Just because a character makes a film better, earning plenty of fans in the process, doesn’t mean they’re always going to end up in sequels. Sometimes contract negotiations fall through, or the performer didn’t like the direction the filmmakers were going with their respective character, the IP, or both. So, in situations like this, sometimes the character is dropped altogether (at least for one sequel). These are those characters, those who were popular but for whatever reason didn’t end up in the film that followed up their hit. But bear in mind recastings don’t count, so no Rachel Weisz’s take on Evelyn Carnahan here.
10Short Round in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
The addition of Sean Connery’s Henry Jones Sr. inIndiana Jones and the Last Crusadeis, of course, fantastic. And as a whole the third film is much better thanTemple of Doom, but a cameo appearance by Ke Huy Quan’s Short Round would have been nice.
Perhaps towards the tail end, consideringLast Crusadeopens with an unforgettable and irreplaceable River Phoenix-fronted flashback sequence. Quan is such a lovable presence he’s as missed inLast Crusadeas Connery was in 2008’sIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
9Dr. Alan Grant and Dr. Ellie Sadler in The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
There isn’t one character in Steven Spielberg’s classicJurassic Parkthat is anything short of perfectly cast. This is especially true of Laura Dern’s Ellie Sattler, Sam Neill’s Alan Grant, Jeff Goldblum’s Ian Malcolm, and Richard Attenborough’s John Hammond.
But, for 1997’s box office smash (but recipient of weaker reviews)The Lost World: Jurassic Park, only the latter two showed up, and in the case of Hammond it was just for a cameo. But, while the lack of strong chemistry is missing fromThe Lost World, at least it gives Goldblum the spotlight. Not to mention, the character inclusion in both films is identical to those in Michael Crichton’s two books.
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8Smokey in Next Friday (2000)
1995’sFridaymanaged to octuple its budget, score solid critical reviews, and earn a massive cult following for any number of reasons. But chief among them is the chemistry between Ice Cube and Chris Tucker as, respectively, Craig and Smokey. It’s always been slightly cloudy as to why Tucker didn’t return, but the actor has since revealed that part of the reason was his lack of desire to romanticizeand be associated with weedon such a macro-scale.
2000’sNext Fridayquintupled its budget, and Mike Epps' “Day Day” is a respectable replacement for Tucker, but it’s just not the same. And with poor reviews, the aimless sequel hasn’t gone on to be the perennial favorite the first one was.Friday After Nextis slightly better than the middle chapter, but it was another case of diminishing returns at the box office and poor marks from critics.
7Dr. Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park III (2001)
For a while there, it looked like Joe Johnston’sJurassic Park IIIwas as stale as the franchise could get. Of course, two-thirds of theJurassic Worldtrilogy have sense dispelled of that notion. But that’s not to say the third film works as a whole, it doesn’t know how to space out character death sequences and has its characters make decisions that are bone-headed even for an IP birthed by a man wanting to build a dinosaur theme park.
On one hand, however, at least there’s some familiarity in the return of Ellie Sadler and Alan Grant. However, Sadler’s return is a gimmicky cameo that too-conveniently saves the protagonists' lives (very, very quickly) while Sam Neill looks absolutely bored out of his mind. To be fair, how could he take the affair seriously when the first act of the film has a dream sequence where a raptor speaks his name. Perhaps It’s for the best the trilogy-capper couldn’t find anything for Goldblum’s Ian Malcolm to do.
6Mikaela Banes in Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
After two films, Megan Fox was booted from theTranformersfranchise. It was to be expected considering the star (and ticket sales booster for the teenage male set) compared director Michael Bay to Adolf Hitler, much to his and producer Steven Spielberg’s dismay.
Bay and Fox have since buried the hatchet, with her even leading the twoTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesmovies Bay produced. But, either way,Transformers: Dark of the Moonswapped out Mikaela for Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s Carly, and Huntington-Whiteley arguably brings more personality to her film than Fox brought to either of hers.
