10 Sequels To Iconic Movies You Didn't Know Were Coming In 2027 And Beyond

Published Sep 27, 2026, 4:45 PM EDT Richard Craig is a Senior Author at Screen Rant covering film and TV. Richard has also written extensively about horror and film soundtracks, contributing a chapter to the first major academic collection on the folk horror genre, The Routledge Companion to Folk Horror. Richard is also a performing musician and holds an MA in Music and Sound Art. Hollywood has developed a peculiar talent for making audiences wait decades for sequels that once seemed inevitable. Some movies end with obvious opportunities for another adventure, only for years to pass without a follow-up. Others become such unlikely cult favorites that the mere suggestion of a sequel sounds like somebody's particularly ambitious fan fiction. Yet several long-dormant franchises are now stirring again. The particularly strange thing about these projects is how different their circumstances are. One has already wrapped filming with a new actor taking over one of cinema's most recognizable action roles. Another finally has a script after nearly two decades of false starts. One sequel has even released its first teaser, only to reveal that fans will have to wait another year to see it. Not all of these movies are equally close to release. Some have firm theatrical dates, and have actually shown audiences its first footage. Others are now looking toward 2028 or 2029. After years of waiting, they're finally becoming more than wishful thinking. Gremlins 3 After decades of false starts, Gremlins 3 has finally reached the point where audiences can actually see Gizmo. Warner Bros. released the first teaser in September 2026, showing the Mogwai emerging from a familiar backpack before revealing a new Gremlins 3 release date: October 6, 2028. That is almost a year later than the previously announced November 19, 2027 date. Chris Columbus, who wrote the original Gremlins, is directing, with Steven Spielberg returning as executive producer. The screenplay has also undergone another change, with Hannah Marks now working alongside Columbus after Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein developed an earlier draft. The teaser reveals almost nothing about the story, but the decision to showcase Gizmo practically rather than burying the character under CGI fits Columbus' long-standing preference for tangible creature effects. After 35-plus years, the Mogwai is finally back. John Rambo ©Lionsgate/Courtesy Everett Collection Rather than continuing Sylvester Stallone's story after Rambo: Last Blood, the franchise is going backwards. John Rambo is a prequel exploring the character during the Vietnam War, before the events of First Blood. Noah Centineo now carries the iconic role, with Sisu director Jalmari Helander behind the camera and Rory Haines and Sohrab Noshirvani writing. That makes this one of the more radical legacy-sequel ideas: instead of ageing Rambo into another mission, it examines the experiences that forged him. Production took place in Thailand during early 2026, and Stallone remains involved as an executive producer rather than reprising the title role. John Rambo is now scheduled for June 4, 2027, giving Lionsgate a chance to relaunch the character while still retaining Stallone's involvement behind the scenes. Rush Hour 4 The Rush Hour franchise has spent nearly two decades threatening to return, but Rush Hour 4 is finally much more than a theoretical sequel. Paramount announced the project in November 2025, with Brett Ratner returning as director and Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker expected to reunite as Lee and Carter. The catch is that production has encountered another delay. As of April 2026, Rush Hour 4 remained in pre-production, with filming pushed to September at the earliest and planned locations including China and Saudi Arabia. Salary negotiations have also complicated matters. Rush Hour 4 reports indicated Chan and Tucker rejected initial $8 million offers after earning substantially more for Rush Hour 3. There is therefore still no release date, but the project has progressed further than most previous attempts. After all those false starts, getting Lee and Carter back together may depend on getting the numbers right. National Treasure 3 For years, National Treasure 3 seemed destined to remain Hollywood's greatest missing artifact. The first film arrived in 2004, its sequel followed in 2007, and numerous scripts subsequently disappeared into development limbo. That changed dramatically in August 2026 when director Jon Turteltaub announced that the third movie is finally “happening” during a live National Treasure Hunt podcast recording. Turteltaub also revealed that there is a script and said, “to whatever extent we can, everyone’s back,” strongly indicating an effort to reunite the original cast. Nicolas Cage's Benjamin Gates remains central to expectations surrounding the project, although formal casting announcements remain limited. Turteltaub amusingly described the movie as “Hollywood real,” acknowledging that even now, things could still go wrong. There is no release date yet, but after nearly 20 years, the treasure hunt has finally resumed. Incredibles 3 © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection Incredibles 3 is no longer merely an idea Pixar is keeping warm. The studio officially has the sequel