Franchises have become the lifeblood of Hollywood over the past 20 years.
When executed correctly, they become historic and monumental cinematic events . But one wrong move and the whole house of cards comes crashing down.
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Below are some examples of just that. Prepare to be infuriated when you check out these 10+ movie franchises with the worst endings ever.
*Saw*.
Saw is a proverbial dead horse, beaten beyond recognition. All of the terror, suspense, and genuine surprise had all but fizzled out by the time that Jigsaw came around.
Trolls will try to say that Spiral is actually the last film, but it isn’t a direct sequel.
*Pirates Of The Caribbean*.
Who would have ever thought that a Disney movie based on a theme park ride would ever become such a gigantic international success?!
Sadly, they should have quit while they were ahead, which was about three films ago.
*The Terminator*.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a unicorn of a film. It’s one of those incredibly rare and unique instances where the sequel is better than the original.
But in Terminator: Dark Fate , Linda Hamilton did little more than muddy her legacy as the great Sarah Connor.
*The Hangover*.
I’m just going to come out and say it: the entire Hangover franchise is one of the greatest instances of the Emporer having no clothes that I have ever seen.
I don’t understand what makes the first film funny, and I certainly didn’t see how anyone thought the last film was, either.
Sam Raimi’s *Spider-Man* trilogy.
Why was Spider-Man 3 a terrible way to end the trilogy? Because the most recognized image of Tobey Maguire’s time spent as Peter Parker is a 3-minute-long dance montage.
Was the intention to reduce the entire franchise to meme status?
*Die Hard*.
John McClain was just your average ordinary cop in Die Hard . By the time the franchise called it quits (or so we hope), he’d practically been elevated to superhero status.
He jumps off buildings, he takes on fighter jets, and yet somehow it was still boring as could be.
*Friday*.
If you’re a true child of the ’90s then you know that Friday was one of the greatest comedies of the decade. The third installment, Friday After Next , makes my heart sad.
I love Christmas movies more than anyone, but Craig and Day Day deserved better.
Christopher Reeves’ *Superman* saga.
The first Superman film still stands the test of time, even 40 years after its release. The 4th and final installment, however, was a film that sent comic book storytelling in film back at least 10 years.
*Rush Hour*.
The first Rush Hour film is a fast-paced action movie, with incredible heart and an exceptional script.
Rush Hour 3 was nothing more than a caricature; a mockery of its former self. The film trades character growth in lieu of redundant rehashed humor and comes up wanting.
*Star Wars*
I suppose Star Wars has technically had three separate endings, but for these purposes, I’m choosing to look at the Skywalker Saga as a whole.
The reveal that Rey is actually the granddaughter of Palpatine felt as forced as it was confusing.
*Rocky*.
Let’s just be honest with ourselves: Rocky V is laughable. It would have been a travesty to hang up the gloves on that note.
You wouldn’t have thought that Rocky Balboa could be any more disappointing, but you’d be wrong.
*Jaws*.
The final installment of the Jaws franchise, aptly titled The Revenge revolves around a Great White Shark swearing a vendetta against the Brody family.
Furthermore, the matriarch of the family, Ellen Brody, can actually sense when a loved one is being attacked. Yeah. Freaking. Right.
*Friday The 13th*.
For clarity’s sake, I’m focusing on Friday the 13th VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan . I never really understood the malice of Jason or why so many horror fans adored him?
I certainly don’t see how a studio ever funded Jason Goes to Hell after seeing this disaster of a picture.
*Toy Story*.
This may be an unpopular opinion, but Toy Story 3 was perfect. The story had finally come full circle; watching Andy and Woody’s tearful goodbye was a real-life coming of age for me.
Toy Story 4 felt like an obvious attempt at Disney trying to take a second bite of the apple.
*The Dark Knight Trilogy*.
Christopher Nolan was so close! Had he committed to killing-off Batman, it would have left an indelible imprint on the character forever.
Instead, he chooses to go the ‘gotcha’ route and tried to convince us that Bruce somehow managed to survive his seemingly doomed fate. Total cop-out.
