20 Horror Sequels That Took FOREVER To Get Made

Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho is such a perfectly formed horror film that leaves little room for an obvious sequel, and so nobody really expected one to ever materialise.

But in 1983, some 23 years after the original film was released, Psycho II indeed hit screens, picking up with murderer Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) as he's released back into society.

The sequel wasn't seriously considered by Universal until after the death of Alfred Hitchcock in 1980, given that the legendary filmmaker quite understandably felt that his original film was a complete, closed-off story.

And beyond that, Anthony Perkins had to be persuaded to return, all while the production faced opposition from original Psycho author Robert Block, who was so annoyed by it that he even rushed out a sequel novel that mocked the very idea of a second Psycho movie.

And easy though it was to sniff at the idea of Psycho II, it was nevertheless a box office success and decently received by critics, with its reputation growing considerably over the decades.

This led to production of two additional, more middlingly received sequels, before Perkins' death in 1992 brought the original run of movies to a natural end.