It's too hard.
This is already hollywood in recent years do not know how many times the "classic re-continuity" has been tragically overturned.
If the pre-film reputation of "The Matrix Restart" is still reluctant, then after the release of online streaming media and the tasting of more audiences, it is a complete collapse.
Douban and IMDb both fell below 6 points;
CinemaScore audience rating B-.
The box office was also under the influence of streaming media distributions, and the first weekend box office was even worse than the first day box office of the previous game "The Matrix 3" 18 years ago.
Obviously, it is a classic IP in film history, but it has ended up in such a field, and people can't help but sigh.
This is actually related to the changes in the film market.
You know, film history classics belong to the category of film art, and gradually move away from commercial films.
The "Matrix" trilogy was a phenomenon in that year, but no one could guarantee that the audience who walked into the theater that year would still have enthusiasm for the movie nearly 20 years later, and they could also enter the theater with full of emotion.
Younger audiences, the main force of the market, they have long been captured by superheroes, if only the reputation is particularly good, it is difficult to attract them.
They didn't have the shocking experience of being in the theater that year, and they wouldn't have a reason to buy tickets.
The art of cinema is niche.
This dooms Hollywood's "classic resurgence wave" to be difficult to succeed.
The so-called classic re-sequel is different from the general series restart, or the prequel series.
It means that there is no sequel after at least 10 years, and the work that has been dusted off is then developed.
There are original film actors returning, and the original story is continued.
The wave began in 2015.
That year, the global box office champion and runner-up were all classic continuations.
"Star Wars Episode VII" and "Jurassic World" defeated the popular IP "Rapid" and "Marvel", proving the power of feelings.
The former is exactly 10 years after the previous film in the series, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, and the producer Lucasfilm has been acquired by Disney;
The latter is 14 years apart from Jurassic Park 3, which is a classic continuation.
In the case that the reputation of the old trilogy has been declining and it has been filmed, "Jurassic World" has rekindled the dinosaur fever of the 90s with a new story, and the new trilogy plan has been put on the agenda.
Since then, the number of classic sequels has increased year by year.
Twentieth Century Fox hastily handed over the sequel "Independence Day 2: The Comeback" after 20 years in 2016, and as a result, the previous generation of male protagonists can only appear in photos, and eventually become a bad film with money, 1.65 costs only recovered 390 million box office worldwide, and the classic continued negative textbook.
The planned third and fourth plans were also aborted immediately.
In 2017, there were two word-of-mouth sequels.
Because "Independence Day 2" hit the street, the same classic sci-fi sequel to "Blade Runner 2049", at first fans did not have much hope.
After all, 1982's Blade Runner was one of the two ceilings of science fiction movies.
Unexpectedly, director Dennis Villeneuve co-photographed Roger Deakins and made a work close to God's work.
The British also couldn't hold back and took out the sequel to the 90s collection "Guess the Train".
The director starred in the original team all returned, the quality was guaranteed to a certain extent, and the slight decline in word of mouth was within the acceptance range of the fans.
If such works can be more, it is absolutely good that the classic is renewed.
But the ideal is very plump, the reality is very bone, these two well-known classic sequels, the box office is not bad.
"Guess the Train 2" is fine, because the cost is not high, and tens of millions of box office do not make money or lose;
"Blade Runner 2049" was miserable, costing $150 million, and only 260 million box office in the world, with no return.
These two sequel films, which have a better reputation than Star Wars Episode VII and Jurassic World, have been cold in the market, and the reason is that the film types are very different.
"Star Wars" and "Jurassic" are themselves very successful commercial productions, with a wider impact.
"Blade Runner" is considered a commercial film, but in 1982 the business was a fiasco, and later became a classic by word of mouth by the fan group before it was put on the altar;
"Guess the Train" is a small-budget film that has been slowly divided into the field of film art over time;
The sequels of these two films do not have a strong basis for commercial success, and are more inclined to the niche culture of the fan group, thinking that the box office was average that year, not to mention the luxury of expecting more people to watch it in ten or twenty years.
So why do film companies set up projects to shoot?
Because whether it is "Blade Runner" or "Guess the Train", the influence in the film field is still very good.
Perhaps executives believe that if the quality is good enough, they can bring back the theaters of people who have forgotten about the theater.
But the real data is in front of you, and the classic continuation of this road is really not easy at all.
In 2018, there are 3 films.
As long as it is a little popular, you can come to a sequel that has only come out after many years.
10th anniversary sequel "Mamma Mia 2";
The same is the song and dance, the configuration is similar to the "Happy Man 2";
Even Pixar came up with a "The Incredibles 2" movie.
The reputation of these sequels has not collapsed, and some have even entered the awards season.
Among them, "The Incredibles 2" won more than 1.2 billion box office worldwide, and "Jurassic World 2" entered the top five of the global annual box office list.
As long as there is enough commercial operation and caters to the taste of the market, the classic re-renewal can have a stable box office output.
These three films in 2018 are in line with the hot spots of song and dance films and superhero themes, and feelings are not the only winning magic weapon.
Like less market-oriented, it would be nice if the box office could recoup its costs.
The renewal of the 2019 classic has become commonplace.
"Zombie Paradise 2" reluctantly returned to the original;
The Shining sequel Doctor Sleep failed miserably;
Cameron supervised the production, saying that it was "Terminator: Dark Fate" that was the orthodox direct sequel to "Terminator 2", and the filmmaker Paramount had no choice but to lose money.
The Defeat of the Terminators could be a watershed moment in the continuation of the classics.
While there was a 2015 episode of Terminator: Genesis in the series, Terminator: Dark Fate has always been bundled with Terminator 2 promotions and ignored other sequels.
Paramount is benchmarking "Star Wars 7" and "Jurassic World", however, terminator such a big commercial IP, but it is still as bad as "Blade Runner 2049".
Strangely enough, Terminator 2 is already a sci-fi classic that transcends the existence of commercial films, and it is almost after Alien.
The more classic the sequel, the more difficult it is to sell.
If this law is followed, "Top Gun: The Lone Ranger" may be good at the box office, and Ridley Scott's "Gladiator 2" will undoubtedly be difficult to set up.
Facts have proved that whether these classic movies continue to make money or not has little to do with the classic degree of IP.
Whether the subject matter is popular or not, it is true to cater to market demand.
Those classics have long been far away from this era, no longer suitable for this era of the market, copied intact, word of mouth can be good, but only a niche group to see;
To make adaptations that cater to the times, word of mouth is easy to be bad.
Like "The Matrix: Matrix Reboot", the visual style has been completely changed, closer to the director's high-scoring American drama "Super Sense Hunting", and the result has collapsed.
The same full of feelings of "Spider-Man: Heroes No Return", is the popular theme plus the MCU series, it is difficult to sell.
Hollywood companies must make a careful choice, don't move to continue a classic, that will only be thankless.