History Main / ActionizedSequel

* Parodied by ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' with ''Film/ThePassionOfTheChrist 2: Crucify This!'' (which from the trailer appeared to be ''Film/RushHour'' with Jesus instead of Creator/JackieChan),

** The first three ''VideoGame/RainbowSix'' games (''Rainbow Six'', ''Rogue Spear'' and ''Raven Shield'') were about careful planning since [[OneHitpointWonder you usually died from a single shot]]. Lockdown gave you a health bar and removed the tactical planning part. ''Vegas'' and ''Vegas 2'' are about three guys with RegeneratingHealth mowing down a massive army of mercenaries and [[TerroristsWithoutACause terrorists]], though you're still rather fragile compared to most contemporary shooters.

* This overtook pretty much the entire [[Creator/TomClancy Clancyverse]] under Ubisoft.

** ''VideoGame/GhostRecon'' was based off of similar principles to the first ''Rainbow Six'' titles, even sharing many mechanics and the same game engine, but out in larger and more wide open maps. With ''VideoGame/GhostRecon2'', the camera was pulled back to OverTheShoulder, the tactical planning was peeled back to focus on a singular squad that tore apart armies, albeit still being able to die quickly. This kept going on through the ''VideoGame/GhostReconAdvancedWarfighter'' and ''VideoGame/GhostReconFutureSoldier'' games until ''VideoGame/GhostReconWildlands'', which expanded the entire game to an open world experience where one to four people are ''expected'' to do the impossible even with high damage involved; amusingly, so long as you turn off the loot rules, ''VideoGame/GhostReconBreakpoint'' actually dials up the difficulty to try to encourage more tactical play by comparison.
** ''VideoGame/SplinterCell'' started off as a hardcore stealth series where action was heavily de-incentivized due to too many alarms causing mission failures and Sam controlling like a wet brick for combat. ''VideoGame/SplinterCellConviction'' turned up [[GenreShift the action]] and gives Sam Fisher another [[TookALevelInBadass level in badass]]. It had rather mixed reactions from fans of the franchise who preferred pure stealth. ''VideoGame/SplinterCellBlacklist'' downplayed it by making stealth a viable approach again while allowing for the ''Conviction''-style or even regular TPS gameplay - though even on the easier difficulties, trying to play too aggressively will get you killed fast; it's better to play smart, be tactical, and make use of all your gadgets to even the odds in your favour.

** 'VideoGame/SplinterCell'' started off as a hardcore stealth series where action was heavily de-incentivized due to too many alarms causing mission failures and Sam controlling like a wet brick for combat. ''VideoGame/SplinterCellConviction'' turned up [[GenreShift the action]] and gives Sam Fisher another [[TookALevelInBadass level in badass]]. It had rather mixed reactions from fans of the franchise who preferred pure stealth. ''VideoGame/SplinterCellBlacklist'' downplayed it by making stealth a viable approach again while allowing for the ''Conviction''-style or even regular TPS gameplay - though even on the easier difficulties, trying to play too aggressively will get you killed fast; it's better to play smart, be tactical, and make use of all your gadgets to even the odds in your favour.

* The first three ''VideoGame/RainbowSix'' games (''Rainbow Six'', ''Rogue Spear'' and ''Raven Shield'') were about careful planning since [[OneHitpointWonder you usually died from a single shot]]. Lockdown gave you a health bar and removed the tactical planning part. ''Vegas'' and ''Vegas 2'' are about three guys with RegeneratingHealth mowing down a massive army of mercenaries and [[TerroristsWithoutACause terrorists]], though you're still rather fragile compared to most contemporary shooters.

