You’ve probably heard many times over that a movie sequel will never be as good as the original. In most cases, that’svery, verytrue. Although a small sample, there are movies out there that either surpass the original or have an equally compelling second part that becomes as widely acclaimed. Most of them are also adaptations, strangely enough.
Here, we consider all the iconic movie sequels throughout various decades of movie cinema, some more classic and some newer. No matter where these might fall on your personal list of preferences, it can be agreed that these are some of the best film sequels that exist today.
2017
Main Cast
Hugh Jackman, Dafne Keen, Patrick Stewart, Boyd Holbrook, Stephen Merchant, Elizabeth Rodriguez, and Richard E. Grant
8.1/10
93
Where To Stream
Disney+, Hulu
After the R-rated success of Deadpool, the nextX-Menuniverse film would be Logan, a sequel to Hugh Jackman’s character from the Wolverine trilogy (the timeline is iffy). This was definitely the right story for the character and a huge improvement over the 2013 movie, with elements focusing on the comics' Old Man Logan.
The story has a significant time jump and now sees Logan taking care of a dying Professor Charles Xavier, while also protecting a young mutant called X-23, who has the same Wolverine abilities. If the Joel and Ellie-like bond between Logan and X-23 isn’t enough to win you over, Wolverine finally gets to unleash incredible gore and brutal kills on enemies missing from previous installments.
2019
Ewan McGregor, Kyliegh Curran, Rebecca Ferguson, Zahn McClarnon, Cliff Curtis, Emily Alyn Lind, Selena Anduze, Robert Longstreet, and Carel Struycken
7.3/10
78
Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV, and Vudu (For purchase only)
Aside from his Netflix horror miniseries, Mike Flanagan is known for adapting Stephen King. But Doctor Sleep isn’t justone of the best adaptations of King in film, it’s also a direct sequel to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining and gives an excellent homage to both Kubrick’s vision and Stephen King’s original vision for The Shining.
Doctor Sleep is one of the few rare cases where the movie turned out even better than the book, bringing more closure and a satisfying end to the Overlook Hotel, which Kubrick failed to do. Ewan McGregor plays an older Danny Torrance, there are flashbacks to the original, the ghosts of The Overlook return, and the music, along with certain camera angles and shots, serve as nods to the first movie.
2008
Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Monique Gabriela Curnen, and Nestor Carbonell
9.0/10
94
HBO Max, Peacock
Not many comic book movies get Oscar recognition, but The Dark Knight was truly special for the scary good performance Heath Ledger brought to Joker. From the opening bank heist to the gala dinner party, the nurse disguise, the cellphone scene, and the harrowing finale set piece of the ferry decision,Heath’s Joker was a tour de force.
Despite some pacing issues, The Dark Knight is still consideredthe best and most iconic Batman movie ever madeand the best of the Nolan trilogy that The Dark Knight Rises couldn’t even live up to. This movie is certainly up there with Inception, Interstellar, and Oppenheimer as some of Christopher Nolan’s best achievements in filmmaking.
1992
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Earl Boen, Joe Morton, S. Epatha Merkerson, Castulo Guerra, and Jenette Goldstein
8.6/10
91
Paramount+
As Terminator, Aliens, The Abyss, and Avatar have shown, James Cameron is not only a wizard when it comes to original sci-fi filmmaking but also incredibly talented at crafting amazing sequels that don’t disappoint and hold on their own. This is true of Terminator 2: Judgement Day, a rare gem of a movie that managed to be better than its predecessor and the last good movie to come from the series.
Arnold Schwarzenegger starred in some pretty iconic roles throughout his extensive career in Hollywood, but The Terminator is probably one of his most recognized, especially this film’s catchphrase of “Hasta la vista, baby” for T-800. Edward Furlong as a young John Connor and Robert Patrick’s T-1000 Skynet machine villain elevate this movie to the regard it’s held in now.
1986
Sigourney Weaver, Carrie Henn, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, Lance Henriksen, Jenette Goldstein, Bill Paxton, William Hope, and Al Matthews
8.4/10
98
HBO Max
In an ironic parallel to Terminator, no Alien sequel after James Cameron’s follow-up to Ridley Scott’s original was ever the same in quality,including the prequel spin-offs that began with Prometheus. Cameron’s version does some major world-building and brings fresh ideas to the series, which was much needed in this case, since it’s impossible to recreate the claustrophobic spaceship horror of the first.
