A successful film franchise can can ensure box office earnings like few other movie offerings can. For this reason, major movie studios are almost certain to follow up a successful blockbuster with at least one sequel.

Producers churn out sequels to capitalize on an initial film’s success — and fan base — and in this way create a franchise for generating future profits. Currently, six of the 10 top-grossing films of all time are sequels. These films expand and further explore cinematic worlds that have already found favor with audiences.

But not every sequel can reproduce the magic of a successful first film. For every hit like “Terminator 2” is a flop like “Caddyshack II.” The worst sequels often lack the talent behind the original movies or might drive an already questionable premise even further into the ground (see 2011’s “The Human Centipede II”).

24/7 Wall St. has identified the 25 best movie sequels as well as the 25 worst based on metrics such as box office gross and online ratings. All but five of the best ones grossed more than $100 million at the domestic box office; conversely only one of the worst surpassed that benchmark.

Click here to see the best movie sequels.
Click here to see the worst movie sequels.
Click here to see our methodology.

The best movie remakes:

25. Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)
> Directed by: J.J. Abrams
> Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana
> Domestic box office: $228.76 million

[in-text-ad]

24. Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004)
> Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
> Starring: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Michael Madsen
> Domestic box office: $66.21 million

23. Evil Dead II (1987)
> Directed by: Sam Raimi
> Starring: Bruce Campbell, Sarah Berry, Dan Hicks
> Domestic box office: $5.92 million

22. X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
> Directed by: Bryan Singer
> Starring: Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Hugh Jackman
> Domestic box office: $233.91 million

[in-text-ad-2]

21. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
> Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón
> Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint
> Domestic box office: $249.36 million

20. Toy Story 2 (1999)
> Directed by: John Lasseter, Ash Brannon, Lee Unkrich
> Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack
> Domestic box office: $245.82 million

[in-text-ad]

19. How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
> Directed by: Dean DeBlois
> Starring: Jay Baruchel, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler
> Domestic box office: $177.00 million

18. Skyfall (2012)
> Directed by: Sam Mendes
> Starring: Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris
> Domestic box office: $304.36 million

17. Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
> Directed by: Richard Marquand
> Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
> Domestic box office: $309.13 million

[in-text-ad-2]

16. Before Sunset (2004)
> Directed by: Richard Linklater
> Starring: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Vernon Dobtcheff
> Domestic box office: $5.79 million

15. Before Midnight (2013)
> Directed by: Richard Linklater
> Starring: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick
> Domestic box office: $8.11 million

[in-text-ad]

14. Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
> Directed by: J.J. Abrams
> Starring: Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac
> Domestic box office: $936.63 million

13. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
> Directed by: Steven Spielberg
> Starring: Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, Alison Doody
> Domestic box office: $197.17 million

12. Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
> Directed by: James Whale
> Starring: Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive
> Domestic box office: N/A

[in-text-ad-2]

11. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
> Directed by: Peter Jackson
> Starring: Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen
> Domestic box office: $377.02 million

10. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
> Directed by: David Yates
> Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint
> Domestic box office: $380.96 million

[in-text-ad]

9. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
> Directed by: James Cameron
> Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong
> Domestic box office: $204.84 million

8. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
> Directed by: Paul Greengrass
> Starring: Matt Damon, Edgar Ramírez, Joan Allen
> Domestic box office: $227.14 million

7. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
> Directed by: Christopher Nolan
> Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway
> Domestic box office: $448.13 million

[in-text-ad-2]

6. Aliens (1986)
> Directed by: James Cameron
> Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Carrie Henn
> Domestic box office: $85.20 million

5. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
> Directed by: Peter Jackson
> Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen
> Domestic box office: $340.48 million

[in-text-ad]

4. Toy Story 3 (2010)
> Directed by: Lee Unkrich
> Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack
> Domestic box office: $414.98 million

3. Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
> Directed by: Irvin Kershner
> Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
> Domestic box office: $290.16 million

2. The Dark Knight (2008)
> Directed by: Christopher Nolan
> Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart
> Domestic box office: $533.32 million

[in-text-ad-2]

1. The Godfather, Part II (1974)
> Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
> Starring: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall
> Domestic box office: $57.30 million

The worst movie remakes:

25. A Haunted House 2 (2014)
> Directed by: Michael Tiddes
> Starring: Marlon Wayans, Jaime Pressly, Cedric the Entertainer
> Domestic box office: $17.31 million

[in-text-ad]

24. Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997)
> Directed by: Jan de Bont
> Starring: Sandra Bullock, Jason Patric, Willem Dafoe
> Domestic box office: $48.07 million

23. Return to the Blue Lagoon (1991)
> Directed by: William A. Graham
> Starring: Brian Krause, Milla Jovovich, Lisa Pelikan
> Domestic box office: $2.81 million

