The 50 Worst Sequels of All Time, According to Rotten Tomatoes

Sequels don’t necessarily get the bad rap they once did. In addition to achieving success at the box office, many cinematic follow-ups are met with critical acclaim. Two out of the 10 Best Picture nominees for the 2023 Academy Awards, for example, were the second entries in their franchises. But for every Top Gun: Maverick (2022) and Avatar: The Way of Water (2022), there are plenty of sequels that remind us how they got their poor reputation. Here are the 50 worst movie sequels of all time, according to Rotten Tomatoes.

Each of the titles listed scored an 8 percent or less on the Tomatometer, meaning critics overwhelmingly rejected it upon its release. The top 14 all scored 0 percent, including Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 (2004), which is regarded as one of the worst movies of all time in addition to being one of the worst sequels.

Some movies were disappointing follow-ups to beloved classics. Jaws: The Revenge (1987) and Staying Alive (1983)—the sequel to Saturday Night Fever (1977)—both appear in the rankings. Four Police Academy sequels rank in the top 15, perhaps making it the worst-reviewed franchise of all time.

You can view the worst sequels ever made and their Rotten Tomatoes scores in the table below. For a reminder that follow-ups can live up to—and in some cases, exceed—their predecessors, check out these movie franchises where the sequels were better than the original.

Rank	Title	Year	Rotten Tomatoes Score
1.	Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2	2004	0%
2.	Return to the Blue Lagoon	1991	0%
3.	Staying Alive	1983	0%
4.	Highlander II: The Quickening	1991	0%
5.	Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol	1987	0%
6.	365 Days: This Day	2022	0%
7.	The Ring 2	1999	0%
8.	The Gallows Act II	2019	0%
9.	Atlas Shrugged: Who Is John Galt?	2014	0%
10.	The Crow: Wicked Prayer	2005	0%
11.	Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach	1988	0%
12.	Police Academy 6: City Under Siege	1989	0%
13.	Police Academy: Mission to Moscow	1994	0%
14.	The Next 365 Days	2022	0%
15.	Daddy Day Camp	2007	1%
16.	Jaws: The Revenge	1987	2%
17.	The Whole Ten Yards	2004	4%
18.	Speed 2: Cruise Control	1997	4%
19.	Mortal Kombat Annihilation	1997	4%
20.	Scary Movie V	2013	4%
21.	Caddyshack II	1988	4%
22.	Atlas Shrugged: Part 2	2012	4%
23.	Big Momma’s House 2	2006	5%
24.	Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son	2011	5%
25.	Universal Soldier: The Return	1999	5%
26.	Tyler Perry's Boo 2! A Madea Halloween	2017	5%
27.	Troll 2	1990	5%
28.	Major League II	1994	5%
29.	Return of the Living Dead Part II	1988	5%
30.	Highlander III: The Sorcerer	1994	5%
31.	Piranha II: The Spawning	1981	5%
32.	Basic Instinct 2	2006	6%
33.	Son of the Mask	2005	6%
34.	Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2	2015	6%
35.	Student of the Year 2	2019	6%
36.	The Bad News Bears Go to Japan	1978	6%
37.	Leprechaun 2	1994	6%
38.	Cheaper by the Dozen 2	2005	7%
39.	I Still Know What You Did Last Summer	1998	7%
40.	National Lampoon’s Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj	2006	7%
41.	The Next Karate Kid	1994	7%
42.	Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise	1987	7%
43.	House II: The Second Story	1987	7%
44.	Problem Child 2	1991	7%
45.	Escape Plan 2: Hades	2018	7%
46.	Grown Ups 2	2013	8%
47.	Rings	2017	8%
48.	A Haunted House 2	2014	8%
49.	Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers	1995	8%
50.	Teen Wolf Too	1987	8%

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A version of this story ran in 2023; it has been updated for 2024.