We all know the obvious ones – the MCU, the DCEU, the Harry Potter series, the Fast and the Furious series – the list goes on and on and on. But there are many famous movie franchises that had a good run but lost track midway, essentially ending up as a faint memory. If only these franchises could have a reboot of some sort, they could enter the cross Billion Dollar Box Office mark. Presenting – 10 Lost Movie Franchises that need a reboot to enter the Billion Dollar Club!!
Highlander
Highlander tells the story of immortal swordsmen from ancient times. There have been only a few good additions to the series. The rest of the franchise consists of lackluster performance and lackluster screenplay and plot lines. Highlander deserves a reboot because it has managed to pull off something many of the entries on this list have not managed to – they have successfully created mythology and a proper background surrounding the Highlander lore. Everybody knows the Highlanders. The name is very famous and is still talked about even today. There were rumors that a new Highlander movie was under development but the project has been in development hell since forever. The franchise deserves a reboot and it deserves a good one at that as well.
Lethal Weapon
Danny Glover and Mel Gibson is a terrific combo. Whenever they came together to feature as the gun-trotting cop duo in the Lethal Weapon series, the audience lost its mind. It has been more than 20 years since the last and final Lethal Weapon movie hit the screens. The Studio had asked for the series to be rebooted as a TV Show but we do not know how far that venture has gone through. Riggs and Murtaugh are a rare combination of buddy comedy and action we seldom see in Hollywood these days. They are old school. Lethal Weapon is known not just for its action scenes but also hard-hitting concepts and elements that resonate with the times when it releases. If another Lethal Weapon movie comes around, it will surely explore the racial tensions in the United States going on right now.
Mortal Kombat
The Mortal Kombat series is like the polar opposite and the anti-thesis of fine wine. The more it aged, the worse it got. The original short films by Kevin Tancharoen were something to behold. It seduced an entire generation to hook themselves upon the Mortal Kombat series. As more and more movies came into the fold, it looked like they were just cheap knock-offs of the original Paul W.S Anderson movie. Mortal Kombat also has managed to develop a mythology around their setting. It is a powerful franchise that once at its prime during the 1990’s. Subsequent years eroded its charm as the movies became more laughable. It still has the potential to enter the billion-dollar club if it has a good script, proper action choreography, and new actors to shoulder the movie on the screen.
G.I Joe
The first movie had the action and amazing special effects. It was applauded by casual fans but reviled by the hardcore GI Joe lovers the fan base the movie was originally designed to cater to. The second movie was focused more on the characters. The action was given secondary importance. This time the hardcore lovers loved the franchise applauded the movie but the franchise lost its casual movie goer fan base. For long, the live-action adaptations of the movie series strive hard to maintain a balance, a feat it is yet to achieve on the big screen. The single greatest crime the franchise has done is making Joseph Gordon-Levitt the Cobra Commander. No offense but we needed someone with that exhumes a little more evil charisma (like Hugo Weaving or Ralph Fiennes) to take up the role of the most dangerous man on Earth.
Night at the Museum
Both the movies were good. Night at the Museum could be considered one of Ben Stiller’s finest works as an actor. The very concept of a Museum coming to life every night because of the power of an ancient Egyptian Totem is whimsical and ridiculously hilarious. Night at the Museum is also a thing of nostalgia for many. The Battle of the Smithsonian was not a worthy addition if we compare it to its predecessor. The movie also does not have the legendary Robin Williams anymore (May his soul rest in peace). We need Ben Stiller back as the Night Guard while another actor who could hope to fill Robin Williams’ shoes like Tom Hanks or Robert De Niro should be roped in to infuse some much-needed life into a franchise reboot if it is happening.
Back to the Future
We need Marty McFly to return to the big screens. The Back to the Future trilogy is considered to be the gold standard of science fiction comedy. The movies of Back to the Future showed us how the future might look like. Marty went on several adventures on the time-traveling Delorean. The adventures need to be recreated on the big screens for another generation of viewers. Back to the Future wowed an audience for more than an entire decade. It is time the 21st Century says hello to one of the greatest science fiction franchises ever made in the movie-making industry.
The Living Dead
George A Romero is credited with starting the zombie genre in Hollywood. His Living Dead movies are known as the benchmark for this post-apocalyptic genre. The Return of the Living Dead might be a weird addition to the Living Dead series but it is still considered worthy enough. Zack Snyder did his best with the Dawn of the Dead movie. He did not disappoint, coming out with flying colors. There has been a flurry of a sub-par zombie movie in Hollywood recently. Nobody has managed to capture the essence of the zombie action genre like Romero and Snyder did. That is exactly why the Living Dead series needs to return with a reboot to show the world what it means to survive and thrive in a world rife with flesh-eating un-dead carnivores.
Bourne
The Bourne series is one of the most underrated spy thriller movies to ever exist. No matter how much praise you shower on it, it would still fall short of the total credit it deserves. The Bourne series did well with Matt Damon and then Jeremy Renner (The Bourne Legacy). The movie series should start thinking of expanding now. Why limit them-selves to just the CIA? The next movie could feature an international rivalry between two agencies. It could feature the same actors (or different newer faces to carry the rebooted franchise forward in the future, we don’t mind) that act on a fresher storyline in unexplored and untested waters.
Indiana Jones
Lucas Film was bought by Disney in 2012. With that acquisition, Disney did not just get the movie rights to Star Wars but also Indian Jones – another famous franchise many do not know was created by Lucas Film. The face of the franchise has always been Harrison Ford who has been playing the titular character ever since Raiders of the Lost Ark. The actor is 75 now. The planned 202 Indiana Jones 5 movie will probably be his last. The franchise is in desperate need of a fresher, younger face. It has the potential to achieve much higher than what it currently aims to. A reboot is long in order for Indiana Jones.
Die Hard
Last but not least we have Die Hard – one of the greatest action movie franchises in Hollywood history. John McClane has taken the burden of carrying the weight of the entire franchise on his shoulders. Bruce Willis is not how he used to be. The actor has lost his charm and aura after being featured in multiple Box Office Bombs consecutively. There are also talks of Willis aiming to retire from his acting career. He has had a solid legacy. He can take a rest now. But the Die Hard franchise will never be let go of. The Studio could have a newer actor (we are thinking Henry Cavill or Jason Statham maybe?) play the role of John McClane in a reboot of the movie series.
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