* ''VideoGame/SplinterCell'':
** ''VideoGame/SplinterCellConviction'' turns up [[GenreShift the action]] and gives Sam Fisher another [[TookALevelInBadass level in badass]]. It had rather mixed reactions from fans of the franchise who preferred pure stealth.
** ''VideoGame/SplinterCellBlacklist'' downplayed it by making stealth a viable approach again while allowing for the ''Conviction''-style or even regular TPS gameplay - though even on the easier difficulties, trying to play too aggressively will get you killed fast; it's better to play smart, be tactical, and make use of all your gadgets to even the odds in your favour.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobMovieSpongeOutOfWater'', the amount of action is increased compared to ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobSquarePantsMovie'' thanks to Bikini Bottom becoming an [[TheApunkalypse Apunkalypse]] and the superhero climax.

** Inverted with [[VideoGame/HitmanCodename47 the first game]]: While it includes plenty of stealth game-play that the series would get known for, it also has several levels where it turns into a full blown shooter complete with boss fights with the final one even consisting of [[spoiler: you moving down a small army of 48's with a [[MoreDakka minigun]]]]. VideoGame/Hitman2SilentAssassin dropped these in favor of focusing on the stealth aspect and much harsher punishments for not embracing it.

* ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'':
** The shared continuity allowed ''Film/TheAvengers2012'' to play this trope for all it's worth; since each of the characters got their own movie detailing their origin story and character background[[note]]except Hawkeye and Black Widow, but the former makes a couple cameos in ''Film/{{Thor}}'' that reveal that he's a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and the latter has a supporting role in ''Film/IronMan2''[[/note]] the writers could afford to make the majority of the exposition be about the team as a whole, rather than focusing on each character's history.

* While ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' already features plenty of action--it ''starts'' InMediasRes with Sonic fighting off Robotnik and his drones in the middle of San Francisco--it devotes most of its runtime to an [[SuperheroOrigin origin story]] for Sonic and Dr. Robotnik and features many quiet, dialogue-focused scenes. ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog22022'' features significantly faster pacing and more frequent, larger, more dynamic setpieces. Case in point: while the first movie's final battle is [[spoiler:simply Dr. Robotnik in his hovercraft]], the second's is a much larger-scale and more impressive affair, [[spoiler:a HumongousMecha controlled by Robotnik and the chaos powers he absorbed from the Master Emerald]].

* 1984's ''Film/TheTerminator'' was a science-horror film about a nigh-invulnerable killer robot chasing down an everyday woman, with the film's suspense factor resting on the robot's unrelenting dedication to its assassination mission. 1991's ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'', meanwhile, was a science-''action'' film that pitted a good version of the first movie's killer robot against an even more nigh-invulnerable killer robot chasing down the same woman's son. The difference? The film's suspense factor now hinges primarily on the hot-blooded battle between the two killer robots, and Sarah Connor is now an ActionGirl packing military-grade weapons. Just to give an idea of how different the two films are in tone, the first one ends with [[spoiler:the original Terminator surviving ''multiple'' attacks that should've destroyed it before chasing Sarah through an empty factory, eventually being lured into and crushed by a hydraulic press, just barely missing the chance to strangle her.]] The second film, meanwhile, ends with [[spoiler:the T-800 freezing and obliterating the T-1000 in a metalworks building, before bombastically sacrificing himself for the sake of the future by being dramatically lowered into a vat of molten metal, flashing a thumbs-up with a glorious fanfare playing in the background]]. Yeah. ''Terminator 2'' would actually end up setting a precedent for the tone of later films in the ''Terminator'' franchise; unfortunately, those ones would suffer quite heavily from {{sequelitis}}.
* ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'':
** The shared continuity allowed ''Film/TheAvengers2012'' to play this trope for all it's worth; since each of the characters got their own movie detailing their origin story and character background[[note]]except Hawkeye and Black Widow, but the former makes a couple cameos in ''Film/{{Thor}}'' that reveal that he's a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and the latter has a supporting role in ''Film/IronMan2''[[/note]] the writers could afford to make the majority of the exposition be about the team as a whole, rather than focusing on each character's history.
** Thanks to ten years worth of movie doing the exposition work for it, ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'' is the most action-packed film in the MCU by far. Even the subsequent GrandFinale ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' is not as loaded in this front, though it compensates in sheer volume, with the whole final third being a massive battle with nearly everyone introduced in the previous movies.

