11 Sequels That Could Be Better Than The Originals

If there's anything Hollywood knows how to do, it's make sequels. Not all of them are good. Most of them cause night terrors and an addiction to painkillers.

But we submit to you that the below list of upcoming sequels will not only be good, but could even surpass their original films in terms of quality.

We've warned you about some truly awful comic book movie sequels. Ditto sequels to comedy movies that proved to be six shades of fail. So we decided to change our negative tunes and check in on an upcoming crop of sequels with high amazeballs quotients.

Obviously, this being the Internet, all of you will unanimously agree with our picks and throw us a pool party for our efforts. But for those few who disagree, submit your brain's words in the Comments Section below. Tell us about which sequels you can't wait to see, and which ones get a big fat "wait 'til cable" pass.

Release Date: November 9, 2012
Why It Could Be Better: Daniel Craig reprising his role as 007. Oscar winner Sam Mendes directing. John Logan scripting (and including some ideas provided by Peter Morgan). Miss Moneypenny will be back after sitting out the last two installments. Javier Bardem and Ralph Fiennes are reportedly in it. The classic villain Blofeld might return. It's supposed to have the biggest train action sequence ever in it. How the hell can you not be excited by all that? Bond 23, or whatever it will end up being called, looks to be a return to classic Bond formula, but with its own unique spin.



Release Date: December 21, 2011
Why It Could Be Better: Pixar vet Brad Bird makes his live-action directing debut with this fourth impossible mission, which sees Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt and his team go rogue to clear their names after the IMF is shut down and implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin.

Jeremy Renner plays Hunt's frenemy, Tom Wilkinson is the new IMF boss, Paula Patton is the team's babe and Simon Pegg is back as the team's tech whiz. The Eminem-heavy trailer was hot, the action looks insane, J.J. Abrams is producing and, again, it's Brad frickin' Bird directing. We choose to accept this mission.



Release Date: August 3, 2012
Why It Could Be Better: Based on the 2004 novel by Eric Van Lustbader, this sequel will be the first Bourne film without, well, Jason Bourne. Jeremy Renner takes over the franchise from Matt Damon. He isn't playing Bourne, but rather a new "asset" from the CIA's assassin-creating factory. Edward Norton is the villain and Rachel Weisz is the female lead, while series vets Joan Allen and Albert Finney return to provide continuity.

Tony Gilroy, who helped script the previous Bourne films, will write and direct. The door isn't closed on Damon returning to the franchise, but for now this sequel has a solid pedigree and is tying itself enough to the established series that it could end up being a lot of fun and a noble follow-up to its predecessors.



Release Date: August 17, 2012
Why It Could Be Better: The Expendables set viewers up for disappointment when it promised the greatest teaming of action heroes ever and then relegated Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis to glorified cameos. Luckily, Schwarzenegger is done governating, and Willis must have decided he was better off sticking with the Expendables franchise than making a Cop Out sequel. Toss Chuck Norris and Jean Claude van Damme into the mix, and you have the recipe for pure, unfiltered, "kick you in the face and shoot you in the balls" awesomeness.



Release Date: 2012 or 2013
Why It Could Be Better: Critics are pretty well divided on whether Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome was an inspired turn for the franchise or the moment where it jumped the shark. Whatever the case, Max will be back in action soon on a new adventure set a few years after Thunderdome. Director George Miller is back, but Mel Gibson will be replaced by Tom Hardy. Clearly Miller is passionate about the return of Mad Max, as he'll be filming the fourth and fifth movies back-to-back. We can't help but share his enthusiasm.



Release Date: June 29, 2012
Why It Could Be Better: The first G.I. Joe had its moments, but it also had Joseph Gordon-Levitt playing the angstiest Cobra Commander we've ever seen. While a handful of actors are returning for the sequel, Hasbro and Paramount seem to be treating it mostly like a fresh start for the franchise.

With The Rock signing up to play Roadblock (hopefully complete with rhyming) and Bruce Willis portraying the original G.I. Joe himself, we have little doubt the Joes will have a stronger outing this time.