Hollywood’s love affair with insane sequels has given us a parade of “what‑if” movies that never made it to the big screen. From bat‑capped crusades in Bali to time‑hopping Roman warriors, these almost‑made‑it projects show just how wild a follow‑up can get.
Insane Sequels That Almost Made It
1 Gladiator 2
The original Gladiator closed with Maximus dead, a move that would seemingly shut the door on any sequel. Yet the studio hired rock‑star‑turned‑screenwriter Nick Cave to dream up a continuation, and the result is pure lunacy.
Cave’s script opens with Maximus wandering the afterlife, desperate to reunite with his wife. The Roman gods intervene, tasking him with halting the spread of monotheism. In a bizarre twist, Maximus is resurrected inside a dying Christian’s body, becoming a zombie‑like hero alongside a spectral companion named Mordecai.
The duo leads a Christian army against the Roman Empire, and the plot spirals further when Maximus begins teleporting through time—first as a Crusader, then fighting in World War II and Vietnam, and finally landing a desk job at the Pentagon. By the film’s end, he and Mordecai exchange a knowing nod, hinting that their bizarre mission never truly ends.
2 Super Mario Bros. 2
The first Super Mario Bros. movie ended on a cliffhanger: Princess Daisy bursts in, pleading for help. Disney’s Circle 7 studio was ready to answer, planning a sequel that would follow the plot of the classic video game Super Mario 2.
In the proposed film, Mario would dream he’s playing the game, only to wake up and discover that none of it ever happened. The story would send Mario and Luigi back to Princess Toadstool’s dimension, where they’d attend a radical ‘90s‑style party complete with a guitar‑solo‑wielding Toad.
Just as the brothers gear up to face the villainous Wart, the project was shelved. While the movie never materialized, the concept lives on in a comic adaptation that fans can still read.
3 Space Jam 2
After the original Space Jam paired Michael Jordan with the Looney Tunes gang, the studio wondered if a sequel could stretch the novelty further. The answer? A golf‑centric adventure starring Tiger Woods playing alongside Bugs Bunny—set in outer space.
Joe Pytka, the director of the first film, was brought in to evaluate the script. He summed it up in one line: “It was a strange script.” Pytka argued that the first film was the best, comparing it to the sentiment that The Godfather 2 can’t surpass The Godfather 1.
Despite the odd premise, the idea persisted. Attempts to revive the franchise later saw Dwight Howard trying to helm a sequel (a name most people didn’t recognize), and eventually LeBron James took the reins for the officially released Space Jam 2. Pytka’s blunt assessment still echoes: “It’s doomed.”
4 Mrs. Doubtfire 2
While the original Mrs. Doubtfire didn’t scream sequel material, a follow‑up almost slipped through. Early drafts imagined Robin Williams trailing his college‑going daughter, attempting once again to convince her that he was a woman.
Williams himself dismissed the idea, noting, “At the end of the first one, they reveal who Mrs. Doubtfire is. It doesn’t work.” Nevertheless, he eventually signed on for a different storyline, only for his untimely death to halt production. The director claimed Williams agreed because they’d found a perfect story, but tabloids suggested the script itself was lackluster and that Williams took the role mainly for cash.
5 Star Wars: Splinter Of The Mind’s Eye
Before Star Wars V became the iconic “Empire Strikes Back,” George Lucas considered a low‑budget sequel titled Splinter of the Mind’s Eye. The project would have excluded Han Solo, as the studio feared they couldn’t afford Harrison Ford.
Instead, Luke and Leia would crash‑land on a swamp planet, discovering a magical crystal that amplifies the Force. Their quest would pit them against Darth Vader in a race for the crystal, with Luke physically dragging Leia around as a “slave” and even slapping her when she talked back. The script also paired the siblings in a romantic subplot—an odd choice given their familial ties.
The climax would feature Luke slicing off Vader’s arm and running off with the crystal, boasting that five minutes of advice from Obi‑Wan made him a better Jedi than Vader’s three decades of training. The film never moved past the script stage.
6 Forrest Gump 2: Gump & Co.
The novel Gump & Co. provided the blueprint for a sequel that almost made it to the screen in 2001. The story would see Forrest as a single dad after Jenny’s death, with Jenny’s ghost serving as his guardian angel.
Forrest’s career would take a wild ride: starting as a janitor in a strip club, then soaring to NFL stardom, and eventually becoming an astronaut. As with the original, he would wander through history, this time fighting in Operation Desert Storm alongside the orangutan that once accompanied him into space.
7 Toy Story 3: Toy Story In Taiwan
When Disney split from Pixar, they retained the rights to Pixar’s beloved characters and set up a studio called Circle 7 to churn out sequels. Their take on Toy Story 3 never saw the light of day.
The first pitch was a whodunit mystery, but the studio eventually settled on a plot that would whisk the toys away to Taiwan. In this version, Buzz Lightyear would be recalled, prompting the gang to travel to Taiwan and perform a literal surgery on him—a bizarre but earnest attempt to save their friend.
8 E.T. 2: Nocturnal Fears
After the heartfelt success of Spielberg’s original alien tale, studios begged for a sequel. Spielberg drafted a ten‑page proposal titled Nocturnal Fears, taking the story into considerably darker territory.
In this follow‑up, razor‑toothed alien hunters descend on Earth hunting for E.T., who is revealed to have the unfortunate name Zrek. The villains capture Elliott and his friends, subjecting them to torture. When Elliott is pushed to the brink, he cries out for help—not via a phone, but through raw, unfiltered sobbing.
Miraculously, E.T. can hear tears across the cosmos and rushes to the rescue, freezing the alien attackers in an instant. The frozen foes never thaw, and the film ends with E.T. escorting the kids home, essentially portraying him as an unstoppable, god‑like force.
9 Lord Of The Rings 2
J.R.R. Tolkien almost penned a sequel to his legendary saga, completing thirteen pages before discarding the manuscript. The imagined continuation would have been set a century after the original events, featuring very few hobbits.
The story would open with two men debating the environmental impact of deforestation—a surprisingly philosophical start. Tolkien described the unwritten sequel as a “sinister and depressing” thriller centered on thwarting a secret satanic cult.
He ultimately dismissed the project, calling it “not worth doing.”
10 Batman Unchained
During his stint on the less‑celebrated Batman films, Joel Schumacher envisioned his magnum opus: Batman Unchained. Claiming he owed “hardcore fans” a true Batman experience, he concocted a wildly eclectic cast.
The villainous lineup featured Nicolas Cage as The Scarecrow and Courtney Love as Harley Quinn, who would discover that The Joker is her father—a revelation that would make their romantic moments decidedly awkward.
Schumacher also wanted Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze to join a surreal trial scene where Batman is haunted by hallucinations of being judged by his rogues’ gallery. The climax was to depict Batman walking into a bat‑filled cave—only after a detour to Bali, because the director apparently couldn’t think of a closer bat cave than Indonesia.