Steve
Over the past several years, revivals, reboots, and reimaginings have become all the rage. There’s something about getting the band back together, becoming reacquainted with old characters, or passing the torch that appeals to audiences hoping to relive the glory days or see one of their favorite IPs given a fresh coat of paint. In recent years, we’ve seen movies like Blade Runner 2049, Top Gun: Maverick, and Scream (2022) reinvigorate fans, and in some cases, pave the way for a new wave of sequels. With projects like a fourth film in the Mummy franchise, which reunites Brendan Fraser with Rachel Weisz, in active development, I began thinking about what other films could benefit from a legacy sequel. Hence, we’ve got this week’s thinkpiece, with a list of IPs I think could go back to the well, rattle some stones, and give audiences more of a good thing.
Aliens
For this first entry, I’m taking us back to 1986, the year James Cameron made audiences collectively shit their pants with one of the greatest sci-fi action movies ever made, Aliens. Starring Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley, Aliens takes all the best parts of the pulse-pounding horror series, forgoes the convoluted lore, and presses the pedal to the metal with urgency, gore, and claustrophobic environs. Oh, what I wouldn’t give to get back to basics with Alien, seeing Ripley return to the fold, with either Cameron or someone like Zach Cregger at the helm.
Granted, we almost got this project via Neill Blomkamp’s Alien in the mid-2010s, but 20th Century Studios scrapped it in favor of Ridley Scott’s Alien: Covenant, a sequel set approximately a decade after the events of Prometheus. Covenant failed to set the Alien fandom on fire, with its CGI Xenomorphs, been-there-done-that plot, and misuse of the headier philosophical elements of Prometheus. Covenant does have its fans, but how nice would it be to get back to basics, with the Xenomorphs as mysterious killing machines rather than part of some inconsistent evolution? Interestingly, after so many years, Weaver says she’s game to return to the Alien franchise after reading a 50-page treatment by producer Walter Hill. Weaver says the project offers a “very different kind of story,” which has me curious about Hill’s concept. While I don’t think all the Alien sequels and crossovers should be ignored, this is a rare instance where a retcon or two could go a long way to give us the Aliens sequel we deserve.
Big Hero 6
If there’s anything Walt Disney Animation loves more than an original idea that makes them a Scrooge McDuck money bin worth of cash, it’s sequels that perform better than the initial box office-breaking product. While Disney is in the process of developing Frozen 3 and Frozen 4, and Pixar is hard at work putting the finishing touches on Toy Story 5, I can’t help but think of Big Hero 6, the 2014 animated feature that took the box office by storm with $657M+ in worldwide ticket sales. Yes, Big Hero 6 did get an animated series for three seasons, but that’s not the same as a full-blown theatrical sequel.
What I want is a larger-than-life theatrical follow-up to Don Hall and Chris Williams’ Big Hero 6, a sequel with seasoned heroes, larger stakes, and dynamic animation that takes advantage of everything Disney’s learned in the past decade and change. Plus, it’s not like Disney has too many animated superheroes running around. Yes, they have Marvel, and okay, The Incredibles 3 is also “in the works,” but how cool would it be to see Hiro Hamada, Honey Lemon, Wasabi-No-Ginger, Go Go Tomogo, Fred, and Baymax back in the mix? Oh, and let’s not forget Aunt Cass. While looking at the box office returns for Big Hero 6, and knowing that superheroes are still in vogue, I can’t figure out why Disney let this IP fall by the wayside. They’d be fools not to revitalize Big Hero 6 with a big-budget sequel.
Galaxy Quest
Never give up! Never surrender! One of the greatest science-fiction satires of all time, Galaxy Quest, deserves another chance to shine. Yes, there have been several attempts and false starts to get the crew of NSEA Protector assembled for another laugh-out-loud homage to Star Trek. Still, until recently, every college try has ended in confusion about the sequel’s direction or the loss of a beloved cast member, including the late and great Alan Rickman, who played Sir Alexander Dane, a.k.a. Dr. Lazarus, in the 1999 film. Rickman died in 2016 from pancreatic cancer, and the thought of replacing him is damn-near sacrilege.
According to reports, a Galaxy Quest series is in active development at CBS Studios (via Paramount+). What the series entails is anyone’s guess. However, the show could introduce a new crew with original stars like Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Tony Shalhoub, Daryl Mitchell, Sam Rockwell, Enrico Colantoni, and Missi Pyle dropping in and out as guests. In terms of the story, it would be all too easy for Sarris’s offspring (the villain from the original film) to seek revenge for their father’s death. As far as plots go, it’s a tad unimaginative, but I’m not giving away my great ideas for free. If you want the good stuff, call me.
Labyrinth
In the almighty pantheon of 1980s fantasy cinema sits Jim Henson’s Labyrinth, a timeless tale of mystery, goblins, and puppetry that harkens back to a time when filmmakers conjured movie magic with blood, sweat, tears, and bottles of Advil for back pain. With Seth Rogen resurrecting The Muppet Show to much acclaim on Disney+, now is the perfect time to rush a sequel to Labyrinth into production.
Before we continue, yes, Nosferatu filmmaker Robert Eggers is expected to write and direct a Labyrinth sequel for TriStar Pictures, but I’ll believe it when I see it. Stranger things have happened, but with Eggers being in such high demand, I have difficulty believing that his schedule would permit time to develop, let alone film a sequel to one of my favorite films of all time. That said, Eggers may be even more passionate about Labyrinth than I am, and wants nothing more than to bring Henson’s imaginative world of baby-stealing creatures to life on the silver screen. I’d love to see Eggers lend his style and moody filmmaking sensitivities to another film in the Labyrinth universe, and while he’s at it, get Jennifer Connelly to sign on the dotted line for a lead or guest role. Who would play the Goblin King, though? Who has the voice? The commanding presence? The bulging package? Feel free to leave your suggestions in the comments section below.
True Lies
File this one under sequels that James Cameron should have made years ago. No amount of de-aging technology would help Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jamie Lee Curtis with the action sequences required for a legacy follow-up to Cameron’s 1994 one-person-army action comedy. Still, with the right creative forces behind the project, I could see True Lies 2 becoming the sequel audiences didn’t know they were missing. Plus, who’s to say Schwarzenegger and Curtis couldn’t sit shotgun for a globe-trotting sequel? The movie may focus on another couple altogether, while Harry and Helen Tasker (Schwarzenegger/Curtis, respectively) work the coms, lending their expertise and encouragement to the new guard. Dana Tasker (Eliza Dushku) might get involved. Maybe she has kids? There are ways to make it work.
Okay, so maybe they tried to revitalize True Lies in 2023 with the CBS comedy-action series created by Matt Nix, but c’mon! Not to be reductive, but I’m talking about a real-deal effort here.In a world where we’ve got eight Mission: Impossible movies, and rumours of another under the eye of Chloé Zhao on the way, why couldn’t we figure out the magic formula to bring True Lies back to the fold? Which would you rather have? More Avatar sequels, or True Lies 2? You tell me.
C’mon, Hollywood! I know these projects don’t happen overnight, and several stars must align, but get while the gettings good. Some of the talent attached to these legacy IPs isn’t getting any younger, and before we lose the ability to honor the original releases with a sequel that expands the story with authenticity and respect, let’s get to work!
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