22. Species II (1998)
> Directed by: Peter Medak
> Starring: Natasha Henstridge, Michael Madsen, Marg Helgenberger
> Domestic box office: $19.17 million

[in-text-ad-2]

21. Jaws 3-D (1983)
> Directed by: Joe Alves
> Starring: Dennis Quaid, Bess Armstrong, Simon MacCorkindale
> Domestic box office: $42.20 million

20. Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 (2015)
> Directed by: Andy Fickman
> Starring: Kevin James, Raini Rodriguez, Eduardo Verástegui
> Domestic box office: $71.04 million

[in-text-ad]

19. Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol (1987)
> Directed by: Jim Drake
> Starring: Steve Guttenberg, Bubba Smith, Michael Winslow
> Domestic box office: $28.06 million

18. Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000)
> Directed by: Joe Berlinger
> Starring: Jeffrey Donovan, Stephen Barker Turner, Erica Leerhsen
> Domestic box office: $26.42 million

17. Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003)
> Directed by: Troy Miller
> Starring: Derek Richardson, Eric Christian Olsen, Eugene Levy
> Domestic box office: $26.10 million

[in-text-ad-2]

16. RoboCop 3 (1993)
> Directed by: Fred Dekker
> Starring: Nancy Allen, Robert John Burke, Mario Machado
> Domestic box office: $10.70 million

15. Look Who’s Talking Now (1993)
> Directed by: Tom Ropelewski
> Starring: John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, David Gallagher
> Domestic box office: $10.34 million

[in-text-ad]

14. Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994)
> Directed by: Kim Henkel
> Starring: Renée Zellweger, Matthew McConaughey, Robert Jacks
> Domestic box office: $0.09 million

13. Scary Movie 5 (2013)
> Directed by: Malcolm D. Lee, David Zucker
> Starring: Simon Rex, Ashley Tisdale, Charlie Sheen
> Domestic box office: $32.01 million

12. The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) (2011)
> Directed by: Tom Six
> Starring: Ashlynn Yennie, Maddi Black, Laurence R. Harvey
> Domestic box office: $0.12 million

[in-text-ad-2]

11. Weekend at Bernie’s II (1993)
> Directed by: Robert Klane
> Starring: Andrew McCarthy, Jonathan Silverman, Terry Kiser
> Domestic box office: $12.74 million

10. Problem Child 2 (1991)
> Directed by: Brian Levant
> Starring: John Ritter, Michael Oliver, Jack Warden
> Domestic box office: $25.10 million

[in-text-ad]

9. Universal Soldier: The Return (1999)
> Directed by: Mic Rodgers
> Starring: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bill Goldberg, Heidi Schanz
> Domestic box office: $10.43 million

8. Cannonball Run II (1984)
> Directed by: Hal Needham
> Starring: Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise, Frank Sinatra
> Domestic box office: $28.10 million

7. Piranha 3DD (2012)
> Directed by: John Gulager
> Starring: Danielle Panabaker, Ving Rhames, David Hasselhoff
> Domestic box office: $0.37 million

[in-text-ad-2]

6. Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)
> Directed by: Sidney J. Furie
> Starring: Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder
> Domestic box office: $15.68 million

5. Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997)
> Directed by: John R. Leonetti
> Starring: Robin Shou, Talisa Soto, James Remar
> Domestic box office: $35.93 million

[in-text-ad]

4. Caddyshack II (1988)
> Directed by: Allan Arkush
> Starring: Jackie Mason, Robert Stack, Dyan Cannon
> Domestic box office: $11.80 million

3. Jaws: The Revenge (1987)
> Directed by: Joseph Sargent
> Starring: Lorraine Gary, Lance Guest, Mario Van Peebles
> Domestic box office: $20.76 million

2. Son of the Mask (2005)
> Directed by: Lawrence Guterman
> Starring: Jamie Kennedy, Traylor Howard, Alan Cumming
> Domestic box office: $17.01 million

[in-text-ad-2]

1. Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (2004)
> Directed by: Bob Clark
> Starring: Jon Voight, Scott Baio, Vanessa Angel
> Domestic box office: $9.11 million

Methodology:

To determine the best and worst movie sequels, 24/7 Wall St. created an index based on each film’s average critics’ rating and average audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as the average user rating on Internet Movie Database. We considered films only with at least 5,000 Rotten Tomatoes user ratings, 10 approved Tomatometer critic reviews, and 10,000 IMDb user ratings.

We averaged together the user ratings from Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb and weighted them by the number of votes involved. This combined user rating was then averaged with the Rotten Tomatoes critics’ rating. Box office data comes from IMDb and is not adjusted for inflation.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.