I know Hollywood executives cannot resist making movie sequels, especially when the first movie made millions. In most cases, a film must make at least $50 million in order for executives to consider making a second film. Creating a sequel is tough, mainly because of the audience’s high expectations. The films on this list were definitely disappointing, and in some cases, the movies should never have been made. Here are five examples of the most disappointing movie sequels in Hollywood.
Number One: Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013). Main characters: Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, and Christina Applegate. This film had the potential to be phenomenal. The cast alone should have been able to carry this film, but the jokes in this movie fell flat. It almost seems impossible that Ferrell and Carell weren’t funny, but perhaps they were just trying too hard. In the end, the storyline was weak and the characters were just too idiotic to like.
Number Two: Evan Almighty (2007). Main characters: Steve Carell, Morgan Freeman, Lauren Graham, and Wanda Sykes. The producers of Evan Almighty made the biggest mistake- they made this film without the main character from the first movie. Steve Carell is a spectacular actor, but he’s no Jim Carrey. Carrey was extraordinary in Bruce Almighty, and there was no way Carell could compete with his performance. The great thing about Bruce Almighty is that it was unique and exceptionally written; its uniqueness cannot be duplicated. Evan Almighty lacked the comical genius that made Bruce Almighty so exceptional.
Number Three: Grease 2 (1982). Main characters: Michelle Pfeiffer, Maxwell Caulfield, and Adrian Zmed. Again, Hollywood made another sequel without the main characters. The 1978 Grease film was a classic movie starring Olivia Newton-John, John Travolta, and Stockard Channing. I love Michelle Pfeiffer, but she had a tough task to achieve. The first Grease movie is still considered one of the best films ever made, and the odds of anyone being able to recreate the magic was slim to none. Grease 2 was severely lacking one main ingredient: the chemistry between John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.
Number Four: The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997). Main characters: Jeff Goldblum, Julianne Moore, and Vince Vaughn. I totally understand why Steven Spielberg decided to direct another Jurassic Park film. The screenplay for The Lost World was really weak, and the character choices were questionable as well. Even though the dinosaurs returned to wreak havoc, Jeff Goldblum was the only returning main character from the first film. The Lost World missed the brilliance of the original Jurassic Park, and it had a lot of unnecessary and boring scenes.
Number Five: Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen (2009). Main characters: Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, and Tyrese Gibson. It’s hard to imagine that the minds of Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg couldn’t pull off a Transformers sequel. In terms of money, the film did exceptionally well. In regards to expectations, Revenge of The Fallen was extremely disappointing. LaBeouf and Fox both returned for the sequel, but the script fell way short of greatness. Overall, the actions sequences seemed forced and the characters lacked chemistry.