Is there anything better than a movie sequel?

If a movie makes some money, you can bet that there will be a second movie. Maybe multiple sequels. Maybe never-ending sequels.

The James Bond movies are a classic example. Sixty-six years ago author Ian Fleming created the British secret agent character and the first film was Dr. No in 1962. Since then, there have been 26 sequels (if you count Casino Royale in 1967 and Never Say Never Again in 1983). The actors who have played 007 include Sean Connery (the best), George Lazenby (mediocre), David Niven (terrible), Roger Moore (average), Timothy Dalton (bad), Pierce Brosnan (good), and Daniel Craig (so-so). 

And No Time to Die will come out in 2020.

And when Hollywood runs out of original ideas, they turn to comic books.

Marvel Studios have so far released 23 movies based on comic book heroes. Fourteen more are in the works.

Why so many comic book movies? Well, so far they have grossed $22.5 billion worldwide. Avengers: Endgame is the highest grossing movie ever made.

The Marvel parade started with Iron Man (really good) in 2008. That same year, The Incredible Hulk (so-so) came out. In 2010, Iron Man 2 (really good) was released and a year later, Thor (very good) and Captain America: The First Avenger (really good) came out. Marvel’s The Avengers surfaced in 2012 and Iron Man 3 went to theaters along with Thor: The Dark World in 2013.

Two more came out in 2014, two in 2015, two in 2016, three in 2017, three in 2018 and three last year. Two (Black Widow and The Eternals) will be released in 2020 and three more (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings; Doctor Strange in the Multitude of Madness and another Spider-Man sequel) will pop up in 2021. And Black Panther II will hit the screens in May of 2022.

If that isn’t enough, Marvel movies in the works include Blade; Guardians of the Galaxy 3; Ant Man and the Wasp (2); Captain Marvel; Fantastic Four; X-Men; and Deadpool.

We keep going to see them – they keep making them.

When I was a kid, I loved comic books but adults discouraged us from reading them all the time because they kept us from reading real books and playing outdoors.

Star Wars is another example.

I saw the first Star Wars film in an indoor theater in Bartlesville in 1977. It was terrific.

I couldn’t wait for the sequels: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983). These were exciting movies in an era before computer generated images (CGIs).

Sixteen years later, in 1999, there was Episode I – The Phantom Menace (so-so). In 2002, we got Episode II – Attack of the Clones (hard to watch). And in 2005, there was Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (a step backwards).

Then there was episodes 7, 8 and 9 (The Rise of Skywalker was in 2019).  They have added animated films (The Clone Wars) and anthology films and Ewok and droid films.

Why so many Star Wars movies? Well, again, they have produced over $10 billion at the box office. American audiences apparently prefer non-stop action to a compelling story with interesting characters.

When Rocky came out in 1976, I thought it was one of the best movies I had ever seen. I am not a fight fan but this was an inspirational film about an overcomer. Rocky II was almost as good and I enjoyed Rocky III

They lost me at Rocky IV, Rocky V and Rocky Balboa. They have now made a sequel (Creed II) to a Rocky sequel (Creed).

Star Sylvester Stallone said another Rocky Balboa movie is in the works and a television show may be coming. (I want to see a movie where Rocky fights Rambo).

Star Trek was a fun TV show in the 1960s. They have made so many movie sequels, that they had to replace the entire aging cast.

A new TV show, Picard, features Patrick Stewart in the title role and it premiered in January. Paramount has produced 13 Star Trek feature films and you can  be sure more are in the works.

Jurassic Park movies (at least six) have made a ton of money, too. Jurassic World (good) was released in 2015 and grossed over $1.6 billion in its theatrical run. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom will be released next year.

There have been four Raiders of the Lost Ark films and another sequel is being prepared for 2021.  That has included a TV show.

That series has grossed almost $2 billion worldwide, so it will keep going.

All these sequels make me appreciate any movie that is well crafted, with a good story that has a beginning and an ending. Those films seem to be the exception and not the rule in Hollywood these days.

My advice: Read a good book if you want originality.