All through cinema’s historical past, film franchises have confirmed to be extremely profitable. Nonetheless, as an unlucky facet impact of their money-earning potential, the highest-earning franchises are sometimes rewarded for enjoying it more and more protected; sticking to a set formulation to not danger disappointing followers.
After which there’s the bizarre sequels which can be considered because the black sheep of their respective franchises. These entries break from the established norms of their respective sequence, typically ensuing within the creation of extra distinctive movies. The ultimate product is not all the time nice, however it’s value recognizing when main franchises take inventive dangers. As such, these are 10 films which can be thought of the black sheep in main franchises.
10 ‘Automobiles 2’ (2011)
Directed by John Lasseter
The primary Automobiles is the story of Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson), an egotistical anthropomorphic racecar who finds himself stranded in Radiator Springs, a small city the place he connects with the neighborhood and is in the end humbled by his experiences. In Automobiles 3, Lightning struggles together with his advancing age, finally overcoming his ego with a purpose to prop up the subsequent technology of racers. Linking these two pretty grounded tales is Automobiles 2, a spy movie that promotes Mater (Larry the Cable Man), the comedic reduction from the primary movie, to the function of protagonist, relegating Lightning to the passenger’s seat in a particularly weird and dangerous sequel.
Sadly for viewers, this danger by no means pays off. Mater is a reasonably one-note character, and inserting him on the middle of his personal story is a baffling selection that solely serves to spotlight his weaknesses. Relatively than fleshing Mater out to make him a extra compelling lead, the screenwriters proceed to deal with him as a purely comedic character, filling the film with bland, uninspired humor that fails to be even mildly entertaining. Points like this have given Automobiles 2 a much-deserved fame as Pixar’s worst movie, cementing it as a black sheep that’s finest averted.
9 ‘The Hangover Half III’ (2013)
Directed by Todd Phillips
Earlier than Todd Phillips shocked audiences by making the sequel to 2019’s Joker a musical, he was making more and more unusual sequels to his legendary 2009 comedyThe Hangover. The primary movie targeted on Phil Wenneck (Bradley Cooper), Stu Worth (Ed Helms) and Alan Garner (Zach Galifianakis), three males in quest of their fourth good friend, Doug Billings (Justin Bartha), after a wild night time in Las Vegas. The Hangover Half II was a really related movie, hitting lots of the identical comedic beats and plot factors, solely now set in Bangkok, incomes itself much less favorable essential reception, however nonetheless proving to be a success on the field workplace. Then The Hangover Half III strayed so removed from the sequence’ formulation that it hardly even felt like a comedy.
Within the third Hangover film, Phil, Stu and Alan are introduced collectively as soon as once more, solely this time Marshall, a felony kingpin performed by John Goodman, duties them with monitoring down Leslie Chow (Ken Jeong), a gangster who they met in each previous films. It is a weird premise for a comedy sequel, and one which lends itself to shamefully few laughs. A lot of the jokes which can be sprinkled in really feel nearly compulsory; as in the event that they’re there to remind the viewers that it’s, in truth, a comedy. It is one other unlucky instance of a black sheep that may need been higher had it caught to its sequence’ established conventions.
8 ‘The Quick and the Livid: Tokyo Drift’ (2006)
Directed by Justin Lin
For the previous 23 years, the Quick & Livid sequence has been one of the crucial distinguished motion franchises on the field workplace. Targeted on Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his “household” of outlaws-turned-heroes, the sequence has gained a fame for its distinct, absurdly over-the-top type, the place a Pontiac Fiero can rocket into house and a Dodge Charger can race down the facet of an exploding dam. The primary two entries, 2001’s The Quick and the Livid and 2003’s 2 Quick 2 Livid, have been extra grounded than later movies would turn out to be, however the indeniable black sheep of the franchise is 2006’s The Quick and the Livid: Tokyo Drift.
