10 Movie Franchises That Need To Return To Their Roots

The critical mauling and box office failure of the recent X-men movie Dark Phoenix appears to have heralded the death of the X-Men franchise (you can read a comprehensive breakdown of some of the reasons why from What Culture's Simon Gallagher here).

Following on from the giant mess that was X-Men: Apocalypse, the series has wound up repeating old ideas badly and failing to bring anything new to the table. Whipping off the proverbial table cloth in the hopes of impressing audiences with a new trick, but instead scattering all the crockery around the room and shattering once-great elements into a thousand pieces.

Combined with franchise fatigue and ever confusing timelines (not least how did Professor Xavier and Magneto age from Michael Fassbinder and James McAvoy to Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen in just a few years) and it's clear that X-Men is ready for something new. Fortunately, with the X-Men brand set to return to Disney soon and enter the MCU, there's a glimmer of hope on the horizon that the franchise can be returned to its former glory, provided the company allows for some breathing space before attempting to bombard fans with another reboot.

This seems to be what the studio has planned: both The New Mutants and Gambit have been delayed, indicating that they're keen to avoid making the same mistakes as X-Men: Dark Phoenix. Casting rumours for the next Wolverine - perhaps the most popular character from the franchise - suggest that a return to the origins of the series with fresh faces is on the cards, allowing creators to wipe the narrative slate clean and bring these characters into the MCU in a fresh and unique way.