The 10 Worst Movie Franchises That Should Have Ended Earlier

When a blockbuster movie hits theaters, it is both a blessing and a curse for fans and studios. No matter how the movie ends, if it makes enough money there is always the urge to extend a franchise with multiple spin-offs and sequels. Sometimes these subsequent films in a franchise are better than the original, as in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy and Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, but other times, studios completely lose sight of the original and pump out uninspired installments.

It’s not uncommon to walk into theaters now and see numerals like 4, 5, and 6 after the name of a film you once loved. Though the movie industry has had success with direct sequels and trilogies over the years, it’s rare to see a franchise succeed beyond number four. These movies usually go beyond the natural life of the original story, and seem to exist for no other reason than to milk our wallets dry.

This week, Resident Evil, one of the longest-running film properties in recent decades, returns. After five movies, the release of a new chapter in star Milla Jovovich's saga is about as dependable as death and taxes, and some of them have been just as painful. With the release of Resident Evil: Retribution, Complex looks back at other movie series that overstayed their welcome with our list of The 10 Worst Movie Franchises That Should Have Ended Earlier.

RELATED: The 25 Most Anticipated Movies Of Fall 2012
RELATED: The 10 Worst Movies Of Summer 2012
RELATED: The 25 Worst Movies By Good Directors

Written by Jason Serafino (@serafinoj1)

Follow @ComplexPopCult

Franchise installments: Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006), Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007), Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)

It seemed like the pirate genre was all but dead until Johnny Depp shocked the world by going all Keith Richards on us for Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. It was fresh, funny, action-packed, and didn’t rely on sex or gore like so many other blockbusters. When Dead Man’s Chest hit theaters in 2006, it was somewhat underwhelming, but still entertaining enough to leave people smiling. Then, over the course of two more lengthy sequels, this franchise went from a bonafide moneymaker to a mere shell of itself (and helped Johnny Depp lose his way).

It was always a fine line that this franchise had to balance between charming and corny because of its over-the-top lead and makeshift mythology, so when the series stretched beyond its natural length, the wheels began to fall off. The problem is that Disney was looking for it to become its version of Lord of the Rings, but this franchise lacked the depth and history of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic. Plus, neither Gore Verbinski nor Rob Marshall are Peter Jackson-level directors. What should have been a stellar one-off film was artificially built up into a four-film series that buckled under choppy waters.

Franchise installments: Underworld (2003), Underworld: Evolution (2006), Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009), Underworld: Awakening (2012)

After the original Underworld failed to live up to its potential in 2003, we were hopeful that a sequel would rectify the problems of the first one and deliver the horror and action we so desperately craved. Well, after four installments, we’re still patiently waiting for this series to truly impress us. The prospect of watching vampires battle it out against werewolves on the big screen (with sexy Kate Beckinsale, no less) is always tantalizing, but, as is evident in the Twilight series, that awesome premise can often lead to soul-crushing disappointment.

Though the series has had multiple directors working on it, the visual style and tone was set up in the first two movies by director Len Wiseman. But as we have learned all too well over the years, Wiseman often puts a film’s visuals above engrossing characters and coherent plots. And the most disappointing installment in the franchise may have been the most recent one, Underworld: Awakening. Even the return of Beckinsale in the lead couldn’t elevate this above being an obvious 3-D cash grab. After four tries, it’s time to admit defeat and put this series out to pasture.

Franchise installments: Transformers (2007), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011), Untitled fourth Transformers (2014)

Say what you will about Michael Bay, but in a year where both Spider-Man 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End underwhelmed fans everywhere, the original Transformers was actually one of the highlights of the summer of 2007. Little did we know the stark downward spiral the franchise would take two years later when Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen crash landed in theaters nationwide. It still had the jaw-dropping CGI of the original, but the human characters quickly became insufferable and the Transformers themselves curiously turned into racial caricatures.

And if Revenge of the Fallen wasn’t bad enough, 2011’s Dark of the Moon came out to similar disgust among the fan base. The films were still bringing in endless amounts of money, but most people grew tired of Bay’s vision and were glad when it seemed like the franchise was over. But there is still money to be made here, and Paramount hired him again for yet another Transformers movie, bringing the grand total up to four movies in eight years.

With all of the explosions, robot battles, and gratuitous T&A shots, there is no more overwhelming or exhausting series on this list than Transformers, and we have a bad feeling that 2014 won’t be the end of it.

Franchise installments: Jaws (1975), Jaws 2 (1978), Jaws 3-D (1983), Jaws: The Revenge (1987)

You would think that a film about an isolated shark attack wouldn’t necessarily lend itself to sequels, but that didn't stop Hollywood from pumping out three additional Jaws movies in just under 10 years. The first sequel, appropriately enough, was basically a rehashing of the original, with Roy Scheider even coming back as Martin Brody from the original. From there, the series took one bizarre turn after another as each consecutive shark attack became more implausible than the one before it. The lowlight of the franchise came when the third one was released in 3-D.

Seeing as though the first Jaws made such an absurd amount of money at the box office, one sequel makes sense. But the slow, agonizing process of witnessing this once-proud property die under the weight of needless sequels must have been sad to watch for fans at the time. Where Jaws succeeded in making us fear the ocean, these sequels succeeded in making us fear any movie with a number at the end of the title.

