10 AMAZING Horror Sequels That Shouldn’t Have Worked
These sequels made no sense, and yet, couldn't have turned out better.
To avoid horror franchises growing stagnant, it's important for directors and writers to experiment. However, sequels can go too far, concocting wacky ideas that are impossible to be taken seriously.
Some follow-ups throw in 3-D gimmicks, which can came across as a cheap novelty. Others retcon earlier instalments out of existence, making the overarching narrative difficult to follow. Also, taking a slasher series into space is rarely a good idea, as Hellraiser, Friday the 13th, and Leprechaun prove.
Some of these pitches sound so silly, it's hard to understand how they weren't immediately rejected. Having said that, there've been a couple of horror sequels that knocked it out of the park, even though they seemed like they were destined to fail. Not only did they find critical and commercial success, a few of them surpassed the original and are directly responsible for rejuvenating interest in dwindling brands.
Although it's extremely ballsy for a sequel to change genres, retcon major components of the established lore, or continue a story that had a definitive ending, these ten entries pulled it off with flying colours.
10. Friday The 13th Part VI - Jason Lives
Even though the original Friday the 13th was hugely successful, the early sequels rarely deviated from the formula, causing the property to quickly run out of steam. When Jason Voorhees was offed in the fourth outing, it seemed like the slasher saga was wrapping up.
Although a fifth entry was released, it was reviled by the horror community since it didn't feature Jason, further compounding the argument that Friday the 13th should be laid to rest.
Instead, Tom McLoughlin co-wrote and directed Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, where the hockey masked maniac was brought back to life as an unstoppable zombie. On paper, throwing in supernatural elements six movies in could've come across as jarring and desperate.
Instead, this daring move resurrected the waning franchise. Rather than being another run-of-the-mill slasher villain, depicted Jason as an undead juggernaut gave him a more defining identity. The machete-wielding psycho was far more imposing, since there was no clear way of defeating him. Also, Jason's superhuman strength allowed him to maim, mutilate, and dismember in ways that were more brutal, memorable, and even funny.
Though Jason was intimidating prior to Friday the 13th Part VI, transforming him into an immortal ghoul made him iconic.