Sinners' Success Proves We Crave New Stories – So Why Does Hollywood Keep Serving Up Sequels?

Michael B. Jordan in SinnersThe most talked-about film of 2025 so far isn’t Disney’s live-action reimagining of the classic Snow White, nor is it Marvel’s star-studded crossover Thunderbolts* or the recent sequels to A Simple Favour, Captain America or even Bridget Jones’s Diary.No, it’s the mysterious vampire horror/musical/social allegory Sinners that continues to dominate the conversation.Since its release last month, the film has become one of the biggest box office success stories of the year, winning over critics but also, crucially, audiences.Thanks, largely, to word-of-mouth, Sinners has already made upwards of $247 million (around £186 million), a figure which has not only surpassed expectations in the trade press, but which continues to climb as more of us discover the movie, with an enviable audience score of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes and 4.2 stars on Letterboxd.Similarly, if you’ve been on social media in the last week, the chances are you’ll have been bombarded with memes about Conclave, the Catholic melodrama that hit cinemas at the end of last year, but for obvious reasons is now back in the zeitgeist.Add to that the likes of The Substance and Anora, both of which became somewhat surprise hits of their own when they were released last year, and led to film fans staunchly backing both Demi Moore and eventual Oscar winner Mikey Madison during the most recent awards season.Few could have predicted what a hit the gruesome body horror The Substance would go on to becomeThe success of Sinners, Conclave, The Substance and Anora indicates that there’s still a huge appetite for original storytelling in Hollywood right now, with potential for big swings (which they all are, in their own unique ways) and risky filmmaking to cut through with cinemagoers.It’s frustrating, then, that the trend for studios to lean into tired sequels and films based on existing IP is only seeming to deepen.During the last week alone, it’s been announced that sequels to cult classics Practical Magic and 10 Things I Hate About You are both in the works, more than 25 years after both films’ initial releases.From a business standpoint, yes, it’s easy to see why films like these get greenlit. The Practical Magic follow-up will see the return of both Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman, reunited after almost three decades, which is sure to drum up plenty of intrigue (it’s worth pointing out that it’s also based on another novel from the same series that inspired the first film).Meanwhile, 10 Things I Hate About You remains one of the most popular romantic comedies the genre has ever produced, with filmmaker Gil Junger saying he hopes the film will honour Heath Ledger, the original’s leading man, who died in 2008, nine years after its release.Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock in 1998's Practical MagicBut when I think of my own go-to comfort watches – the ones that haven’t already had middling and unsatisfying sequels – I struggle to think of many (if any!) I’d actually get excited to hear that it was getting a “part two”.True, the novelty of getting the old gang back together is often an appealing one, but that same sense of nostalgia can still be achieved through reunion specials (like HBO’s for Friends and Harry Potter in the last few years), without making fans sit through lukewarm retreads where it’s obvious that most people are only in it for the pay-cheque and/or exposure.And even if sheer curiosity does put bums on seats when the next instalments of Practical Magic and 10 Things I Hate About You are out, wouldn’t fans of these classics rather see these actors and other creatives reuniting to create something new and fresh, rather than just revisiting old ground for the sake of it? I should add, all of this is not to say I’m entirely anti-reboot. When there’s a story worth telling, there’s definitely a place for sequels and revivals, which is why I think the recent Bridget Jones movie Mad About The Boy was so much more effective than its predecessor, 2016’s Bridget Jones’s Baby.Top Gun: Maverick also cut through in a big way – becoming the highest-grossing film of Tom Cruise’s decades-long career and even securing a Best Picture nomination at the 2023 Oscars – because it was as much about introducing new characters and stories, rather than just going over the same ground and hitting the same beats from 40 years earlier.Obviously, the trend for sequels isn’t going away, with the next few months giving us new instalments in the Mission: Impossible, 28 Days Later and John Wick universes, plus a reboot of The Fantastic Four and yet another Disney live-action remake in Lilo & Stitch.I would just hope that the lesson from Sinners’ success is a realisation across studios that there’s still an appetite for (and – frankly – money to be made from) bold storytelling and innovative filmmaking. Otherwise, we can look forward to Sinners 2 hitting cinemas in 2027…READ MORE:Wuthering Heights' Casting Director Shares 4-Word Response To Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi BacklashBradley Cooper's Next Project Is A Film Based On John Bishop's Life And... Sorry What?!Gary Oldman Reveals Why He Had To Apologise To Demi Moore On The Set Of The Scarlet Letter

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