10 Movies That Became Unintentional Sequels

Those movies we didn't realise were actually unintended sequel offerings.

The Rock James Bond
MGM/Buena Vista Pictures

For cineastes, there are so many times that you see a character wow in a certain movie, only to then be left with questions to ponder over where their life would take them next, or even where their story had taken them before.

Sequels and prequels are obviously very much a thing, but not every movie or character gets to see their narrative continue or be reflected back on. However, for some of those figures, there are strangely some other pictures that just so happen to work when viewed as an unofficial, accidental, unintentional sequel to those outings.

Yes, of course there is some creative license and imaginative thinking here, but that's kind of the point. If these movies were intended to be genuine sequels, they'd have been marketed and released as such.

Before getting into it, props to a Reddit thread from user cyberjazz71 for proving the inspiration for this piece.

With all of that said, then, here are ten movies that accidentally serve as sequel pictures. Or, y'know, at least offer up some fun possibilities and alternatives for those looking to ponder how things played out for certain film characters.

10. The Rock Is Sean Connery's Real Final 007 Outing

The Rock James Bond
MGM/Buena Vista Pictures

If there was ever someone who could escape the confines of Alcatraz Island, surely James Bond would be in with as good a shout as anyone.

Such thinking has led to some thinking that 1996's The Rock was Sean Connery's real final 007 outing, with him picking up the Bond baton from where he left off in 1971's Diamonds Are Forever. Here, Connery is yet again James Bond in every aspect bar his character's name.

As this Michael Bay feature plays out, we come to learn that not only is Connery's John Mason the only person to successfully escape from Alcatraz, but it's also explained how Mason was previously an SAS captain and an operative for the MI6 intelligence service. All sounds extremely 007, right?

Mason was locked up in Alcatraz after the US caught him stealing a microfilm containing the country's biggest secrets, and the stubborn fella opted to silently spend a couple of decades imprisoned rather than hand over this sensitive piece of intel.

Only adding further to the heavy Bond vibes, The Rock wraps up with John Mason faking his own death and outsmarting those who have had him in their crosshairs.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

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.