5Adam in Magic Mike XXL (2015)
Steven Soderbergh’s unlikely franchise-starter,Magic Mike, kept the riches coming for all but two characters. That is, in 2015’sMagic Mike XXL, as 2023’sMagic Mike’s Last Danceleft out everyone save for cameos from Joe Manganiello, Kevin Nash, Matt Bomer, and Adam Rodriguez.
But inMagic Mike XXLit’s the gang’s all here…as long as the gang doesn’t include Matthew McConaughey’s seasoned pro Dallas or Alex Pettyfer’s young buck Adam. McConaughey had scheduling conflicts, but supposedly Pettyfer flat out wasn’t asked back. He was allegedly difficult on set and even squabbled with lead star Channing Tatum about money and a place to crash.
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4Brandt in Mission: Impossible − Fallout (2018)
After joining Ethan Hunt’s crew for some squabbles and world saving inMission: Impossible - Ghost ProtocolandMission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, Jeremy Renner’s Agent Brandt sat outMission: Impossible - Fallout(andMission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part Onefor that matter). And, really, the reasoning was as simple as it gets…Avengers: Infinity WarandAvengers: Endgamemade for a massive, time-consuming shoot.
But, for fans of Renner in spy roles, he certainly has his moments as Hawkeye, not to mentionThe Bourne Legacy. Either way, here’s hoping Brandt returns for Hunt and pals' final adventure. Even if it does seem unlikely by this point.
3Lieutenant Ford Brody in Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
Gareth Edwards’Godzillawas an ambitious effort, but it was misguided on several fronts. For one, the titular character was mostly a non-entity. But, when the Big G did poke in his big head,it was to great effect.
Unfortunately, the film also had a protagonist problem. This was partially the fault of the marketing, which went out of its way to make Brian Cranston’s Joe Brody look like he was leading the charge against the nuclear beast. But, instead, it was Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s infinitely duller Lieutenant Ford Brody. And, while Ford may not be the most beloved fan-favorite out there, it’s still pretty telling that 2019’sGodzilla: King of the Monsterswent in an entirely new direction. That film wasn’t great with expanding upon human characters either, but at least they were all individuals with their various concrete goals. InGodzilla, Ford just feels like he’s surviving and saving a life or two along the way when an opportunity presents itself.
2Dr. Chen in Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)
WhileGodzilla vs. Kongis a massive improvement overGodzilla: King of the Monsters, it does lack one of that second film’s great additions (while keeping Millie Bobby Brown and Kyle Chandler, both terrific in their own right). Specifically, Dr. Chen, played byCrouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’s Zhang Ziyi, does not appear inGodzilla vs. Kong.
Time will tell if Dr. Chen pops up in Apple TV+‘sMonarch: Legacy of Monsters, but it would feel odd for her to be a one-and-done in the Monsterverse. On one hand, Ziyi is a formidable talent and even after years away from American audiences (Memoirs of a Geishawas her last big hit stateside) she still has clout and bankability. But then there’s the character she was playing, who was very clearly a direct take on the twin fairy princesses (the Shobijin) perpetually following Mothra around and defending her from humanity’s cruel assumptions about her. In other words, she was playing one of the most iconic and important characters of the IP, so to not have that character returns (especially when played by such a noteworthy performer) would be a big surprise, and not a good one.
1Rocky Balboa in Creed III (2023)
The torch had to be passed at some point. After six of his own movies and major roles in twoCreedspinoff-sequels, Rocky Balboa sat outCreed III.
And it’s logical, considering the third chapter of the Adonis Creed legacy is very much focused on his past, a past of which Rocky was not a part. The third film is also a showcase for Jonathan Majors’ talent just as much as it continues to be the same for Michael B. Jordan, Tessa Thompson, and the chemistry between the two. With all that’s going on, and considering how well he was used inCreedandCreed II, perhaps it’s for the best the third movie wasn’t overcrowded with the Italian Stallion’s presence.
