A look at the top ten highest-grossing Hollywood movies of 2024 immediately reveals a clear pattern. All ten titles are sequels, remakes, or part of a franchise or cinematic universe. This is, perhaps, the first time in the history of Western cinema that not a single ‘original’ story has made it into the biggest films of the year. The failure of much-hyped films like Megalopolis ensured this. But while in some cases, the failure of originality was a matter of poor quality, the overwhelming dominance of franchises suggests that, on some level, Hollywood has stopped pursuing original content. Years from now, when there is a clear reaction to this trend, 2024 will be seen as the year when it all came to a head. ,Also read: From wizards to warriors: Hollywood sequel to take center stage in 2024,
Sequels, remakes and spinoffs galore
Hollywood’s obsession with recognizable IP is not new. For more than three decades, studios have promoted sequels, franchises, and any means of making money based on audiences’ familiarity with characters and worlds. The birth of the cinematic universe in 2008 kicked it into top gear. The world’s top 10 grossing films this year include nine Hollywood films – all remakes or sequels – Inside Out 2, Deadpool & Wolverine, Despicable Me 4, Moana 2, Dune Part Two, Wicked, Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire , Kung Fu Panda 4, and Venom: The Last Dance 4. Coincidentally, the only non-American film on the list – the Chinese film Yolo – is also a remake, an adaptation of the Japanese film 100 Yen Love.
Independent cinema also becomes a victim of franchise culture
For decades, independent cinema existed as a bastion of originality and ‘different’ content. Freed from the demands and rules of studios, indie filmmakers experimented more freely with concepts and genres. But this decade has shown that even the last bastion is collapsing. The highest-grossing indie film of the year has not just one sequel, but three sequels. Terrifier 3, a horror film that only made $2 million, went on to gross $90 million worldwide and even beat Joker 2 at the box office. It is now the highest-grossing unrated film in cinema history, and trade insiders believe it could encourage independent cinema to look at the IP on repeat.
Where has the originality gone?
Original cinema exists. Francis Ford Coppola’s ambitious project Megalopolis is the biggest example of this. That a filmmaker of his stature had to invest $120 million of his own money to distribute and release it speaks volumes about the ‘acceptance’ of original ideas in Hollywood. The film’s eventual box office debacle means studios will become even stricter on original ideas that don’t check all the boxes for a summer blockbuster.
the way forward
The clouds don’t seem to be clearing. The first big release of 2025 is The Wolf Man, a reboot of a franchise that began eight decades ago. It also includes spinoffs from the world of Star Trek, Bridget Jones, the reboot of Snow White, and the fourth Captain America. And all this is just in the first three months of 2025. Even then, hopes for originality are bleak. Even Christopher Nolan’s next film is an adaptation of one of the oldest epics in history – The Odyssey. Now all one can do is wait for the next Jordan Peele film or Breakaway sleeper hit to correct course somewhat. However, given the lack of support from studios, this remains a difficult task.
