(Spoilers ahead)
Men in Black
This is first on the list because its sequels are not particularly abhorrent, they’re just not great. That is, except for Men in Black International…now that was abhorrent.
Bridget Jones
One of my favorite Rom Coms ever. Completely hilarious and fun, and has a killer ending. Forever, the sequels make zero sense given the ending of the first movie. They were just really bad reiterations of the first one with the same conflicts.
Highlander
Great concept and it made a very fun first movie. However, there wasn’t much left to glean after it was over, given the really specific goals of the characters, and definitely not enough concept to make any subsequent movies.
Home Alone
A Christmas classic. Even the sequel, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, wasn’t bad, but like Bridget Jones, it was just a rehash of the first one. There’s only so much you can do with this concept before it gets old.
The Mummy
Now we’re getting into personal territory. This is one of my favorite movies, and I personally would have loved to see the characters again… but not like this. Josh Keefe on YouTube had a great idea for potential sequels: have these characters encounter the other universal monsters like Dracula or Frankenstein. Now that’s an idea.
Link to Josh Keefe’s video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jajqS_f9ZXQ
Die Hard
ONE OF THE BEST ACTION MOVIES EVER MADE. Great concept, high stakes, unique character goals and dispositions, fun villains. Overall great story and setting. The sequel has another pretty unique setting (the airport), but it’s basically the first movie. The characters even acknowledge it at the end… which feels like an excuse. The third one isn’t particularly bad either, but then again, the fourth and fifth movies do have Bruce Willis fighting helicopters and all kinds of crazy things. Jeez.
If Die Hard had to have any sequels, I would have loved to see John and Al being partners in LA. The chemistry they had!
Shrek
This is controversial, I know. I actually think Shrek 2 is a perfect sequel. However, Shrek the Third makes me want to die and the fourth is almost as cringe. The tones of both those movies is all over the place and the storylines are just gross. Shrek 1 and 2 had memorable villains and the last two… well yikes. Sometimes it’s just better to quit when you’re ahead.