Why Sequels Sometimes Fail Us

When you think of sequels, you probably don't think of great masterpiece movies. A lot of the sequels are a ghost or a shadow of the original movie. Why is this? Why is the continuation of a beloved movie just not as good as the original? I have a theory. It is because, in a lot of cases, they take the main characters who went through a great hero's journey and they undo all of the progress they made. In the first movie they had conflict, they went through things, and in the end, they triumphed over those things and learned some great lessons and grew as characters. The audience is satisfied with this. The characters went through a great progression and everyone is happy. The movie becomes popular because all of these things were so satisfying. The audience was so happy that they would love to see these characters again in another adventure or journey. The studios are happy to bring these characters back so they could make more money off of them. The problem with that is the journey ended, the characters grew and progressed, and in the end, everything was satisfying. Movies about the day to day or what happens after the happily ever after aren't very interesting. You can't have a movie about how a happy couple goes about their day to day lives. They need to be put back on an adventure. There needs to be a conflict with characters that need to grow and learn lessons. So how do a lot of sequels do this? They undo all of the progress that was made in the original movie so that the characters can go through it all over again.

Star Wars, The Force Awakens, and The Last Jedi did this. They did this on a large scope and it makes sense from a story-telling perspective why they did. You could not have a Star Wars movie about a peaceful galaxy. It is called Star Wars for a reason. It is about war, after all. So all of the hope they had in the original trilogy was undone. When they defeated the Empire and Luke became a Jedi and triumphed over the Emperor and his Father died for him showing the good man was still in there, it was a satisfying ending. When Princess Leia and Han Solo got together, it was presumed that they would live happily ever after. Everything ended in a good, happy, hopeful note. The audience was satisfied for generations. Then Disney bought the rights for Lucas Films and they needed to bring this world back and tried to recapture or bring back some of the movie magic that was in the original films. They needed a big conflict that mirrored the conflict from the original movies, so they had to tear down and undo all of the progress that was made. So after these great heroes triumphed years later, it was all torn apart anyway. The makers of this continuation were given a difficult task. How could they possibly make a movie in this world without giving them the same kind of problems that they had in the previous movies? They did fall into that same trap that a lot of sequels do and that is undo or tear down all of the progress that was made in previous movies.

Pirates of Caribbean was a block buster hit. The two sequels in the trilogy were exciting and fun and adding more to the world. The problem that made me disenchanted with the sequels, or even the prospect of other sequels, was Jack Sparrow. Jack Sparrow was central to the movies, especially the sequels after the trilogy. He was a fun scalawag of a pirate. He was entertaining, and throughout The Curse of Black Pearl, he went through a journey showing how he could be a pirate and a good man. He grew as a character. He grew from a selfish pirate who lost his ship to going back and forth from playing people to becoming heroic. He had a bond between Will and Elizabeth. In the end of this journey, he realized that he could be a pirate and a good man. Then, in the sequel, it is a journey of just how selfish he is as a pirate and as a man. The bond that he forged with Will was tarnished and it never really ever appeared again. He became another love interest for Elizabeth. He never really had that great moment of showing that, deep down, he is a good man and not just a selfish pirate. So all of the progress he had made was undone so they could explore his character more. In the end, whatever progress he made in previous movies never seemed to stick.

So is it possible to make a sequel of a popular, fun movie with a satisfying ending that doesn't undo all of the progress that was done with the plot and the main characters? It may be difficult, but it is possible. A good example of a great sequel that did not destroy anything done in the previous movie is The Mummy Returns. They showed this couple who grew and learned things about each other and fell in love after defeating the great Mummy, and came back years later with a son. The couple didn't have to break up for there to still be interesting conflict. The Mummy they defeated did return, but this time with a new threat, and there were more things added and explored. They enhanced the story instead of tearing down what was already established.

The key to making a good sequel is for the next movie to be a good progression of the previous movies without undoing the progress that was made in the movies before. Instead of tearing down what they previously made, they use what lessons they previously learned and explore different aspects of the characters to enhance the story.