One more time, with feeling: Some sequels are worth the wait
Can a sequel, released after a long gap, top its predecessor? For some, it’s an expensive gamble; some offer more than nostalgia. A look at what follow-ups of the past tell us
Top Gun: Maverick was ready in 2020. But the pandemic (and Tom Cruise’s insistence that the film be released on the big screen, so as to make the most of its sweeping aerial shots) has meant that it’s only hitting screens now.

For fans, the wait has been decades long. Top Gun came out in 1986, establishing Cruise, then 24, as an action hero. He’s nearly 60 now, promoted to US Navy captain in the sequel, and working hard to recreate the magic from 36 years ago.
Can other sequels released after long gaps offer clues about its chances at the box office? See how film and TV show follow-ups have fared.
* Animated films do best. It’s easy to see why. No one ages in a drawing. Younger voice artists can be substituted easily. Think of Finding Nemo (2003) and Finding Dory (2016) or the Toy Story films (1995, 1999, 2010, 2019). Hollywood’s longest gap between film and sequel is the 64 years between Bambi (1942) and Bambi II (2006). And part of the reason is that the original Disney film did terribly when it was released. America, in the midst of World War 2, had no interest in the heart-breaking forest fable. Sales picked up only via VHS tape in the 1980s. Bambi II, sadly, flopped as well. The story of a grown-up deer making his way in the forest world found few takers.
* Some films are waiting for tech to catch up. It’s why James Cameron’s follow-up to Avatar (2009) is only coming out later this year. He’s spent more than a decade developing underwater motion-capture filmmaking for Avatar 2, much of which is set in the sea. The story follows the children of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his Na’vi wife Neytiri (Zoe Saldana). Four sequels are in the works. But 3D films have fallen out of favour since 2009. Few care about the characters. This is an expensive gamble.
* Nostalgia? It’s a mixed blessing. Consider the late-arriving sequels Tron Legacy (2010) after Tron (1982); Bill & Ted Face the Music (2020) after two Bill & Ted films in 1989 and 1991; and Blade Runner 2049 (2017) after Blade Runner (1982). Each of them enjoyed great pre-release buzz and interest from fans and film buffs. None of them delivered at the box office. Meanwhile, no one had high hopes for an extension of the Mad Max franchise (1979, 1981, 1985). But …Fury Road (2015) managed to please audiences and critics, becoming that rarest of things: a great homage, and a fantastic film. A sequel to the sequel, Mad Max: The Wasteland, is due out next year.

* It’s best to leave trilogies alone. No one wanted another dinosaur film after Jurassic Parks 1, 2 and 3 (1993, 1997, 2001) but the tale dragged on belatedly with Jurassic Park World (2015), and spawned three more sequels, one releasing this June. The Indiana Jones films (1981, 1984, 1989) would have been a well-remembered series, if not for the ageing archaeologist passing the baton to a younger hero in …Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008). An untitled fifth instalment is scheduled for next year. The immediate sequels to the 1999 hit The Matrix, both of which came out in 2003, had done all they could. So it’s no surprise that The Matrix Resurrections, released in December 2021 and filled with self-referential nods, failed to fire up the system.
* Tom Cruise knows a thing or two about sequels. He knew he’d struck upon a great formula with Mission: Impossible (1996), a taut spy thriller. And he knew he had to top it in every subsequent instalment. …Ghost Protocol (2011), fourth in the series, sparked a new interest in the story. There were new thrills and spills as late as 2018, in the sixth film, …Fallout. By 2024, there will be an astonishing eight films in the series.

* With television, the rules change. The multi-episode format offers plenty of room for character development and new adventures. Great ideas find a home in new seasons. But it can be hard to recapture the magic years later. It’s why no one remembers the reboots of shows such as Will and Grace (1998-2006; revived in 2017) and Twin Peaks (1990-91; revived in 2017). Currently, fans are keenly tracking the reboot of Frasier, which is expected in 2023. The show, which follows the misadventures of a radio-shrink, dominated TV between 1993 and 2004, and was itself as a spinoff from the wildly successful Cheers! (1982-93). Kelsey Grammer reprises his title role in the reboot. Fans hope he’s still listening.
* But nothing succeeds like a fresh new story. A sequel, after all, will be viewed by both old fans and new audiences who carry none of the baggage of the past. It’s why, when Hollywood decided to remake Mary Poppins (1964) and asked Julie Andrews to join the cast, she declined immediately. She told interviewers she didn’t want unfair comparisons with the classic. It allowed filmmakers to keep the 1960s visuals but spin a contemporary new adventure with Mary Poppins Returns (2018), wowing critics, parents and children 54 years on.