10 Movie "Sequels" That Were Really Just Remakes
5. Star Trek Into Darkness
The "Sequel": Following 2009's hit reboot, Star Trek Into Darkness follows the the crew of the Enterprise as they chase down terrorist John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch).
Why It's Just A Remake: Much like Superman Returns, Star Trek Into Darkness is another one of those "homage sequels", gleefully ripping off the 1982 Trek classic, The Wrath of Khan, to the point that even director J.J. Abrams admitted that there were too many "nods" to the movie.
While there are definitely a lot of differences, the movie is so heavily indebted to Wrath of Khan that it basically feels like a greatest hits of the film for much of its runtime.
Some of the more egregious examples include Spock's "the needs of the many" speech, Harrison turning out to be Khan, the "Khaaaan!" scream (this time spoken by Spock rather than Kirk), the presence of Carol Marcus and Kirk making the "ultimate sacrifice" (in a highly similar fashion to Spock's death in Wrath of Khan).
Homage or lazy cribbing? There's a reason Trekkies voted STID the worst Trek movie: there's making an affectionate reference, and then there's cynically recycling prior successes for a new generation under the guise of something new.