Aliens expanded on the lore to introduce the Colonial Marines, the Hadley’s Hope planetary colony, and the Alien Queen pumping out all those Xenomorph facehugger eggs, now a mainstay in the book series and video game adaptations. It balances action with horror and suspense while keeping faithful to the core elements of the story, like Weyland-Yutani synthetic Bishop and planet LV-426.
2022
Tom Cruise, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Glen Powell, Monica Barbaro, Danny Ramirez, Jay Ellis, Lewis Pulman, Jon Hamm, Charles Parnell, Bashir Salahuddin, and Val Kilmer
8.2/10
96
Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video
If you want to see an amazing feel-good movie about friendship but also get some of the best,most intense, and immersive aerial sequencesand cinematography, don’t watch the first Top Gun. Watch the 2022 sequel Maverick. It surpasses the first film in all respects and includes a powerful moment between Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer’s Iceman that will leave you with chills.
The story picks up after the time that has passed since the first film in 1986, with Goose’s son Rooster now all grown up and a recruit in the Top Gun program under Maverick’s command, which is the central conflict, given what happened to his father. Even though the final mission will have you on the edge of your seat, this movie carries the precise meaning of ‘It’s not the destination; it’s the journey.’
2003
Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, John Rhys-Davies, Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Miranda Otto, Karl Urban, Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett, and David Wenham
The final Peter JacksonThe Lord of the Ringsfilm is the whirlwind successful end that any trilogy could hope for, sweeping all 11 of its Oscar nominations at the 2004 Academy Awards and one of the biggest box office successes in history. Every consecutive Rings movie just got better and better, with Return of the King saving some of the trilogy’s most epic battle sequences and effects best for last.
The war elephants at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, Aragorn and the Army of the Dead, Nazgul riding Fellbeasts, Frodo and the spider Shelob, and Smeagol’s backstory are just some of the best parts of this movie. And it was because of this that neither The Hobbit trilogy nor the Amazon Prime Video series could live up to the same acclaim.
1985
Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, David Prowse, James Earl Jones, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, Kenny Baker, Frank Oz, Jeremy Bulloch, and Alec Guinness
8.7/10
95
Disney+
This was The Godfather Part 2 moment forStar Wars. The Empire Strikes Back remains the best film in the entirety of the franchise, especially when compared to the prequels and sequels, achieving an even better narrative with more world-building, characters, lore, and a twist that created one of the best scenes and most quoted lines of all time —“No, I am your father.”
It’s not just Tatooine and the Death Star anymore. The sequel introduces new environments like the frozen planet Hoth, the Cloud City on Bespin, and the swampy marshes of Dagobah, along with iconic characters like Yoda, Lando Calrissian, andthe insidious Darth Sidious, Emperor Palpatine. The AT-AT Walkers versus the T-47 airspeeders during the Battle of Hoth and the Wampa also stole the show.
Denis Villeneuve
Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Javier Bardem, Rebecca Ferguson, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Christopher Walken, Léa Seydoux, and Charlotte Rampling
2024
8.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes Score
When they say a movie must be seen in cinemas, they’re not just throwing that around with Dune: Part Two. It’s not even an exaggeration to say this is a once-in-a-lifetime moviegoing experience that will dazzle you with some of the most impeccable technical sci-fi achievements in movie history. Denis Villeneuve absolutely conquered his vision forDune, executing the adaptation with exquisite attention to detail.
This is one of those movies where you start to realize right from the opening scene you’re in for something special that will stick with you, and then the rest of what plays out further shatters expectations to leave you in a complete state of awe. Dune: Part Two also brings incredible story direction and performances that help convey the message Herbert originally intended with the Messiah complex.
1974
Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, John Cazale, Talia Shire, Lee Strasberg, Michael V. Gazzo, G.D. Spradlin, Richard Bright, Mariana Hill, and Morgana King
Showtime, Paramount+
You just can’t touch an undefeated masterpiece like The Godfather Part 2, the first Oscar win for Robert De Niro, which jumpstarted his career in movies, alongside Al Pacino’s Oscar-nominated reprisal of Michael Corleone. This movie is hailed as the best sequel ever made and is one of the most important movies to ever grace cinema, even recognized high up in AFI’s Top 100 list.
It paints the perfect portrait of Michael’s life as a don in the present and provides a look into his father Vito Corleone’s life in the past, the younger version played by Robert De Niro. It’s nothing but a masterclass in storytelling from the ever-ambitious vision of esteemed filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola.