on its theatrical calendar for June 16, 2028, with Elemental director Peter Sohn directing and original filmmaker Brad Bird producing alongside Dana Murray. The wait between films has become part of The Incredibles mythology. Incredibles 2 arrived 14 years after the 2004 original, while the third movie will follow only 10 years later. Brad Bird has previously discussed how the rushed production schedule on Incredibles 2 forced ideas and storylines to be cut, giving the third film plenty of potential material to revisit. With Sohn directing and Bird back creatively, the Parr family is officially returning to theaters in 2028. Sister Act 3 Sister Act 3 has spent years hovering between “definitely happening” and “someone please greenlight this,” but the latest update is unusually concrete. Whoopi Goldberg confirmed in March 2025 that the screenplay was finished and had been submitted to Disney. The remaining question was whether the studio would actually approve production. That screenplay had already undergone major changes following Maggie Smith's death in September 2024. Goldberg previously explained that the story needed to be adjusted after losing the actress who played Mother Superior in both original films. Sheryl Lee Ralph has also been linked to a return as Florence Watson. So the third movie is not lacking a script; it is lacking the final studio commitment. That makes its current status particularly tantalizing. Goldberg has been pushing the project for years, and this time the choir actually has its next song written. Hancock 2 Hancock was always an unusual superhero movie, but its $629 million worldwide gross made a sequel seem inevitable. Peter Berg discussed returning before the original even opened, and by 2009 Sony had hired Adam Fierro and Glen Mazzara to develop a follow-up. Charlize Theron was also expected to return, while Berg teased another superpowered character. Years of silence followed, although Will Smith repeatedly maintained that ideas were being discussed. The most recent update came in February 2025, when Will Smith appeared on xQc's Twitch stream and revealed there was a “really cool Hancock 2 idea.” More intriguingly, he said Zendaya was being approached for a role. That does not mean the sequel is officially greenlit, but Smith's involvement makes this more substantial than another recycled rumor. Sony has yet to announce a release date. The Princess Diaries 3 Image via Disney The Princess Diaries 3 has survived Garry Marshall's death, multiple scripts and years of development, but 2026 brought both its biggest breakthrough and a major loss. Anne Hathaway confirmed in July that the project had reached a “story breakthrough,” although the creative team had effectively started over with a new direction. The bigger emotional change came in August, when Julie Andrews confirmed she would not return as Queen Clarisse. Andrews explained that she considers herself retired from screen acting, meaning Mia Thermopolis' story will continue without the character who helped establish Genovia in the first two films. Hathaway remains committed to returning as Mia, while Crazy Rich Asians filmmaker Adele Lim is directing. The new approach reportedly focuses more on what it means for Mia to be a queen, rather than simply recreating the original fairy-tale setup. Dodgeball 2 Dodgeball 2 has somehow spent more than a decade bouncing between development and dormancy. 20th Century Studios revived the sequel in 2023, with Vince Vaughn returning as Peter LaFleur and Jordan VanDina writing. The screenplay has reportedly been completed, with Alan Tudyk saying in 2025 that Vaughn liked it. However, Vaughn has been considerably more cautious. He said in 2025 that there was a “pretty good” idea for the sequel but “nothing for sure,” stressing that the story has to justify returning rather than simply cashing in on nostalgia. As of 2026, the project remains in early development/pre-production, with no director or release date officially announced. That caution is understandable: the original's absurd ESPN8 jokes, White Goodman, and Patches O'Houlihan are deeply tied to 2004. The challenge is finding a second game worth playing without simply repeating the first. Zombieland 3 The Zombieland franchise may have accidentally invented the world's slowest release schedule. The original arrived in 2009, Double Tap followed in 2019, and director Ruben Fleischer has now said he hopes that Zombieland 3 arrives in 2029. That 10-year rhythm is not an actual production rule, but the filmmakers have repeatedly joked about returning a decade after each installment during the Double Tap press junket. The major issue facing the production now is wrangling the stars' busy schedules. Emma Stone, in particular, has transformed into one of Hollywood's biggest and most in-demand actors, with numerous high-profile projects in the work. There is currently no greenlit screenplay or production start date. That makes 2029 a target rather than a confirmed release. Still, with Eisenberg, Stone, Woody Harrelson and Abigail Breslin having already reunited once, another decade-late road trip remains very much on the table. Release Date October 6, 2028 Director Chris Columbus Writers Carl Ellsworth, Chris Columbus, Zach Lipovsky, Hannah Marks, Adam B. Stein Producers Holly Bario, Michael Barnathan, Chris Columbus, Kristie Macosko Krieger, Mark Radcliffe Franchise(s) Gremlins