* ''Film/{{Jumanji}}'' was not without action, but ''Film/JumanjiWelcomeToTheJungle'' elevates it, down by being explicitly set in a video game world. ''Film/JumanjiTheNextLevel'' even more, with frantic setpieces such as ostriches chasing jeeps and a rope bridge run while attacked by mandrills.

* While ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'' already features plenty of action--it ''starts'' InMediasRes with Sonic fighting off Robotnik and his drones in the middle of San Francisco--it devotes most of its runtime to an [[SuperheroOrigin origin story]] for Sonic and Dr. Robotnik and features many quiet, dialogue-focused scenes. ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog22022'' features significantly faster pacing and more frequent, larger, more dynamic setpieces. Case in point: while the first movie's final battle is [[spoiler:simply Dr. Robotnik in his hovercraft]], the second's is a much larger-scale and more impressive affair, [[spoiler:a HumongousMecha controlled by Robotnik and the chaos powers he absorbed from the Master Emerald]].

* Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse:
** Regarding the follow-ups to ''Film/ManOfSteel'', ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' kind of fits, with more big setpieces though they are countered by long stretches of philosophizing and such.
** ''Film/{{Justice League|2017}}'' goes straighter to the point between action scenes.
** ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'' has even more action scenes over its colossal runtime, though it has also [[ActionFilmQuietDramaScene a lot of quiet scenes]].

* ''Film/BladeRunner2049'' is a funny example, in that it actually has ''more'' fight scenes, gun battles, a car chase, and StuffBlowingUp than the [[Film/BladeRunner original]], but feels like it has ''fewer'' thanks to its longer running time and long segments of atmospheric drama.

* ''Film/TheMummyTrilogy'' started more in the realm of an adventure series like Franchise/IndianaJones: exploring tombs, outrunning rival grave robbers, death traps, deciphering ancient mysteries and dealing with angry natives. There was certainly its own brand of action, but when Rick takes a sword and starts slicing apart mummies like a regular action hero there is a certain dissonance there. The sequels included a lot more extended action sequences, Evie and Jonathan became [[TookALevelInBadass capable badasses in their own right]], Rick became [[TheChosenOne a destined hero]] and there are entire supernatural armies to face.
* ''Film/JackReacherNeverGoBack'' is this to ''Film/JackReacher''. While ''Jack Reacher'' was still an action movie, it was basically like a thriller with action sequences such as the car chase and the final battle at the quarry, and even those were subjected to {{Deconstruction}} of common action movie trappings. ''Never Go Back'' features even more shootouts, fights, car chases, and [[StuffBlowingUp explosions]], the last of which didn't occur in the first movie.
* ''Film/BestOfTheBest'', surprisingly enough. You're probably thinking "How can a martial arts film have an actionized sequel? They're action films by definition." Well, the first film was more dramatic, focusing on a team of American martial artists as they prepare for and compete in a tournament against their Korean counterparts. The second film had one member of that team die in an underground fighting ring with two of his former teammates taking on the gangsters who run it.
* ''Film/PitchPerfect'': The first two films mostly centered on a music competition plot line. While the third film keeps this plot line, it also introduces an element of crime and espionage involving Amy's father, who is revealed to be a crime boss.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
** ''Film/ANewHope'' has a number of big scale special effects but it stays pretty tight on to just a handful of characters, a few dogfights and a tame sword duel, before ending with a fairly big trench run / dogfight climax. The subsequent films ramped up the set pieces, with ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' showing a massive ground battle before the halfway point and ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' having a three-pronged climax with a space battle, ground battle and lightsaber duel all intercutting with each other.
** The prequel trilogy is more action-packed than the original trilogy, with significantly larger scale battles (not that the originals skimped out on those), and more elaborate lightsaber duels. ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' less than five minutes in gets into a fast-paced action sequence where the Jedi avert an assassination attempt and rush to circumvent a planetary invasion. The production value on the effects and stunts are also enhanced. Compare the battle between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi in ''Film/ANewHope'' to their battle in ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' and you'll see a '''HUGE''' difference.
** {{Zigzagged}} in ''Film/TheForceAwakens''. Though the film has a SlowPacedBeginning like ''Film/ANewHope'' and is completely devoid of space battles, at the same time, it also features a handful of frantic land battles, "Starkiller Base", a planet-sized superweapon capable of destroying entire star systems at once, and a harrowing lightsaber duel taking place during a violent planet-wide tremor.
** {{Inverted}} in ''Film/TheLastJedi''. The film is almost entirely devoid of action between its opening sequence and its climactic battle on Crait. Plus, the two aforementioned sequences have smaller visual scales and slower pacing compared to countless other battles seen throughout the franchise.
** {{Exaggerated}} in ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'', as it features breakneck pacing like ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'', more action sequences than both of its two direct predecessors combined, several elaborate lightsaber battles, and countless Xyston-Class Star Destroyers capable of blowing up entire planets with their main weapons.
* Thanks to advances in camera and VFX technologies, plus cooperation from the US Navy, ''Film/TopGunMaverick'' depicts more intense and detailed dogfights than [[Film/TopGun its predecessor]].
* Inverted chronologically speaking with ''Film/{{Orphan}}'' which has less kills in it's entirety than the prequel has in the first twenty minutes.

