15 Laziest Movie Sequels Of All Time

2. Jaws 2 (1978)

Universal Pictures

After Steven Spielberg's Jaws became an instant classic, the highest-grossing movie of all time and a cultural touchstone as well as changing the way event movies were marketed and released, Universal decided that a sequel was completely necessary. Basically reusing the same premise to much less effect, Jaws 2 was not a patch on its illustrious predecessor.

Roy Scheider was the only major cast member to return, and even that was reluctantly due to a contractual obligation. Spielberg decided against returning, with Jeannot Szwarc hired to replicate the original director's style and doing a merely passable job. The narrative hits many of the same beats as the original; a great white shark is attacking people in the water around Amity Island, the townspeople refuse to believe Chief Brody when he makes his claims, before he ends up face-to-face with the predator in the final act, with none of the suspense or urgency that made the original so great. Jaws 2 ultimately ended up earning $208.9m at the box office, less than half of its predecessor.

Although it remains the best Jaws sequel by some distance, the movie is hampered by its similarities to the original and unwillingness to deviate from the formula. John D. Hancock - the original director of the sequel - envisioned a darker tone for the movie that was ultimately dropped when he was fired in favour of the uninspiring, overly-familiar, studio-approved sequel that was made instead.

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