10 Dumb Mistakes That Ruined Once Great Franchises

James Bond has been around for over fifty years, far and away the longest running mainstream movie franchise, and yet despite such a lauded history it hasn't proven to be the roadmap for other series the way you'd expect. There's always talk of an emergent franchise "taking the Bond route", but that never comes to pass (mainly out of a fear of recasting).

Instead, things go the other way: Bond takes from whatever's contemporarily popular. This has proven a mixed blessing; it means Roger Moore's camp films serve as a reflection of their era, but also that Moonraker's plot is completely rejigged to have a Star Wars-esque finale. But while we've seen the rise-and-fall cycle this propagates multiple times, the Brocolli's can't quite escape it, meaning Daniel Craig's tenure has basically been a story of oscillation.

Casino Royale and Skyfall were both fresh, exciting outings (the latter's the Best Bond Ever™), primarily because they took broader feelings (the darker mood of the noughties and the self-reflection on that time respectively) and applied them to what 007 intrinsically is. Conversely, Quantum Of Solace and Spectre (the former being the Worst Bond Ever™) both were far too blatantly trying to surf a wave unsuitable for Bond, Quantum the intensity of Bourne and Spectre a mix of nostalgic legacyquels and shared universes. They didn't work because that's not what Bond is.

Hopefully, with so much of 007's future in flux, we'll see Eon, MGM and whoever they pair up with next finally learn this lesson.