Latest news with #sequels
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Enough With the Sequels
Illustration: Glamour; Photos: Everett Collection Hollywood's obsession with sequels has reached a fever pitch, and it has to be said: It's enough. No more sequels. The Devil Wears Prada 2, Bend It Like Beckham 2, Freakier Friday, 28 Years Later, Jurassic World Rebirth, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, Happy Gilmore 2, Karate Kid: Legends, Top Gun: Maverick, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, the possibility of My Best Friend's Wedding 2—this is an abbreviated list of the many sequels that have either been released or greenlit during the past few years. Some of these have fared better than others—both in terms of box-office performance and critical reviews. But it doesn't matter to me whether the sequel is good or if it's bad or if it's mediocre. It's the principle of the thing that irks me most. Why must we continue to revisit the past, resurrecting often-beloved but long-dead titles from the '80s, '90s, or 2000s, rather than forging ahead? Surely the studio executives responsible for making these decisions don't believe we've run out of stories to tell. Right? I'm hardly the first person to bemoan the sequel obsession—this is an argument that's been ongoing for well over a decade, and even inspired a sitcom about a sitcom that gets rebooted, called Reboot. (It was canceled after one season, but hey, there's always a chance it might get a…don't make me say it.) However, in August 2025, as images from the set of The Devil Wears Prada 2 fill my social feeds, Happy Gilmore 2 dominates Netflix, and Freakier Friday opens in theaters, the conversation about sequels feels particularly urgent. And I'm not alone in thinking this way. Celebrity News Anne Hathaway Spotted Filming *Devil Wears Prada 2* With New Love Interest Come dissect all possible interpretations of these new photos with us. When Variety reported last week that a sequel to My Best Friend's Wedding—a perfectly good 1997 film starring Julia Roberts and Dermot Mulroney—was in development, there was a rousing cry of 'Who asked for this?' across social media. What could possibly be gained from revisiting Michael (Mulroney), his bride (Cameron Diaz), and his problematic and possessive BFF Julianne (Roberts) in the modern era? 'NOT everything needs a sequel or a remake!' wrote one of many exhausted fans on X. 'This era we're living through is overflowing with emotion, chaos, and beauty MORE THAN ENOUGH to inspire something truly NEWWW.' It's hard not to feel like corporate greed and general laziness are responsible for this onslaught of sequels. We've heard again and again that viewership isn't what it used to be, especially in theaters, and that studios are struggling to compete for our shrinking attention spans. Superhero films used to be a sure bet, attracting Hollywood's A-list with the promise of a blockbuster success. However, as their relevance fades, it seems like studios are rolling out sequels to fill the void. But they're not the solution, either. If the problem facing the industry is shrinking audiences, what good can come from revisiting a story that appeals to a finite number of people who watched the original? What if we draw inspiration from the classics, and the elements that made them truly great, rather than iterating on them again and again? I can't help but think of the success of The Pitt, HBO's hit medical drama that stars ER alum Noah Wyle as Dr. Robby, a handsome emergency-room doctor with shades of Dr. John Carter, Wyle's ER character. If ER had been rebooted, as was initially reported by the rumor mill, would the final product have been as successful as The Pitt, one of HBO's ratings juggernauts? I, for one, wouldn't have watched it. Why would I have, when there's a barrier to entry? When the audience is required to come preprogrammed with details from the original film or TV show, you've already lost out on forging a bond with a new audience. TV TV Shows Canceled in 2025: Here Are All the Shows Ending This Year Some, such as *The Summer I Turned Pretty,* are reaching their planned conclusions, while others like *Cruel Intentions* are ending after only one season. Then there's the viewer's sacred and often fragile relationship with great movies and TV shows. The best intentions are no match for the nostalgia we have for films of a place and time, films that shaped us or marked a specific period of our lives. Everything I've learned about And Just Like That…, for example, I've learned against my will. And somehow, knowing these women's future storylines has tainted the original Sex and the City for me. Just because we remember a project fondly doesn't mean we should know exactly what happened in the end. The most satisfying and impactful endings are the slightly ambiguous ones. I'm not talking about cliffhangers, but one in which a protagonist emerges changed—for better or worse—and the audience is left to imagine what happens next. Can you imagine a sequel to the Sopranos, where the audience finds out what really, definitively happened in the final scene? Trust me, Hollywood, your sequel will never be as interesting as my imagination. Please, let's all move on. Originally Appeared on Glamour
CBC
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Freakier Friday director explains why sequels and remakes hit so hard today
Canadian director of Freakier Friday Nisha Ganatra speaks to CBC News about why sequels and remakes resonate with audiences today, pointing to nostalgia, shared experiences and a collective craving for connection in uncertain times.
Gizmodo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
Bob Iger Insists Disney's Focus Is on Original Movies—but Is It?
