What Makes A Good Sequel?

by Nicholas Lemieux

Who doesn’t love a good old-fashioned sequel?

According to Rotten Tomatoes, quite a lot of people actually.

Within the mad world of Hollywood, sequels have always been a commodity; a sure-fire wire of making an easy profit by capitalising off of the good will people will have gained from the original. Yet all too often the sequel disappoints and fails to reach the heights of its predecessor. In some cases, the sequel may even tarnish the reputation of the first film (see: The Matrix and Highlander sequels). In most cases, sequels exist as nothing more than cheap money-grabs that reuse the same plot beats and character arcs from before. I mean, look no further than all those cheap direct-to-DVD films Disney produced to their films in the 2000’s (did you love The Lion King? Then you’ll love The Lion King 1 ¹⁄₂!) 

Every now and then we get a sequel that truly lives up to the expectations of its predecessor, and in some cases even surpasses it. Yet these are quite often hard to come by; for every Terminator 2, there’s another Indiana Jones 4. I believe there’s no such thing as a perfect movie, but all the pieces are in place to make a perfect sequel. The question we have to ask then is what is the formula for making a perfect sequel?

To begin with, a good sequel should be able to stand on its own without simply being a weaker rehash of the original. Keep the story fresh and introduce new plotlines and character arcs to engage the audience’s interest instead of treating them to something they’ve already seen before. The movie shouldn’t necessarily disregard the events and character journeys from the original but it can’t just spend every five minutes reminding audiences of things they liked from the first film (comedy sequels are especially guilty of recycling the same jokes from their predecessors until they’re no longer funny).. A good sequel tries something new that perfectly complements the original whilst also being its own distinctive entry into the franchise. Simply recreating the story of the first film is lazy and uninspiring. It’s especially common in sequels to sports films like Rocky and The Karate Kid which regurgitate the same storyline over and over of the underdog winning the big fight.   Chances are the first film’s success was lightning in a bottle- it’ll be impossible to recreate its magic so why not experiment and make it unique, maybe reinvent the characters and central story from a different dynamic. Aliens for example swapped out the horror genre of the original for a more action-adventure tone and it’s widely acclaimed for standing competently on its own two feet, expanding the world of the first film whilst simultaneously keeping in line with its themes.  It gives the audience something refreshing to watch with these same characters and themes, leaving them intrigued to learn more about the universe and perhaps even enhance the original in their own eyes.

Another aspect commonly present in a good sequel is the way they take the original characters forward in their own development. All too often sequels backpedal on the progress made in the film prior, completely dismissing whatever these characters had fought so hard to accomplish in the last one. Take a look at Ghostbusters II, which starts off with the main characters, in spite of their heroic deeds in the predecessor, exactly as broke and humiliated as they were at the beginning of the first one; or even Blues Brothers 2000 which begins with the orphanage the characters had literally gone through Hell to save in the first one off-handedly mentioned to have been shut down. By jumping a few steps back after the leap forward in the original, it causes the audience to lose interest. They’re distraught to learn the entirety of the first films was for nothing and they immediately disengage from this now depressing narrative. To that end, the sequel shouldn’t disregard the achievements the main characters had gained from before. Rather, it should continue their story in a new compelling way whilst also introducing new themes. The Dark Knight for instance elaborates upon the psychology involved with Bruce Wayne’s decision to become Batman and at the same time features fresh themes such as chaos and justice through memorable new characters like the Joker, whose anarchistic views serve as a perfect foil to Batman’s sense of order. Toy Story 2 addresses questions audiences may have raised from the first, like what happens to toys when their owners grow up, which is then directly continued in a satisfying manner through the third one. The Godfather Part II advances on the story of Michael Corleone’s descent from family man to cold-hearted monster, but also dares to go backwards in time to tell the story of Vito Corleone, the crime boss in the original, examining the darker side of American capitalism.

On a similar note, obvious though it may sound, good sequels always retain the main characters and their spirit thereof. This can often be a problem in Hollywood due to contract issues or actors wanting to try something new. The chemistry between the original characters is typically what makes the core of the franchise so don’t flat-out reject them. Imagine a Pirates movie without Captain Jack Sparrow or a Die Hard movie with no John McClane. It’s virtually pointless to do so when it was these iconic characters that made the first film such a success. Everything for a sequel starts with these characters. 

So to not include them or even kill them off inbetween films and replace them with a blander replacement (looking at you Independence Day 2...) will inevitably betray the audience’s trust. Franchises such as Lethal Weapon and Bad Boys thrive off of the element of the main characters bickering which is ultimately what the audience keeps on coming back to.

Lastly, the sequel should leave an undeniable impact on the rest of the franchise. Whether it’s any memorable new characters or twists, the sequel should be enough to add to the franchise in a compelling way. The Empire Strikes Back is probably the key example of this: Practically every major plot point in the entire series stems from the last 20 minutes of the movie with the now iconic twist between Luke and Darth Vader, entirely changing their character arcs in the process. The entire point of the Prequels is to explain how this twist came to be. It shapes the entire Skywalker Saga and serves as the foundation for much of its story beats. The sequel also introduces some of the most well-know characters in the entire saga, like Yoda and Palpatine. Playing with the audience’s expectations is also pivotal in ensuring their intrigue in the sequel’s story. Terminator 2 notably transforms Sarah Connor’s character into a battle-ready warrior as a result of her experience in the first film and also inverts the original’s premise by having her join forces with the Terminator against the T-1000.  By confounding their expectations, it makes what seemed so predictable beforehand become a nice surprise, therefore making the viewing experience a more memorable one overall.

Sequels really should be fun to work with and a guaranteed success. For the most part they work with concepts and characters audiences have already grown to love so the only thing left to do is experiment with new themes, continue the story and the personal growth of the characters, all whilst remaining true to the spirit of the original. All of these factors should mix together to make a perfect sequel.

I still maintain Shrek 2 is the greatest sequel of all time, though.