Trilogies are often the gold standard of franchise filmmaking, as there is nothing quite like having a great story with a beginning, middle, and end. The trilogies that are heralded as some of the best of all time, such as the originalStar Warsseries orThe Lord of the Rings, are noteworthy because every single installment is fantastic; other trilogies, such asSam Raimi’sSpider-ManandThe Godfather, werelet down by a disappointing third entry.
Then there are those trilogies that were simply never completed, as there was not enough enthusiasm to rescue the next entries out of development hell. While some fans may enjoy watching the first two entries, they will have to sit with the very disappointing reality that the story being told will never be finished.These are the most notorious unfinished movie trilogies, whose place in Hollywood infamy is all but cemented.
10The Amazing Spider-Man Trilogy
First two movies: ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ (2012) and ‘The Amazing Spider-Man 2’ (2014)
The Amazing Spider-ManandThe Amazing Spider-Man 2were an attempt by Sony Pictures to reboot theSpider-Manfranchise after a fourth installment of Rami’s series involvingTobey Maguirewas canceled. Despitetheir relative box office success,The Amazing Spider-Manseries wascanceled after Sony reached a deal with Marvel Studiosthat allowed Peter Parker to appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, starting withCaptain America: Civil War.
Tom Hollandreplaced Garfield as Spider-Man and went on to star in three successful solo films while also appearing in bothAvengers: Infinity WarandAvengers: Endgame. However, Garfield did finally get the chance to reprise his role inSpider-Man: No Way Homeas part of a much-hyped cameo that united all three actors that had played the famous webslinger. Some fans have hoped that the film’s success willgrant Garfield another opportunity to play Peterin the future.
The Amazing Spider-Man
9The French Connection Trilogy
First two movies: ‘The French Connection’ (1971) and ‘French Connection II’ (1975)
The French ConnectionandFrench Connection IIgaveGene Hackmanone of the best roles of his career as Popeye Doyle, a cop who tracks down drug dealers. The originalThe French Connectionwas a massive success that earned many Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director forWilliam Friedkin, and Best Actor for Hackman.
Hackman reprised his rolein the underrated sequelFrench Connection II, which saw Doyle going to France to complete his mission. Although Friedkin did not return, the film was directed by the legendaryJohn Frankenheimer, who helmed such classics asThe Manchurian CandidateandPapillon. The second film left the door open for Hackman to return as Doyle for one final mission,but a third installment was never developed, probably because of alack of interest in the sequel. It is now likely impossible, as Hackman has retired from acting following his appearance inWelcome to Mooseport.
The French Connection
8The Fast Eddie Trilogy
First two movies: ‘The Hustler’ (1961) and ‘The Color of Money’ (1986)
The HustlerandThe Color of Moneyare two of the best gambling movies ever made and feature an all-time great performance byPaul Newman.The Hustlerstarred Newman as the slick pool player known as “Fast Eddie,” who is forced to reckon with the consequences of his actions after realizing he is not living up to his potential.
Newman reprised his role as Eddie inthe brilliant legacy sequelThe Color of Money, which was directed byMartin Scorsese. The sequel saw Eddie taking on a new protege (Tom Cruise) as he reluctantly returned to the gambling world that he had left behind. Although Newman’s death means thatthere may never be another Fast Eddie adventure, Cruise is in a position in his career where he could feasibly return to the franchise to mentor a younger character.
The Color of Money
7Tim Burton’s Batman Trilogy
First two movies: ‘Batman’ (1989) and ‘Batman Returns’ (1992)
BatmanandBatman Returnsare two of themost important superhero movies ever made, as they revived the genre after the complete box office and critical disaster ofSuperman IV: The Quest for Peace.Batmanwas successful, butBatman Returnswas considered too dark, soTim Burton did not return to direct a thirdBatmanmovie. Warner Brothers instead hiredJoel Schumacherto directBatman Forever, aiming for a lighter, more comedic tone.
Keaton did not return as Batman out of obligation to Burton, so bothBatman ForeverandBatman & Robindid not feel like a proper continuation of the story arc that had started in 1989. However, Keaton did get to eventually reprise his role as Bruce Wayne in the 2023 DCEU filmThe Flashand was also scheduled to appear inBatgirlbefore Warner Brothers chose not to release the film.
6The Gremlins Trilogy
First two movies: ‘Gremlins’ (1984) and ‘Gremlins 2: The New Batch’ (1990)
GremlinsandGremlins 2: The New Batchare two of the most singular genre movies ever made.Joe Dantemanaged to combine horror, fantasy, comedy, and even some heartfelt family moments into one of the most surprising smash hits of the 1980s.Gremlins 2: The New Batchisone of the weirdest sequels ever made,which may have made it evenharder for Dante to top himself with another installment.
That being said,Gremlins 2: The New Batchseta new standard for Hollywood films that could be cheeky and self-referentialand may have paved the way for modern blockbusters likeDeadpoolandBirds of Prey. While there has yet to be a new cinematic installment in the franchise, Dante did return to work creatively on the animated seriesGremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, released directly on Max with a second season coming out just this month.
