.