Sequels and remakes have been popular in Hollywood for a long time, but prequels seem to be the latest big trend. Many franchises, including the Star Wars and Kingsman series, have chosen to look to the past with their recent installments. (These, however, are the 25 best movie sequels of all time.)
Though prequels are often highly anticipated because they might be an opportunity to explain or clarify motivations and situations from previous movies. As with sequels, though, not all are well-received. (These are the worst movies from every major franchise.)
Some fans may argue that the recent prequels to the Harry Potter series, for example, should have never been made – but that doesn’t mean that prequels can’t deliver. Some explorations of the narrative past prove to be hits both at the box office and with critics.
To determine the best prequels of all time, 24/7 Tempo developed an index using average ratings on IMDb, an online movie database owned by Amazon, and a combination of audience scores and Tomatometer scores on Rotten Tomatoes, an online movie and TV review aggregator, as of July 2022, weighting all ratings equally. We considered only films with at least 10,000 audience votes on IMDb, and those whose action takes place in part or entirely before the events in a related movie.
Click here to see the best movie prequels of all time
25. Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)
> IMDb score: 6.2/10 (57,321 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 57% (14,942 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 82% (125 reviews)
> Original movie: Ouija (2014)
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24. Annabelle: Creation (2017)
> IMDb score: 6.5/10 (123,007 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 67% (22,159 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 71% (189 reviews)
> Original movie: The Conjuring 2 (2016)
23. Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)
> IMDb score: 6.9/10 (312,726 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 64% (44,536 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 70% (482 reviews)
> Original movie: Star Wars (1977)
22. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
> IMDb score: 7.4/10 (494,189 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 74% (215,504 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 59% (265 reviews)
> Original movie: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
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21. Lightyear (2022)
> IMDb score: 5.4/10 (50,928 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84% (5,000 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 75% (300 reviews)
> Original movie: Toy Story (1995)
20. Prometheus (2012)
> IMDb score: 7.0/10 (584,143 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 68% (263,434 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 73% (307 reviews)
> Original movie: Alien (1979)
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19. Red Dragon (2002)
> IMDb score: 7.2/10 (262,088 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 74% (275,635 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 68% (189 reviews)
> Original movie: The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
18. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)
> IMDb score: 7.2/10 (92,415 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 78% (42,789 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 64% (75 reviews)
> Original movie: Twin Peaks (1990)
17. Puss in Boots (2011)
> IMDb score: 6.6/10 (150,476 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 67% (79,045 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 86% (155 reviews)
> Original movie: Shrek 2 (2004)
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16. Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005)
> IMDb score: 7.6/10 (737,919 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 66% (33,683,838 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 80% (302 reviews)
> Original movie: Star Wars (1977)
15. Fast & Furious 6 (2013)
> IMDb score: 7.0/10 (381,477 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84% (348,936 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 71% (211 reviews)
> Original movie: The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)
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14. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)
> IMDb score: 7.2/10 (428,445 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 79% (88,208 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 74% (343 reviews)
> Original movie: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
13. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
> IMDb score: 7.8/10 (780,688 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 83% (483,592 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 64% (305 reviews)
> Original movie: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
12. Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022)
> IMDb score: 6.9/10 (22,238 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 90% (5,000 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 70% (167 reviews)
> Original movie: Despicable Me (2010)
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11. Bumblebee (2018)
> IMDb score: 6.7/10 (150,903 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 74% (10,222 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90% (251 reviews)
> Original movie: Transformers (2007)
10. Monsters University (2013)
> IMDb score: 7.3/10 (337,570 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81% (305,679 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 80% (203 reviews)
> Original movie: Monsters, Inc. (2001)
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9. Fast Five (2011)
> IMDb score: tt1596343/10 (366,978 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 83% (139,932 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 77% (204 reviews)
> Original movie: The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)
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8. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
> IMDb score: 7.8/10 (621,866 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 85% (264,662 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 74% (250 reviews)
> Original movie: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
7. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
> IMDb score: 7.5/10 (465,229 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81% (717,093 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 84% (69 reviews)
> Original movie: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
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6. Cruella (2021)
> IMDb score: 7.3/10 (225,043 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 97% (5,000 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 74% (404 reviews)
> Original movie: 101 Dalmatians (1996)
5. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
> IMDb score: 7.8/10 (580,375 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 86% (105,328 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 84% (456 reviews)
> Original movie: Star Wars (1977)
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4. X-Men: First Class (2011)
> IMDb score: 7.7/10 (663,070 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (184,854 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 86% (298 reviews)
> Original movie: X-Men (2000)
3. X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
> IMDb score: 7.9/10 (679,797 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 91% (277,422 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90% (330 reviews)
> Original movie: X-Men (2000)
2. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
> IMDb score: 8.8/10 (718,036 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 97% (239,989 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 97% (77 reviews)
> Original movie: A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
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1. The Godfather Part II (1974)
> IMDb score: 9.0/10 (1,183,912 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 97% (411,793 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 96% (114 reviews)
> Original movie: The Godfather (1972)
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