Franchise installments: Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982), Rocky IV (1985), Rocky V (1990), Rocky Balboa (2006)

In the original Rocky we saw how an underdog boxer could rise above adversity and challenge the best fighter in the world. He didn’t win, but the story was inspirational, nonetheless. Then, in Rocky II, we saw the highly-anticipated rematch where Rocky actually wins the belt and everyone goes home happy. That should have been the end of the series, right? Well, the Hollywood bean counters didn’t think so, and what we were left with was four more chapters of the Rocky saga of varying quality.

Aside from Rocky V, none of these other sequels were embarrassing to the property, but none of them lived up to the first two, either. They simply existed. The story wrapped up so nicely after Rocky II that the other ones seemed so unnecessary afterwards. In a perfect world, the respectable Rocky Balboa would have come right after Rocky II to put a nice bow on things, but that didn't happen, unfortunately. No matter how fondly you look back on these sequels, it’s obvious that they can’t go toe-to-toe with the others.

Franchise installments: Alien (1979), Aliens (1986), Alien 3 (1992), Alien Resurrection (1997), Alien vs. Predator (2004), Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)

In 1979, Ridley Scott’s Alien reinvented the way we view both sci-fi and horror. In 1986, James Cameron’s Aliens broke the mold of the action genre and gave us one of the most exciting movies to ever hit the screen.

Then, in 1992, Alien 3 came out and showed us that if you complain enough, movie theaters might just give you a refund after sitting through a terribly boring film. After the failure of the third Alien flick, 20th Century Fox released Alien Resurrection and the two abysmal Alien vs. Predator movies, which only succeeded in sullying the originals forever.

None of these installments captured the horror, high stakes, or scope of the first two, and they simply served as warnings for what can happen to your favorite franchises when a studio decides to pump out too many sequels. The warning signs were all there in Alien 3, but each time another movie in the series came out, we unfortunately got our hopes up again. Though you could count this summer’s Prometheus as part of the same franchise, it stood on its own enough where we’re not truly counting it a desperate prequel. But who’s to say that franchise won’t suffer the same fate?

Franchise installments: Resident Evil (2002), Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004), Resident Evil: Extinction (2007), Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010), Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)

The Resident Evil film series is the perfect example of quantity over quality, and style over substance. Getting rid of all of the horror elements and atmosphere of their video game console counterparts, these movies rely heavily on special effects and action scenes to mask their onion-skin-thin plots. The series has also been besieged by multiple directors during its run, but the most notable helmer attached to the franchise is Paul W.S. Anderson, a man who has a style closer to Uwe Boll than Spielberg.

Every few years another one of these Resident Evil movies graces us with its presence, and none of them have gone out of their way to stand out from those that preceded it. Each film follows a similar plot where Alice (Milla Jovovich) has to battle against the evil Umbrella Corporation and its army of monsters and faux zombies. But instead of weaving a tight horror/conspiracy plot across each new installment, the Resident Evil series bludgeons us over the head with stylized action and violence that ultimately leads nowhere.

After five mediocre installments, we would understand if the studio threw in the towel, but we have a feeling that Anderson and Jovovich, who also happen to be married, aren’t quite done with us yet.

Franchise installments: The Terminator (1984), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), Terminator Salvation (2009)

When James Cameron's The Terminator first hit theaters in 1984, it was hailed as a sci-fi triumph with an engaging time travel story and state-of-the-art special effects. His sequel came out and blew everyone away by introducing a new liquid metal Terminator model that used even more sophisticated effects. Then the greed and laziness of Hollywood reared its ugly head and two more sequels to Terminator were released: the forgettable Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and the ultimately disappointing Terminator Salvation.

Not only are these two flicks nowhere near as good as the originals, but it doesn't seem like anyone is even trying to top the first two. Sure, they still featured cutting-edge special effects, but they lacked the heart, originality, and technical prowess that James Cameron brought to the property. Like that week-old Chinese food that has been sitting in your fridge, this is a franchise that should have never been re-heated.

Franchise installments: Saw (2004), Saw II (2005), Saw III (2006), Saw IV (2007), Saw V (2008), Saw VI (2009), Saw 3-D (2010)

Talk about beating us over the head with a franchise. In the span of seven years there were seven Saw movies released in an attempt to take advantage of the horror-craving masses every Halloween. Despite the fact that the first one was actually pretty fresh for American audiences when it came out, each successive chapter in the series got worse and worse as the plots and characters played second fiddle to mindless gore.

Once Lionsgate saw the huge box office receipts for the first installment, it seemed like the rush job was on to get as many of these out before people caught on to how awful these movies were. The horror genre is littered with series that lasted way too long, but not many of them were as obvious with the fact that they were cash grabs as this one. Sometimes less really is more, and in the case of Saw, we wouldn’t have been heartbroken if the first one was also the last one.

Franchise installments: Friday the 13th (1980), Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981), Friday the 13th Part III (1982), Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984), Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985), Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives (1986), Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood(1988), Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989), Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993), Jason X (2002), Freddy vs. Jason (2003), Friday the 13th (2009)

When it first debuted in theaters, the Friday the 13th franchise provided audiences with some genuine scares and perhaps the greatest horror villain of all time in Jason Voorhees. But after 11 sequels to the original, this series has been watered down more than the well drinks at an open bar. Over its 30-plus year existence, these movies have slowly turned from horror to hokey as the series lost its edge while reverting to campy humor.

Rock bottom came during Jason X when Jason went into outer space in what can only be considered one of the worst films ever released. Seriously, it makes Pterodactyl look like an Oscar contender. Even hard-core horror junkies have to admit that this series is well past its expiration date. In 2009, Friday the 13th was got a decent reboot, but after 12 movies, we’ve made our peace with this undying, hockey-mask-wearing terror. Let it die. For real, this time.