The defining issue that units Tokyo Drift aside from the opposite Quick films is the truth that it does not star Vin Diesel or Paul Walker. It options loads of the sequence’ signature races and automotive chases, however the plot facilities round Sean Boswell (Lucas Black), a younger American man despatched to stay in Tokyo after getting in authorized bother in America. Regardless of being a black sheep, Tokyo Drift would affect the way forward for the franchise in sudden methods, as director Justin Lin would go on to direct 4 extra Quick films, whereas Sung Kang‘s Han Lue would seem in numerous future entries.
7 ‘Toy Story 4’ (2019)
Directed by Josh Cooley
Toy Story, launched in 1995, was a groundbreaking movie that was additionally a success each critically and financially, introducing audiences to Buzz (Tim Allen) and Woody (Tom Hanks), and spawning a complete franchise. Toy Story 2 was launched shortly after, increasing upon the themes current within the unique movie, whereas giving Woody much more depth as a personality. Toy Story 3, launched 11 years later, was a superb conclusion to Woody and the gang’s story, ending with Woody permitting himself to maneuver on from Andy (John Morris) by transferring in with Bonnie (Lori Alan). Many followers felt like this was a unbelievable ending to the sequence, however the movie was additionally an enormous hit on the field workplace, resulting in the event of a sequel.
Toy Story 4 is a superb, albeit very completely different movie that additional explores Woody’s character in attention-grabbing methods. This time round, the story focuses on his relationship with Bo Peep (Annie Potts), a former toy of Andy’s who now seeks to help misplaced toys. Its plot is not as emotionally highly effective as its fast predecessor, however Toy Story 4 makes up for what it lacks in dramatic weight with laughs. It’s simply the funniest movie within the franchise, with Tony Hale and Keanu Reeves delivering some particularly memorable vocal performances. From a story perspective, Toy Story 4 by no means seems like an entirely crucial follow-up to Toy Story 3, however the truth that it is so humorous makes it a black sheep that’s greater than value a watch.
6 ‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ (2018)
Directed by Ron Howard
Solo: A Star Wars Story was Lucasfilm’s second try at making a live-action Star Wars spin-off movie following the success of 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Sadly, whereas Rogue One was a essential and monetary hit, Solo was the franchise’s first, and up to now solely, field workplace disappointment, with audiences seemingly bored with seeing anybody aside from Harrison Ford play Han Solo.
It is a case the place being a black sheep labored unfairly towards the movie. Solo is definitely a greater film than it usually will get credit score for, due largely to the efficiency of Alden Ehrenreich. Ehrenreich properly avoids straight mimicking Ford’s portrayal of the character, adopting many key bodily mannerisms and vocal inflections whereas making use of his personal attraction to make his model distinct. Donald Glover can be a pleasure to look at as Lando Calrissian, infusing a ton of charisma and swagger into his distinctive interpretation of the character. It isn’t an ideal movie, because it does endure from some uneven pacing in locations, however Solo is an extremely pleasing black sheep that options some actually underrated performances.
5 ‘Again to the Future Half III’ (1990)
Directed by Robert Zemeckis
Starring Michael J. Fox as highschool pupil Marty McFly and Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown, a scientist and good friend of Marty’s, Again to the Futurewas a serious hit in 1985, profitable over audiences with its thrilling plot and distinctive humorousness. This success led to the creation of a sequel, 1989’s Again to the Future Half II, a film which straight expands upon many characters from the primary, together with Biff Tannen (Thomas F. Wilson) and Marty’s girlfriend, Jennifer (Claudia Wells within the first movie and Elisabeth Shue within the sequels). Six months later, the sequence’ black sheep, Again to the Future Half III, deserted many of those characters whereas taking the motion again to the Wild West.
What’s left is a particularly refreshing twist on the concepts current within the first two movies, with extra space to develop Doc’s character over Marty’s. Lloyd’s inventor will get a love curiosity in Mary Steenburgen‘s Clara Clayton, giving viewers a much-appreciated take a look at a facet of the character not proven within the different films. The Wild West setting additionally permits for loads of nice comedic materials that would not work in the remainder of the sequence, like when Marty claims his identify is Clint Eastwood. Franchises just like Again to the Future would doubtless make safer selections for his or her last installment, however Again to the Future Half III‘s willingness to experiment and be completely different makes it a particularly memorable movie.