* ''Franchise/{{Cars}}'': The [[WesternAnimation/Cars1 first movie]] was a FishOutOfWater movie about Lightning growing up and learning to appreciate the people around him in time for a big race. ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars 2}}'' involves him and Mater being mistaken for American spies by British intelligence, leading to chase sequences and plenty of StuffBlowingUp. Averted with ''WesternAnimation/Cars3'', which went back to a tone similar to the first movie and is about Lightning's struggles over being replaced by newer and faster cars on the racetrack.

** As mentioned above, there is a major shift in tone between ''Film/{{Alien}}'', a suspense movie about a creature hidden in the labyrinthine corridors of a space ship, and ''Film/{{Aliens}}'', which [[SendInTheClones sends in the clones]] for all-out war. Though fans argue over which is best, both are acknowledged to be great films in and of themselves.
** {{Inverted}} in ''Film/{{Alien 3}}'', as it only features one Xenomorph throughout its runtime like the first of its two predecessors (together with the fact that the humans have absolutely no weapons with which to shoot the lone Xenomorph runner from a safe distance). To cap it all off, the lone Xenomorph runner doesn't even involve himself much in the overall plot until the climax.

* Similarly, 1984's ''Film/TheTerminator'' was a science-horror film about a nigh-invulnerable killer robot chasing down an everyday woman, with the film's suspense factor resting on the robot's unrelenting dedication to its assassination mission. 1991's ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'', meanwhile, was a science-''action'' film that pitted a good version of the first movie's killer robot against an even more nigh-invulnerable killer robot chasing down the same woman's son. The difference? The film's suspense factor now hinges primarily on the hot-blooded battle between the two killer robots, and Sarah Connor is now an ActionGirl packing military-grade weapons. Just to give an idea of how different the two films are in tone, the first one ends with [[spoiler:the original Terminator surviving ''multiple'' attacks that should've destroyed it before chasing Sarah through an empty factory, eventually being lured into and crushed by a hydraulic press, just barely missing the chance to strangle her.]] The second film, meanwhile, ends with [[spoiler:the T-800 freezing and obliterating the T-1000 in a metalworks building, before bombastically sacrificing himself for the sake of the future by being dramatically lowered into a vat of molten metal, flashing a thumbs-up with a glorious fanfare playing in the background]]. Yeah. ''Terminator 2'' would actually end up setting a precedent for the tone of later films in the ''Terminator'' franchise; unfortunately, those ones would suffer quite heavily from {{sequelitis}}.

