10 Horror Movies That Changed Their Franchise

9. Jaws 3-D

Evil Dead II
Universal

Away from the obvious switch-up to incorporate 3D, Jaws 3-D was notable for taking the focus off Roy Scheider's Martin Brody. In fact, Brody isn't even featured in the film whatsoever.

This marked a stark change of direction for the franchise, with Jaws 3-D and Jaws: The Revenge both having a Martin-shaped hole. Going one step further than its predecessor, though, The Revenge would actually note how Brody had died from a heart attack in the time since Jaws 3-D. Instead, these third and fourth features focussed on other Brody family members; Jaws 3-D seeing the Brody sons Michael and Sean in the spotlight, and Jaws: The Revenge centreing on Martin's wife Ellen, and Michael and his own family.

Given how pivotal Roy Scheider's excellent performances were to Jaws and the hugely underappreciated Jaws 2, the actor's absence was always going to leave a mark. So synonymous was Chief Brody with the Jaws property, any movie lacking his presence would feel like a shell of those first two films - and that was indeed the case.

Of course, in reality, Scheider himself refused to return for either Jaws 3-D or Jaws: The Revenge, and he was only involved with Jaws 2 due to a contract dispute with Universal.

 
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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.