Creating a successful and entertaining movie is hard enough work as it is, so naturally the pressure of creating a perfect sequel is pretty Herculean. Moreover, the risk of failure is more, as the audience always intends to see something greater than the previous versions of the film. However, in these times, if a movie is commercially successful, the team starts working for the newer more exciting sequel without any delay.
Over the years, movie franchises have earned over billions of dollars, all because they succeeded in creating a dedicated fan following. Here we throw light on some of the most memorable and successful movie series we have always loved watching on repeat.
1. The Dark Knight Trilogy
Ace director Christopher Nolan directed three films in the Batman series – ‘Batman Begins’ (2005), ‘The Dark Knight’ (2008) & ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ (2012). Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, and Cillian Murphy appeared in all three installments of the franchise.
© Warner Bros. Pictures
The most iconic character of the ‘Joker’ was played by Heath Ledger, who died before the film’s release and won an Academy Award for best actor in a supporting role (posthumously). All three films turned out to be highly successful; ‘The Dark Knight’ became the highest grosser of 2008.
2. The Godfather
The ‘Godfather’ series is believed to be one of the greatest and most successful franchises of all time. It would not be wrong to say that the success of the films is credited solely to the actors.
Titled ‘The Godfather’, ‘The Godfather Part II’ and ‘The Godfather Part III’, the films have received amazing viewership over the past four decades. ‘The Godfather Part II’ is believed to be the best ever sequel of a film ever made, in the history of cinema.
3. X-Men
This comes in 10 epic installments and some of the ‘X-Men’ films have garnered huge recognition worldwide.
© 20th Century Fox
Parts like ‘Logan’ and ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ have been widely viewed, the latter pulled in $285 million worldwide. Various characters from the series especially ‘Wolverine’ (Logan) became iconic.
4. Indiana Jones
This is believed to be one of the most surviving characters of all time, widely embraced and fantasized about by men across the globe. Four installments of the film have been released yet and the fifth is already in the making, with Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford behind the project.
The character initially appeared in the 1981 film ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’, to be followed by ‘Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom’ in 1984, ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’ in 1989, ‘The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles’ from 1992 to 1996, and ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’ in 2008.
5. Rocky
When people started expecting another part after six successful installments, the exciting quest for something new began.
© Columbia Pictures
‘Creed’ came as an extension to the ‘Rocky’ series. This is one film franchise which transformed the life of an ordinary man and made him one of the greatest actors of all time. Sylvester Stallone, who created his own character ‘Rocky Balboa’, became his lifelong identity.
6. Star Wars
The most significant American epic space opera started way back in 1977 and after four decades and a handful of films, the franchise is more than ready for the next installment. There is a huge nostalgia driven factor which keeps getting the viewers back every time a new version of releases. Even those who have no idea about the history or the storyline end up watching it, only for the sake of pure, glorious visuals.
Planned merchandising has boosted ticket sales every now and then. No doubt, we get to witness the best of visual effects and high end future driven stories, ‘Star Wars’ still seems to hold much ahead.
7. Harry Potter
‘Harry Potter’ films are a gift to cinema. The movies, total eight in number have grossed $7.7 billion, moreover, all these years, we saw Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson growing up and transforming into the three most lovable and gorgeous stars of their generation.
© Warner Bros. Pictures
The ‘Harry Potter’ series has not only given employment to hundreds of crew members who remained associated with the franchise for a number of years but has also changed the concept of modern day film-making.
Honorable Mentions: James Bond, The Fast and the Furious, Bourne, Jurassic Park, Pirates of the Caribbean, Spider-Man, DC Cinematic Universe, Terminator, Men in Black, Planet of the Apes, Star Trek, Kung Fu Panda, Spider-Man, Mission: Impossible, Despicable Me, Transformers, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Twilight Saga, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Hobbit, Madagascar, The Hangover, The Matrix, Die Hard, Home Alone, LEGO, Chronicles of Narnia.
