Random Spin-Offs And Sequels To Hollywood Films You Probably Never Knew Existed (26 items)

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  (#13) S. Darko

  Donnie Darko (2001) poses many questions: are Donnie's visions real? What's the deal with the demonic bunny? Is this film good or not?

  One question viewers were probably not asking: whatever happened to Donnie's younger sister? And yet, that's precisely the premise of S. Darko, as it follows Samantha Darko (Daveigh Chase, reprising her role from the original) as she deals with more time tunnels and men in bunny suits. 

  Richard Kelly, the director of the original film, had this to say about the follow-up: "To set the record straight, here's a few facts I'd like to share with you all - I haven't read this script. I have absolutely no involvement with this production, nor will I ever be involved."
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  (#4) American Psycho 2

  • Film

  American Psycho (2000), based on the Bret Easton Ellis novel and featuring Christian Bale as the terrifying serial killer Patrick Bateman, is a modern cult classic. Its follow up American Psycho II: All American Girl (2002), not so much.

  In their review of the straight to DVD sequel, the AV Club wrote: "Where American Psycho did just about everything right, American Psycho 2: All-American Girl gets it all wrong."

  The film begins with Patrick Bateman (or more accurately a Bale-ish body double) dying at the hands of a small child. That child grows up to be Mila Kunis, a serial killer. She's also training to join the FBI under the tutelage of an FBI legend, played by William Shatner.
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  (#15) The Fall of a Nation

  The Birth of a Nation was an incredibly racist piece of pro-Klu Klux Klan propaganda. The film also set the precedent for having the first-ever feature film sequel.

  The Fall of a Nation was directed by Thomas Dixon, Jr., who wrote The Clansman, the book upon which the original film was based. The film takes place after the sinking of the Lusitania and "portrays a world where pacifism rules the United States, allowing the Hun to overrun Europe" and eventually invade and brutally destroy America.

  Fall was released only a year after Birth, and was quickly filmed in order to capitalize off of the massive success of the original. However, the sequel was nowhere near the hit. Instead, it has not only been forgotten, but lost, as no original copies of The Fall of a Nation exist. 
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  (#21) Son of Kong

  After King Kong fell from the Empire State Building, he wasn't gone long. Remakes, reboots, animated series, and clashes with Godzilla have been made on a nearly continual basis since the original hit screens in 1933.

  However, the first official sequel was released only nine months after the original. Son of Kong takes place immediately after the events of the first film. Filmmaker Carl Denham (played by returning cast member Robert Armstrong) leaves New York to avoid the impending lawsuits due to Kong's attack.

  The plot was perhaps best described in this 1933 Variety review: "His pop was one tough hombre, but young Kong is lots more friendly. The explorer saves him from destruction in quicksand, so he proceeds to reciprocate. He wrassles and kayoes some bad eggs among the beasts of the stone age jungle while protecting the visiting mortals. The senior Kong was around 50 feet high in his bare tootsies. Junior is a comparative shrimp, standing a mere 25 feet or so, but he can handle himself in a scrap."
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  (#22) French Connection II

  The Best Picture winner The French Connection (1971) was followed up by The French Connection II (1975). It's a fictional follow-up to the original true story, with Gene Hackman returning as Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle as he heads to France to find the drug dealing bad guys. 

  There was another official follow-up as well. In 1986, NBC greenlit Popeye Doyle. It was set to star Ed O'Neill as the titular detective, and while the pilot was shot, the series never went to air. Instead, it was repackaged as a TV movie.
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  (#3) Scarlett

  • TV Program

  "After all, tomorrow is another day." And after that line, the story of Gone With the Wind (1939) was complete. 

  Unless, of course, you count the 1994 TV miniseries Scarlett, starring Joanne Whalley-Kilmer as Scarlett O'Hara and Timothy Dalton as Rhett Butler. During the course of this long delayed sequel, "our heroine is raped, is accused of murder, vacations entirely too long in Ireland, and is forced to listen to Sir John Gielgud try out a Southern accent while playing Scarlett’s ailing grandfather."

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