5The Jack Reacher Trilogy
First two movies: ‘Jack Reacher’ (2012) and ‘Jack Reacher: Never Go Back’ (2016)
Jack ReacherandJack Reacher: Never Go Backserved as the first adaptations ofLee Child’s wildly popular novel series. Although the first film earned heavy praise for the impressive direction byChristopher McQuarrie,Jack Reacher: Never Go Backwasa colossal box office and critical disappointmentthat resulted inTom Cruiseofficially retiring from playing the role.
Amazon Studios later acquired the rights to Child’s novels and developed the reboot seriesReacher, starringAlan Ritchsonas the titular anti-hero. Ritchson’s performance and the show itself have both been met with overwhelming praise from fans of the source material, which makes it all the moreunlikely that Cruise would ever want to make a third film. However, the first film’s success did establish McQuarrie as a prominent filmmaker, which led him to direct four installments in theMission: Impossiblefranchise.
Jack Reacher
4The Fantastic Four Trilogy
First two movies: ‘Fantastic Four’ (2005) and ‘Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer’ (2007)
The duology ofFantastic FourandFantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surferwas an attempt by 20th Century Studios, then still 20th Century Fox, to bring Marvel’s First Family to life after the disastrous 1994 version fromRoger Corman. AlthoughRise of the Silver Surferis a much better moviethan it is often given credit for,bothFantastic Fourfilms received negative reviews and underperformed financially,leading the studio to reboot the series in 2015 with a new version fromJosh Trank.
Trank’s film also bombed, and the upcomingFantastic Four: First Stepsfilm from Marvel Studios is set to reboot the series once more. However,Chris Evanswas given the opportunity to reprise his role as Johnny Storm for a hilarious cameo inDeadpool & Wolverine. It’s not hard to understand why this duology didn’t move forward, especially in the modern, ever-changing landscape of superhero movies. Still, both movies are fun throwbacks to early 2000s entertainment.
Fantastic Four
3Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy Trilogy
First two movies: ‘Hellboy’ (2004) and ‘Hellboy II: The Golden Army’ (2008)
HellboyandHellboy II: The Golden Armywere very groundbreaking comic book films, as the source material was not nearly as well known as some of the marquee characters from Marvel and DC. The first twoHellboyfilms were brilliant because of the genius ofGuillermo del Toro, whose love of practical effects, the horror genre, and monsters made them look much more unique compared to other superhero movies.
The underperformance ofHellboy II: The Golden Armyat the box officeled to a 2019 rebootfrom directorNeil Marshallthat sawDavid Harbourtaking over the titular role fromRon Perlman. Sadly, that film was met with highly negative reviews and underperformed financially despite being the first entry in the series to earn an R-rating from the MPAA. Thus, another reboot entitledHellboy: The Crooked Manwas released in 2024to similarly polarizing responses, so perhaps Hellboy is just not the kind of title Hollywood can build into an IP.
2The Kill Bill Trilogy
First two movies: ‘Kill Bill: Vol 1’ (2003) and ‘Kill Bill: Vol. 2’ (2004)
Kill Bill Vol. 1andKill Bill Vol. 2were an epic attempt byQuentin Tarantinoto pay homage to the martial arts classics that he had loved growing up and are often ranked as some of the greatest action films ever made. The first twoKill Billfilms tell a complete story that results in The Bride (Uma Thurman) getting revenge for the attack on her wedding day. A merged version titledKill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affairhas even been selectively screened at festivals.
That being said,Tarantino has often teased the notion ofa third installment in theKill Billtrilogythat would feature Thurman reprising her role. However, Tarantino has talked about so many projects that have never come to fruition that it’s hard to take anything he says at face value. Considering that he only intends to make one more movie (which was originally going to beThe Movie Critic), it seems veryunlikely that he will ever return to theKill Billfranchise.
Kill Bill Vol. 1
1Ridley Scott’s Alien Prequel Trilogy
First two movies: ‘Prometheus’ (2012) and ‘Alien: Covenant’ (2017)
PrometheusandAlien: Covenantmarkeda return forRidley Scottto theAlienfranchisefor the first time since 1989.PrometheusandAlien: Covenantboth explore the history of the Engineers, a race of aliens that helped create mankind. They also have many ties that set up the origins of the Xenomorphs, with the android David (Michael Fassbender) playing a key role in orchestrating the events that lead up to the originalAlienfilm.
WhilePrometheuswas a smash hit that became the highest-grossingAlienfilm of all time,Alien: Covenantreceived mixed reviews and underperformed at the box office, putting the future of Scott’s series in welcome.The duology was ambitious but somewhat challenging, and fans got somewhat lost in the convoluted lore Scott was trying to set up. 20th Century Studios then decided to instead move forward with differentAlienprojects, includingFede Alvarez’s standalone horror filmAlien: Romulus.