4 ‘Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom’ (1984)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
In 1981, Steven Spielberg‘s Raiders of the Misplaced Ark was an enormous hit, changing into the highest-grossing movie that 12 months, and rapidly establishing Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones as one of the crucial beloved journey heroes in films, leaving followers hungry for extra. Spielberg delivered in 1984 with the discharge of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, a prequel wherein the titular archaeologist, together with new companions Brief Spherical (Ke Huy Quan) and Willie (Kate Capshaw), finds himself in India, the place he uncovers the darkish actions of a sinister cult.
What makes Temple of Doom a black sheep is that it has a very completely different tone from some other movie within the franchise. Whereas Raiders is usually enjoyable and light-hearted, Temple takes a considerably darker strategy, enjoying out extra like a horror film in sure scenes than an motion journey movie, with one particularly grotesque scene depicting villain Mola Ram (Amrish Puri) pulling the still-beating coronary heart out of a person’s chest. The movie would show to be divisive amongst followers, and later entries would return to the type established in Raiders, cementing Temple of Doom as an oddity within the franchise’s historical past.
3 ‘Ghostbusters’ (2016)
Directed by Paul Feig
Again in 2016, Sony made their first try at rebooting the Ghostbusters franchise. With well-established comedic expertise like Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones main, and Bridesmaids director Paul Feig on the helm, the film appeared set for fulfillment, even with out bringing again the unique forged of their outdated roles. Sadly, Ghostbusters wound up being a monetary disappointment, ensuing within the movie being an oft-forgotten addition to the franchise.
Fortunately, Ghostbusters is not precisely a hidden gem. Its lead forged is extraordinarily proficient, however the materials they’re given to work with simply is not that robust, leading to a lot of its jokes falling fully flat. This could be okay if the characters have been extra attention-grabbing, however there’s an excessive amount of of a deal with quips and silliness to achieve the identical appreciation for characters like Erin Gilbert (Wiig) and Abby Yates (McCarthy) that followers had for Peter Venkman (Invoice Murray) and Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis). 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife would reboot the sequence once more, this time with the presence of the unique Ghostbusters, making the 2016 movie much more of a black sheep than it was earlier than.
2 ‘Halloween III: Season of the Witch’ (1982)
Directed by Tommy Lee Wallace
The overwhelming majority of slasher franchises set up an iconic villain, after which follow that villain for each entry. This might be the case for the Halloween franchise as properly if not for the discharge of Halloween III: Season of the Witch, a movie that ditches sequence’ icon Michael Myers in favor of presenting a narrative the place a villainous firm sells Halloween masks rigged to kill their wearers.
Halloween III is a remnant from when the Halloween franchise was meant to be an anthology of unconnected horror movies, therefore the dearth of Myers. Sadly, whereas that is an attention-grabbing idea for a sequence, Halloween III merely does not work. Its protagonist, Dan Challis (Tom Atkins), lacks the likability of Jamie Lee Curtis‘ Laurie Strode, and the masks are a far much less intimidating risk than Michael’s knife. The filmmakers would drop the anthology concept altogether with the subsequent movie, 1988’s Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, leaving Halloween III as little greater than an odd novelty in certainly one of horror’s most well-known franchises.
1 ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’ (1969)
Directed by Peter R. Hunt
Whereas numerous actors have performed James Bond over time, George Lazenby holds the distinctive distinction of solely enjoying the spy for a single film, 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Because of this, the movie has turn out to be considerably of a black sheep within the long-running historical past of the franchise, however that does not cease it from being top-of-the-line James Bond films.
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is notable for depicting a extra weak model of Bond than most movies earlier than and even since. All through completely different factors within the movie, Bond develops an precise relationship with Tracy di Vicenzo (Diana Rigg), culminating of their marriage on the finish of the film. Lazenby is not precisely the best actor on the earth, however he does an excellent job, particularly in moments the place he has to disclose Bond’s delicate facet. It could be the black sheep of the sequence, however On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is an absolute must-watch inside its sequence, definitively proving that, whereas dangerous, it may be value it to interrupt from established franchise norms.
