5 Cinematic Universes That Failed Miserably

Cinematic universes are becoming part and parcel of our movie experience. Whether it's watching ten years of cinema culminate into one giant smorgasbord of superheroes in Infinity War or desperately seeking reprieve from production companies attempting to cash in on the Marvel effect; fictional universes full of crossovers, references, and pop culture are dominating Hollywood.

Of course, not even Marvel's closest competition, DC, can live up to the standard that is continuously set in the all-encompassing world of superhumans. Looking more widely than just this genre however, there's universes that are enjoying their own quieter successes such as The Conjuring, Cloverfield, and even Transformers.

Then there's the masses that have fallen flat on their face in the pursuit of a 19-and-counting film run and $4 billion franchise. Can we really blame them?

With lacklustre characters and films designed for multiple instalments from the outset, these cinematic universes sabotaged themselves before they could even get off the ground, resulting in stilted, boring, and confusing opening movies in worlds that are never going to be inhabited by more creations. It's a bit sad when you think about it that way.

Unlike the other entries on this list, this one is genuinely a great idea. Yes, you read that right, 21 Jump Street was set for it's own cinematic universe. Even better - it was supposed to coincide with that of Men in Black, combining the very best intergalactic space operatives with police academy funnymen. Bringing together two tongue-in-cheek buddy cop comedies could have only resulted in good things, especially with the success of both franchises powering such a self-aware crossover.

Whilst the aptly titled MiB 23 hasn't yet failed as such, there's two films lost in development that have quietly receded from memory. One being the Men in Black crossover, and another being the all-female version of 21 Jump Street, both of which were tentatively confirmed before disappearing from the limelight.

Of course, this knowledge has come from the 2014 Sony hack, meaning the ideas could be scuppered before they even had chance to take off by being bought to public attention when they hadn't been fully established. Steven Spielberg is a key player in agreeing to releasing the MiB properties, and Jonah Hill himself doubted the driving force behind making more Jump Street movies was there: it's a case of only time being able to tell if a cinematic universe is on the cards. For now, we'll just have to be happy with what we've got.