Yeah, so STAR WARS has already begun spinning off into standalones and non-Skywalker movies, but the biggest aspect of the now non-canon Expanded Universe is The Old Republic. Going back thousands of years to the origins of the Force and the Dark Side offers an opportunity to set movies in an almost wholly distinct setting than the main STAR WARS movies. I would love to see just what they could come up with in a STAR WARS movie that shares no similarities with any of the main seven films in the saga.
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Like the DSS and IMF suggestions above, James Bond has his own agency that he seems to be the only member of. We have seen other MI-6 operatives in the 007 series, so why not give one (or a few) of them their own chance in the spotlight? While I doubt anyone could equal the cool that is James Bond, this could be a way to get Tom Hiddleston, Gillian Anderson, Idris Elba or any number of rumored candidates to succeed Daniel Craig their own big screen adventure without upsetting the format of the main Ian Fleming-based series.
I am sure the Tolkien fans out there are waiting to find out if The Silmarillion will ever become a film. There are enough short tales and fragments out there to develop more films in the saga started by Peter Jackson. While there would likely be an uproar at the prospect of original stories being developed within the Middle Earth history, I would love to see some new tales playing with this giant world. By breaking free from the established canon, a new realm of endless possibilities would allow any number of visionary directors to bring humans, orcs, hobbits, goblins, elves, and dwarves to life.
Yeah, so the sequels to THE MATRIX didn’t really live up to the potential of the original film, but the universe is so unique and ripe for storytelling that it would be a shame not to explore it further. But, like the STAR WARS spin-offs, stay away from the main storyline and delve into standalone stories that follow other characters. The origin of Morpheus? The creation of The Matrix itself? There are lots of directions this could go and bringing in other filmmakers to put their stamp on the series visually would revitalize the saga.
Tom Cruise can only make so many MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE films and we will all turn out to see them, but what the franchise has done a great job of is introducing supporting characters that would make for a good focus on their own series. While Jeremy Renner was being groomed to take over when Cruise steps away from the series, the ensemble nature of the films is what really makes them click. Simon Pegg and Renner could easily anchor the franchise without Cruise, but why not develop a second team with their own stories to exist simultaneously?
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I have a love-hate relationship with the FAST AND FURIOUS series: I love Dwayne Johnson’s character and I hate everyone else. It is no surprise that when Mr. Franchise Viagra joined the Vin Diesel led series that it suddenly got a lot better. While Johnson is returning for the upcoming new film, there is an expiration date on the series. Plus, there are rumors of strife between Johnson and Diesel, so why not allow the DSS agency to become the focus of it’s own Toretto-less series?
Another potential X-MEN spin-off, X-Force would rely on the box office powerhouse that is Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool. We already know the developing sequel will feature Cable and Domino which could represent the beginning of a cinematic take on X-Force that doesn’t rely on the source comics while still being faithful to the tone of the universe. Just make sure it stays R-rated.
With a fourth film on the way featuring the main cast of Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, John Cho and the return of Chris Hemsworth, Paramount needs to begin preparing for the potential need to establish a new series set within the same universe. While standalone spin-offs could work, why not build a series centered on young cadets at Starfleet Academy. That section of the 2009 reboot offered enough universe building to inform a new series while not relying on casting established names. New, young, fresh faces could populate this new series of films.
Another Jennifer Lawrence franchise, THE HUNGER GAMES always had a finite number of stories to tell centered on Katniss Everdeen, but the concept of years worth of Hunger Games being played are ripe for storytelling spin-offs that take us back to the cutthroat reality series. Any number of characters featured over the main film series could return for other origin tales or stories centered on the rise of Panem.
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With Fox having issues with their X-MEN series in the wake of APOCALYPSE’s lackluster box office and the impending exit of Hugh Jackman from the role of Wolverine, now is the time to create new franchise spin-offs focusing on characters other than the main core team that includes Professor X, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Beast, and the other primary players. The New Mutants is a known property that the studio is working on and could easily be a way to avoid bringing back the trio of Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, and Jennifer Lawrence.