2025 saw several popular films return with sequels, bringing back familiar characters, bigger stories, and higher expectations. These follow-ups aimed to build on earlier successes and attract audiences once again.
1. Akhanda 2: Thaandavam
Director: Boyapati Srinu
Akhanda 2: Thaandavam follows Akhanda’s return as he battles a deadly biowarfare plot during the Maha Kumbh Mela, protecting a young scientist while taking on powerful enemies with his trademark divine fury and mass action.
2. Hit 3
Director: Sailesh Kolanu
HIT: The Third Case follows cop Arjun Sarkaar as he hunts a dark cult involved in organ trafficking, dragging him into a brutal, morally grey world, while setting up the next chapter of the HIT universe.
3. Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Avatar: Fire and Ash follows Jake Sully and his family as they face a new fire-wielding Na’vi clan, forcing them to unite Pandora’s tribes to survive another war.
4. Jurassic World: Rebirth
Director: Gareth Edwards
Jurassic World: Rebirth follows a covert team sent to collect dinosaur DNA for a life-saving drug. Their mission turns dangerous as they uncover dark secrets, mutated creatures, and corporate greed on a remote island.
5. Tron: Ares
Director: Joachim Rønning
Tron: Ares follows a self-aware digital program entering the real world as tech companies fight over a code that lets digital beings exist permanently, blurring the line between technology and humanity.
6. Predator: Badlands
Director: Dan Trachtenberg
Predator: Badlands follows Dek, an exiled Yautja, who teams up with a stranded synthetic to hunt a legendary beast on a deadly planet, navigating danger, survival, and redemption.
7. Captain America: Brave New World
Director: Julius Onah
Captain America: Brave New World follows Sam Wilson as the new Captain America, facing an international crisis, a deadly global plot over adamantium, and the rise of Red Hulk while protecting friends and the world.
8. Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning follows Ethan Hunt racing to stop a rogue AI from triggering global nuclear war, facing betrayals and high-stakes action while securing the AI for future control.
9. Nobody 2
Director: Timo Tjahjanto
In Nobody 2, workaholic assassin Hutch Mansell takes his family on vacation to Plummerville but soon faces a corrupt theme-park owner, a shady sheriff, and a dangerous crime boss.
10. Zootopia 2
Director: Jared Bush and Byron Howard
Zootopia 2 follows Judy and Nick as they uncover a reptile conspiracy that threatens the city’s history, going undercover to reveal the truth while testing their partnership.
11. Final Destination: Bloodlines
Director: Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein
Final Destination: Bloodlines follows Stefani Reyes, a college student haunted by premonitions of deadly accidents linked to her grandmother’s past, as she and her family try to survive Death’s elaborate, fatal schemes.
12. The Conjuring: Last Rites
Director: Michael Chaves
The Conjuring: Last Rites depicts the Smurl family haunting in Pennsylvania, showing violent demonic activity and the Warrens’ intervention, with dramatic twists like a cursed mirror and timeline compression.
13. Thunderbolts*
Director: Jake Schreier
Thunderbolts follows reformed villains on missions where they confront their pasts and battle the powerful Sentry, exploring themes of redemption and moral ambiguity.
14. The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Director: Matt Shakman
The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) introduces the superhero team in a 1960s setting as they face a cosmic threat while managing family life and public responsibilities.
15. Superman
Director: James Gunn
Superman follows Kal-El, sent from doomed Krypton to Earth, where he’s raised as Clark Kent. Growing up with superpowers, he becomes a hero fighting evil while living as a mild-mannered reporter.
