Film series that should have been killed off (long ago)

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Terminator

In my opinion, there are relatively few film series that have improved in their sequels, not to mention the third or fourth films. In the case of James Cameron's story about AI and time-travelling killer robots, the second film was clearly a much better film than the first (which was an indie story, more or less), but then... Everything went downhill. Terminator 3 stands as an insult to Judgement Day, not to mention the downright embarrassing Salvation and the brutally awful Genisys. Let's not even talk about Dark Fate.

Jurassic Park

Steven Spielberg's adaptation of the beloved Michael Crichton book stands as one of the best matinee films ever made, and even today there is so much charm, character, originality, and technical ambition in that film, whose acting, characters, effects, and editing are still absolutely top-notch. It could even be argued that the sequel had its merits (even though it was a much worse film), but then things went downhill fast. Today, we are up to seven films, and after "Park" became "World," everything has become worse. This franchise should have been killed off after the second film, just like in the case of Terminator.

Alien

Ridley Scott's iconic horror classic from the late 1970s is, more than 40 years later, widely regarded as one of the best-made films of all-time. It was, and is, incredible. Cameron's more light-hearted action sequel offered a popcorn-scented follow-up that many consider the perfect second instalment, but then everything went downhill and quickly. David Fincher's troubled feature debut meant that the promising third instalment turned into a jumble of nothingness, while the French-produced fourth instalment was described by many film fanatics as an insult to the Alien universe. If we also throw Covenant and Romulus, Alien vs. Predator, and Prometheus into this mess, it's easy to see in hindsight that Fox should have stopped after Aliens.

Predator

Even though Jean-Claude Van Damme quit and went home halfway through filming Die Hard director John McTiernan's expensive action blockbuster, and even though the monster design was scrapped and redone from scratch, all this filming chaos ultimately resulted in an incredibly hard-hitting, testosterone-fuelled spectacle of the best kind of macho action, courtesy of Arnold Schwarzenegger and his cigar-huffing comrades-in-arms. The idea of Predator entering the sweltering urban jungle and starting to chop off limbs in the middle of an ongoing gang war in the sequel was a good one on paper, and despite Danny Glover's weak performance in the lead role, it's definitely possible to argue that Predator 2 has a right to exist. Then... After that, it has really only gone downhill. Predators was awful, The Predator was rubbish, Prey was rotten, and the upcoming Badlands looks like a joke even before it's been released.

Star Wars

For quite some time, I believed that there was a place in this world for George Lucas' much-maligned prequels. I never liked them, but I liked the idea that he was expanding a universe that, after all, felt narrow and more like a cramped family soap opera in the (brilliant) original films. Today, I no longer think so. Today, I simply believe that the prequel films, as well as Kathleen Kennedy's current trilogy, should never have been made. The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker should never have been produced, nor should The Phantom Menace and its two sequels. Lucasfilm should also have skipped Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka, The Acolyte, and The Book of Boba Fett. None of that feels like Star Wars to me.

Deadpool

There was plenty of originality, charm, and cleverly written/performed meta humour in the first film. Fox refused to give Tim Miller/Ryan Reynolds the green light for an R-rated film about Marvel's most lovable weirdo, but after a timely (and extremely deliberate) leak, the film giant suddenly couldn't resist all the fans' requests. Deadpool got the green light, the film was completed and stands as one of the biggest successes in film history in relation to its production budget. There... That should have been enough. The sequel should have been skipped and Deadpool & Wolverine should definitely have been skipped as it doesn't even feel like a complete and coherent film, more like quickly thrown together sketches on the editing table.

Indiana Jones

The first, second and, above all, third films constitute one of the most appreciated, consistent, and entertaining trilogies in the world of cinema. I don't think we even need to discuss that. That's why Indy is something of a unique entry on this list, because as a trilogy, Indiana Jones obviously stands out alongside Star Wars. However, it should be said in the same breath that Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny should never have been made. They should never have been released. They should never even have been planned.

Halloween

I don't think I've ever heard a film lover say they love Halloween 4 or 7. I'm guessing those people don't even exist, although I know a few folk who prefer the second film to John Carpenter's iconic original. I disagree, of course, but I can definitely see myself stretching to two films; they both have a right to exist, but after that, and especially the last five films, they really should never have seen the light of day. They are all pure insults to the original.

The Fast and the Furious

Sure, there's a lot of nonsense and an amateurish feel to much of what constitutes the core of the first film, which is basically just "Point Break with Cars". At the same time, it's an endearing portrayal of the street racing culture of the time, with exaggerated JDM builds and wildly posing caricatures of characters. As much as I love Tokyo Drift and the appallingly bad (and therefore catastrophically entertaining) ninth instalment, there should have been only one film. That should have been enough.

The Matrix

As remarkably original and thematically effective as the Wachowski's first film about Neo and the hypnotic matrix is, all of the sequels are just as woefully useless, which only reinforces the feeling that the original was a pure stroke of luck. The worst is the latest of the films, which obviously should never have been made.