10 Movies Everyone Thought Were Sequels (But Weren't)

Sequels are the lifeblood that keeps Hollywood chugging along - the sure things that basically every movie studio wants to produce as much of as possible.

Why roll the dice on something new when you've got quantifiable proof that audiences want more of an existing thing? And so, that's why we'll always have sequels coming out of our ears.

But every so often, a movie will be released which audiences will assume is a sequel, only for that to hilariously not be the case at all.

Perhaps the cast, crew, and subject matter are bafflingly similar to an existing film or franchise, or the marketing of a new movie sneakily attempts to trick audiences into believing it's related to another.

And so, it's easy to picture the disappointment felt by some who sat down to watch these films expecting a sequel to a movie they enjoyed, only to swiftly realise that they're a standalone beast instead.

Now, in the modern era of moviegoing there's not much excuse for audiences not doing their due diligence, but all the same, to take one look at the marketing materials for these films, you were basically blameless if you mistakenly assumed they were sequels...

Clint Eastwood's 2008 drama Gran Torino stars the acting legend as a grizzled old man - a real stretch for Clint here - who crosses paths with a local gang while trying to defend his neighbourhood.

Before the film's release, however, rumours swirled that Gran Torino was actually a secret Dirty Harry sequel - Dirty Harry 6, to be precise, and would see Clintwood deliver a bookending finale to his iconic action-thriller franchise.

Scuttlebutt indicated that the film would revolve around an aged Harry Callahan seeking revenge for the murder of two police officers, one of whom was his grandson. 

And honestly, it made complete sense, so this one was incredibly easy to believe.

Even if that perhaps was the plan at one time, it ultimately wasn't what came to pass - Eastwood actually plays a totally original character, Walt Kowalski, and the reported plot information wasn't correct at all.

It certainly would've been an interesting angle, but at the same time Gran Torino is a strong enough film that it doesn't need to be tethered to an existing IP.