10 Horror Sequels That Totally Ruined The Previous Movie's Ending

2. The Halloween Franchise

Considering there are 13 Halloween movies, it's hard to believe audiences thought Michael Myers was gone for good when he supposedly snuffed it in Halloween II. But Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers changed all that, revealing the titular villain somehow survived being set on fire and having his eyeballs shot out. 

That fourth instalment finishes with Michael's evil infecting his niece, Jamie Lloyd, hinting she'll follow in her uncle's sinister footsteps. However, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers discards this notion and plays out like a generic clasher. And just to add to the confusion, Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers introduced a preposterous backstory, stating Michael Myers has been controlled by a druidic cult since Day 1. 

Luckily, Halloween H20: 20 Years Later didn't revisit this absurd notion. Instead, H20 had a great sense of finality, since it concluded with Jamie Lee Curtis' Laurie Strode lopping the head off her malevolent brother. Even then, though, Halloween Resurrection's prologue sees Laurie learn that the person she killed wasn't Michael, but an innocent paramedic dressed as the infamous psychopath. Although Michael slays his sister soon after, this was retconned again in 2018's Halloween.

Looking back, it's bewildering how a straightforward slasher series ended up having the messiest story imaginable.