10 Horror Franchises That Ended Too Soon

Whereas other horror franchises had the opportunity to deliver further movies but opted not to, the case of the Poltergeist franchise is one more laced in tragedy.

For those unaware, the Poltergeist series clocks in at three movies. Unfortunately, that third and final outing for the supernatural franchise was one full of distress for all involved. That being due to the shocking death of 12-year-old Heather O'Rourke, who famously played Carol Anne Freeling in the three pictures.

Despite showing no symptoms, O'Rourke was rushed into surgery due to what was revealed to be intestinal stenosis. While she would survive that operation, she'd soon go into cardiac arrest and tragically pass away.

At the time of this heartbreaking shock, Poltergeist III was in post-production. Director Gary Sherman didn't want to release the movie, but ultimately had his hand forced by MGM. That meant that the cast and crew had to get together to film a new ending - an ending that saw somebody serving as a stand-in for Heather O'Rourke.

It goes without saying, those involved were overcome with grief and shock, and the film's release was obviously delayed due to this. By the time that Poltergeist III hit the silver screen in 1988, the response to the movie was poor, with a mish-mash final product put out by the studio.

Given how so many horror franchises of the same period went on to amass far more than three movies, it seems only logical that Poltergeist would've continued on past that third film had the franchise not lost its young star. And likewise, we'll never know just how the original story of the movie would've played out had tragedy not stuck.