Movie studios are renowned for their love of sequels, because what's more marketable than something that already exists? Sometimes, though, an "official sequel" isn't the way to go, either because the existing property is considered "untouchable," or because all the characters are dead and the notion of "
pulling a Dallas" would be considered a crime against cinematic endeavor in general. Make room for the unofficial, informal, unauthorized, illegitimate and spiritual successors to some of your favourite movies, then, all of which are full-blown exercises in sheer half-assery. For your reading pleasure, we've assembled 10 famous movies and the "side-sequels" you didn't know they'd spawned somehow. Be that they were created by a different production team entirely or were referred to by their writers as "spiritual follow-ups" to otherwise great flicks, barely one of 'em is worth a minute of your precious time.
10. MirrorMask (2005)
It's A Half-Assed Sequel To... Labyrinth (1986)
MirrorMask came into the world with about as much of a presence as Kaspar Hauser, though the Neil Gaiman-penned flick was originally conceived as a spiritual successor to Jim Henson's
Labyrinth, which starred Jennifer Connelly as a girl who went into a magical dimension, got involved in a puppet uprising, and bantered with David Bowie.
MirrorMask began life as a direct sequel to
Labyrinth, though the idea was eventually transformed into something bearing a vague resemblance, which is that it's "about a girl who goes somewhere." Praised for its visuals and panned for its story, the film was a financial bomb and made less than $1,000,000 at the box office. Though it was never confirmed, scientists believe
MirrorMask's box office failure came down to the fact that
there was no Sir Didymus character.