10 Movie Franchises That Set The Bar Too High For Themselves

5. Shrek

An animated movie about a fairly dislikable Ogre whose idea of heaven was being left alone in his swamp to eat, drink and be merry was a cute enough idea. However, few were expecting this Mike Myers starring DreamWorks flick to challenge the likes of Pixar at the box office.

But, it did and then some.

Boasting a monster $484 million haul at the box office from a fairly modest $60 million budget, Shrek was a certified hit with both fans and critics alike.

A sequel was all but guaranteed and 2004's Shrek 2 remarkably upped its budget ($150 million), box office takings ($919 million) and overall quality (being nominated for that year's Palme d'Or). Shrek 2 was a genuine improvement on the first unlikely sensation as it gave us a greater understanding of the characters we'd already fallen in love with and introduced us to the legendary Puss in Boots along with a whole host of other fairytale icons.

All good things come to an end, though, and Shrek the Third (2007) struggled to live up to the game-changing first two entries in the series. Both the third outing and the quadrilogy concluding Shrek Forever After (2010) still earned a decent enough profit, yet the initial magic had been lost and the earlier entries in the franchise felt like a distant memory.