Movie franchises come and go, but there are some ᴅᴇᴀᴅ film series that Hollywood will definitely revive by 2030. In the 2020s, recognizable franchises have become more and more important to theatrical release strategies. Original content doesn’t always perform very well, but a popular IP can still draw in hundreds of millions at the box office.

One popular trend is to bring back beloved series from the past, and release new legacy sequels, reboots, or remakes to make a quick buck. There’s no telling what might strike gold, and even long-ᴅᴇᴀᴅ franchises have the potential to win big. Some got proper conclusions, while others were left incomplete after an installment failed to move the needle.

As studios continue to search for more recognizable franchises to revive, there’s a healthy list of dormant series that are just itching for more movies. While it may not always be a good thing, it’s highly likely that a deluge of returning franchises will fill up the release schedule between now and the beginning of the next decade.

National Treasure (2004-2007)

Disney’s family-friendly response to the Indiana Jones series, National Treasure was a blockbuster duology with a fun premise. The Nicolas Cage vehicle concerns interesting conspiracies and artifacts from American history, and its over-the-top storytelling has not lost its charm in the decades since. Both films were box office hits, but no threequel ever materialized.

A new film has been in development since 2007, but small updates have slowed to a trickle nearly 20 years on. The release of the TV series, National Treasure: Edge of History proved that the franchise needed Cage to succeed, and his return is never off the table. However, the clock is ticking, and it will need to happen soon.

Madagascar (2005-2014)

DreamWorks has found great success with their ongoing movie franchises, and has even brought dormant series like Shrek back out of retirement. However, their smash-hit Madagascar franchise has been kept in mothballs for more than a decade, and there’s no reason to think it wouldn’t be a mᴀssive success if it was brought back.

The final mainline Madagascar film (Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted) grossed nearly a billion dollars, according to Box Office Mojo. What’s more, the spinoff enтιтled Penguins of Madagascar was also a financial success. Even if a traditional sequel never gets made, the Madagascar franchise has a ton of spinoff potential and could continue to be a big moneymaker for DreamWorks.

The Expendables (2010-2023)

Action movie series are particularly hard to kill off, and even the ᴅᴇᴀᴅest franchise can be revived with relative ease. The Expendables is a franchise that is essentially designed to never end, and its main draw is that it ᴀssembles an all-star team of aging action stars. All four films added and subtracted members, and the stories only loosely connect.

It’s almost certain that a new Expendables movie will arrive by 2030, though it may look a little different. Sylvester Stallone isn’t known to turn down projects, but a potential fifth movie could easily replace him with another actor who is on the other side of his best years. Each generation could theoretically produce its own Expendables roster.

A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984-2010)

When it comes to franchises that never seem to die, horror usually tops the list. Iconic slashers like Michael Myers and Leatherface have appeared consistently since their debuts, but Freddy Krueger and the Nightmare on Elm Street series has been absent for well over a decade. The rights have changed hands, but no new nightmares have appeared on the horizon.

Unlike other horror icons, Freddy Krueger does offer a unique challenge when recasting because Robert Englund’s performance will forever be synonymous with the part. However, the potential for box office gold will likely lure the studio into testing the waters with a new remake, especially since the 2010 version was a box office success.

Men In Black (1997-2019)

Men in Black was one of the most original action movies of the 1990s, and it lent itself easily to an ongoing franchise. Two sequels reunited Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, and each installment had its highs and lows. It represented a strong trilogy, but was then joined by a fourth film that was less-than-stellar.

Men in Black: International disappointed, but the franchise isn’t totally ᴅᴇᴀᴅ yet. A return from Will Smith would guarantee the next film would be a hit, even if he played a smaller supporting role. Men in Black could return not just for its moneymaking potential, but because it’s a movie universe that could use more exploring.

Die Hard (1988-2013)

The Die Hard franchise had a surprising shelf life during its initial run, but it’s safe to say that the original series is ᴅᴇᴀᴅ. The adventures of John McClane helped to make Bruce Willis a bona fide movie star, and he returned for every installment until the fifth film, A Good Day to Die Hard, which ostensibly concluded the franchise.

While it may be controversial to try, it’s only a matter of time before a Die Hard reboot is put into development that recasts John McClane. Now that the return of Bruce Willis is entirely off the table thanks to his retirement, there’s nothing stopping the studio from greenlighting a new chapter in the action series with some major changes.

Austin Power (1997-2002)

Perfectly summing up late ’90s and early Aughts comedy, the Austin Powers trilogy is one of the defining works of Mike Myers’ career. The clever spoof became a pop culture phenomenon, and the early days of the new millennium were packed with references to the cheeky superspy. However, Goldmember was Austin’s last appearance for more than 20 years.

Nostalgia for the hilarious trilogy hasn’t waned, and there are a lot of new spy movie clichés to parody thanks to the Daniel Craig era of James Bond. Comedy has been in a major slump as of late, but another Austin Powers movie could help Hollywood get its mojo back.

Cloverfield (2008-2018)

The Cloverfield franchise is one of the strangest in recent memory because it doesn’t follow a traditional sequel format. After the smash-hit found footage film in 2008, it took almost a decade for any sort of follow-up to arrive. However, the two sequels turned out to be completely different stories that explored different corners of a fictional universe.

If a straightforward sequel to the original film was produced, it would surely be a big success. The 2000s are starting to see an uptick in nostalgic popularity, but a true Cloverfield sequel would need to arrive before 2030 to reach its full potential. Either way, a giant monster movie could be a success, with or without the franchise name.

Jason Bourne (2002-2016)

Matt Damon’s triumphant return to the тιтle role in 2016 seemed like just the thing the Jason Bourne franchise needed, but another sequel hasn’t arrived in nearly 10 years. Starting with The Bourne Idenтιтy in 2002, the franchise dropped one successful film after another, usually exceeding expectations of what a modern action film could be.

There’s no reason to think Damon couldn’t return as Bourne, and it’s clear that his starpower has carried the series forward. The sixth film could recast the role, though that would likely be a big mistake. With Universal now firmly in control of the rights to the series, Jason Bourne’s return is a matter of when, not if.

Indiana Jones (1981-2023)

The Indiana Jones franchise has died three times in its history, and it will likely be resurrected once again. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny saw Harrison Ford return to the тιтle role for what will probably be the final time, but such a lucrative and popular series is just too enticing for any studio to resist.

Disney has never shied away from bleeding their most successful movie franchises dry, and even the box office failure of Dial of Destiny won’t stop them. A new movie will probably come before 2030, though its form is unclear. Recasting Indie will be next to impossible, but it might be the only thing that keeps it going.