A glance at the list of announced films coming from Walt Disney Studios—including Disney's live-action and animated divisions, plus Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures, and more—will tell you a few things. The biggest is that the upcoming slate leans heavily toward sequels, reboots, remakes, and new entries in well-known series, something the company's CEO, Bob Iger, seemed to hedge against in a recent earnings call. 'I wouldn't say that we've got a priority one way or the other,' The Wrap reports he said in response to a question about whether or not the studio is leaning more into original or familiar titles. 'Our priority is to put out great movies that ultimately resonate with consumers, and the more we can find and develop original property, the better.' But while Iger understands the value of 'creating new IP,' he's also not about to turn his back on Disney's popular existing IP, either. He acknowledged that sequels and films that 'bring [existing IP] forward in a more modern way, as we've done, or convert what was previously animation to live action… it's just a great opportunity for the company and supports our franchises.' He used the live-action Moana, due in 2026, as an example. That series in particular is riding high after 2024's smash hit animation Moana 2, an achievement made even more impressive because it was originally intended to be a Disney+ project rather than a theatrical release. It's the perfect positive focal point for Disney shareholders, the audience for today's earnings call. That said, it may be a bit unfair to peek at Disney's future calendar, which is stuffed full of well-known IP, and declare that Disney isn't making an effort to create original films. Most of the films the studio dates well in advance—from the upcoming Tron: Ares to the Avatar sequels, The Mandalorian and Grogu, Toy Story 5, Frozen III, and the next Avengers films—are those big franchise films that will benefit from fan excitement, even years in advance. And it's no secret Disney's top priority is making money, same as every other Hollywood studio. To get a true feeling for whether or not Iger is speaking the truth, you'd need to time-warp into the future a few years, then look back at all the titles that actually got released over a certain span of time. Maybe there'd be more original movies than we think. However, we must also note that Iger's definition of what constitutes 'original' is not what you might expect. Like, say, The Fantastic Four: First Steps. He's aware other studios have made Fantastic Four movies before, of course. But also: 'We kind of consider the one that we did an original property in many respects, because we're introducing those characters to people who are not familiar with them at all.' Sir… that is a reboot. You made a reboot. What do you make of Iger's remarks regarding Disney's priorities when it comes to making original films? Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
The Guardian
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Ghosted review – dating-scene romcom is Bridget Jones tribute act
It is a truth universally acknowledged that there was some drop-off in quality between the first incomparable Bridget Jones film and its sequels, but this cheap would-be spiritual successor will have you crawling after even the worst Bridget film begging for forgiveness. Ghosted hews close to the template, to the point of feeling like a tribute act – but unfortunately not the kind of tribute act that sells out arenas but the kind that plays down the Dog & Duck of a Saturday night. Mercy (Jade Asha) is unhappily single, on the hunt for Mr Right, and hoping to improve her career (ideally from waitress to international acting superstar). Part of the film's problem is that Bridget Jones' Diary is of its time, and to hear a 30-year-old supposedly modern and progressive heroine in 2025 complain that she is a decade older than the majority of singles definitely feels dated. Thirty in 2025 is not the same as 30 in the 1990s, and it's peculiar to watch someone today bemoan it as the end of their youth. It also doesn't help that the Ghosted's narration borrows so overtly from Bridget-speak, including the dropping of personal pronouns and definite articles as in the original – but without a diary as the prop, the point of these pleasing abbreviations vanishes completely. Meanwhile the attempts to wring the same humour from pratfalls and workplace calamities fails utterly. Perhaps worst of all, Mercy is still drawn to a cad long after he reveals himself to be dodgy. It's as if Bridget had responded to Daniel Cleaver's cheating not with vodka and Chaka Khan but by inventing terrible excuses for why it was OK and by letting herself be treated like a doormat. It may be true to how people behave in real life, but if you're trying to create a fun romantic comedy, you need a perfectly imperfect heroine you can cheer on. Ghosted is on digital platforms from 21 July.
The Guardian
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Ghosted review – dating-scene romcom is Bridget Jones tribute act
It is a truth universally acknowledged that there was some drop-off in quality between the first incomparable Bridget Jones film and its sequels, but this cheap would-be spiritual successor will have you crawling after even the worst Bridget film begging for forgiveness. Ghosted hews close to the template, to the point of feeling like a tribute act – but unfortunately not the kind of tribute act that sells out arenas but the kind that plays down the Dog & Duck of a Saturday night. Mercy (Jade Asha) is unhappily single, on the hunt for Mr Right, and hoping to improve her career (ideally from waitress to international acting superstar). Part of the film's problem is that Bridget Jones' Diary is of its time, and to hear a 30-year-old supposedly modern and progressive heroine in 2025 complain that she is a decade older than the majority of singles definitely feels dated. Thirty in 2025 is not the same as 30 in the 1990s, and it's peculiar to watch someone today bemoan it as the end of their youth. It also doesn't help that the Ghosted's narration borrows so overtly from Bridget-speak, including the dropping of personal pronouns and definite articles as in the original – but without a diary as the prop, the point of these pleasing abbreviations vanishes completely. Meanwhile the attempts to wring the same humour from pratfalls and workplace calamities fails utterly. Perhaps worst of all, Mercy is still drawn to a cad long after he reveals himself to be dodgy. It's as if Bridget had responded to Daniel Cleaver's cheating not with vodka and Chaka Khan but by inventing terrible excuses for why it was OK and by letting herself be treated like a doormat. It may be true to how people behave in real life, but if you're trying to create a fun romantic comedy, you need a perfectly imperfect heroine you can cheer on. Ghosted is on digital platforms from 21 July.