* ''Literature/{{Carrie}}'' is an example of this happening with remakes rather than sequels. The [[Film/{{Carrie 1976}} first adaptation]] in 1976 was shot on a budget of just $1.8 million[[note]]Barely $7 million when adjusted for inflation -- chump change for any film, especially before the advent of CGI.[[/note]], meaning that they couldn't film Carrie's rampage as it was described in the book (with her burning down the whole town). As a result, the special effects were limited to just the prom and a handful of other scenes. When the film was remade as a [[Film/{{Carrie 2002}} TV movie]] in 2002, it cranked up the rampage to near-DisasterMovie levels. And [[Film/{{Carrie 2013}} the 2013 version]] followed the same path... only this time, the destruction has an actual budget behind it as opposed to the '02 version's cheap CG. Ditto for the '76 film's sequel, ''Film/TheRageCarrie2'', which greatly [[BloodierAndGorier amped up the bloodshed]] over the original film and featured a number of kills that wouldn't look out of place in a SlasherMovie.

** Also happened in the American version, with ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'' compared to ''Film/{{Godzilla 2014}}''. The previous movie had three kaiju who only truly fought onscreen towards the end (with one scuffle only briefly shown earlier). This movie ups the ante considerably, not only offering multiple Titan battles between the four main kaiju ([[spoiler: three rounds of Godzilla vs. Ghidorah including the climactic battle, Ghidorah vs. Rodan and Mothra vs. Rodan at various stages]]) but having them start considerably earlier in the film's running time.

* ''Film/{{Superman II}}'' is a textbook example as it begins with Superman saving Lois from a terrorist attack, features a few scenes of the evil Kryptonians causing havoc and has a climax involving a huge battle between Superman and the three villains. Contrast with the first film, which had no fight scenes and overall, relatively light action more akin to a disaster movie than the kind of superhero blockbusters it inspired.

* The first two ''Franchise/{{Fallout}}'' games were straight-up turn-based [=RPGs=]. Starting with ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'', the series became either an RPG with heavy FPS elements or an FPS with heavy RPG elements depending on who you ask; either way, it became a lot more action-packed. Then ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 4}}'' [[SerialEscalation became an Actionized Sequel]] ''to the Actionized Sequel'': The combat system has taken several cues from first-person shooters, incorporating dynamic crosshairs, authentic iron sights, V.A.T.S now works like BulletTime rather than turn-based combat, you can now [[PistolWhip quick bash]] with guns, and grenades are now secondary weapons used with a trigger button rather than their own weapon. On top of that, stealth and {{Pacifist Run}}s are no longer really viable; in ''3'' and ''New Vegas'', it was possible to be fairly decent at sneaking at Level 5-ish depending on your build, but ''4'' with it's new perk system means that you need to be Level ''38'' to fully upgrade your sneaking skill. True stealth mastery like from the previous games, where you could avoid being detected by enemies in full close quarters, is no longer even really possible without a ''lot'' of skill magazines. Diplomacy options also became virtually non-existent, whereas you could usually talk your way out of most situations in the previous games.

* ''VideoGame/{{Metro 2033}}'' was a heavily atmospheric and very unforgiving game, where the combat was against mainly small (3-4) groups of mutants who killed you in a couple of hits. Encounters against similar-sized groups of humans were rarer and could often be avoided by stealth. Ammo was very rare as well, (having 100 of ANY kind is a sign of extraordinary luck). ''VideoGame/MetroLastLight'' increases the action dramatically, and balances the amount of time you spend fighting humans and the time you spend fighting mutants. In some missions, you may face as many human enemies as you fought in the entirety of Metro 2033. Combat has been streamlined, with the melee attack now being done with a quick button tap, and health regeneration taking noticeably less time. Gunplay has been improved and tightened immensely. Weapons and ammo are proliferated immensely, and it's possible to modify the guns. The Bastard you get early in the game can easily and comfortably stay with you as your weapon of choice, remaining a viable option even in the endgame, whereas everyone dropped their Bastard for a 74 in 2033 the moment they could.

* Website/YouTube James Bond FanFilm ''Property of A Lady'' contains somewhat greater proportion of action than its direct predecessor ''WebVideo/DiamondsCut'', mainly because it increased length and shed on {{Padding}}.