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** VERY averted with ''[[Film/TerminatorSalvation Salvation]]'', ''Geny''.. ''Gine''... [[Film/TerminatorGenisys the fifth one]], '''and''' ''[[Film/TerminatorDarkFate Dark Fate]]'', each of which was supposed to be the beginning of a second trilogy. However, none of them made quite enough money at the box office for those trilogies to materialize.
to:
** VERY averted with ''[[Film/TerminatorSalvation Salvation]]'', ''Geny''.. ''Gine''... [[Film/TerminatorGenisys the fifth one]], ''[[Film/TerminatorGenisys Genisys]]'', '''and''' ''[[Film/TerminatorDarkFate Dark Fate]]'', each of which was supposed to be the beginning of a second trilogy. However, none of them made quite enough money at the box office for those trilogies to materialize.
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* For a while, ''Film/DoctorInClover'' was thought to be the final in the ''Film/DoctorSeries'', to the point where it was a surprise for Creator/LesliePhillips when he was asked to return for ''Film/DoctorInTrouble'' four years later.
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** Creator/SigourneyWeaver came back for ''Film/Alien3'' only on the condition that Ripley be killed so that she wouldn't be asked to make any more ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies. A few years later, she changed her mind.
to:
** Creator/SigourneyWeaver came back for ''Film/Alien3'' only on the condition that Ripley be killed so that she wouldn't be asked to make any more ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies. [[Film/AlienResurrection A few years later, later]], she changed her mind.
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* ''Film/FreddysDeadTheFinalNightmare'' was intended to be the final ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'' film, with Freddy seemingly be killed off for good.
to:
* ''Film/FreddysDeadTheFinalNightmare'' was intended to be the final ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'' film, with Freddy seemingly be being killed off for good.good. While the [[Film/WesCravensNewNightmare next film]] was a more meta spinoff, there would be [[Film/FreddyVsJason one more proper sequel]] before a [[Film/ANightmareOnElmStreet2010 remake]].
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* ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon'' was going to be the last ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' movie, as it ended with [[spoiler:Cybertron being destroyed and all of the Decepticons killed off]]. The film was obviously a box-office hit, so the series was {{Retool}}ed with ''[[Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction Age of Extinction]]''.
to:
* ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon'' was going to be the last ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' ''Film/{{Transformers|FilmSeries}}'' movie, as it ended with [[spoiler:Cybertron being destroyed and all of the Decepticons killed off]]. The film was obviously a box-office hit, so the series was {{Retool}}ed with ''[[Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction Age of Extinction]]''.
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** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe thrown into his skull in the movie’s climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survived.
to:
** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe thrown into his skull in the movie’s movie's climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survived.
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* ''Film/FreddysDeadTheFinalNightmare'' was intended to be the final ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet', with Freddy seemingly be killed off for good.
to:
* ''Film/FreddysDeadTheFinalNightmare'' was intended to be the final ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet', ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'' film, with Freddy seemingly be killed off for good.
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* ''Film/FreddysDeadTheFinalNightmare'' was intended to be the final ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet', with Freddy seemingly be killed off for good.
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** ''[[Film/HalloweenH20TwentyYearsLater Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later]]'' was very clearly meant to be the definitive final film in the series. Then ''Film/HalloweenResurrection'' came along, retconning the ending of ''H20'' into a DownerEnding to set the stage for another sequel, which failed to revitalize the franchise anyway. The series then [[Film/{{Halloween 2007}} got rebooted]] to a new continuity with Music/RobZombie at the helm. And then another film, ''Film/Halloween2018'', retcons everything but the original.
to:
** ''[[Film/HalloweenH20TwentyYearsLater Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later]]'' ''Film/HalloweenH20TwentyYearsLater'' was very clearly meant to be the definitive final film in the series. Then ''Film/HalloweenResurrection'' came along, retconning the ending of ''H20'' into a DownerEnding to set the stage for another sequel, which failed to revitalize the franchise anyway. The series then [[Film/{{Halloween 2007}} got rebooted]] to a new continuity with Music/RobZombie at the helm. And then another film, ''Film/Halloween2018'', retcons everything but the original.
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* ''Film/Furious7'' was built up to be the GrandFinale of ''Film/TheFastAndTheFurious'' series, even going as far as to give a fitting sendoff to Creator/PaulWalker, who tragically died in a car accident prior to the movie's release. However, Creator/VinDiesel signed up for three more installments.
to:
* ''Film/Furious7'' was built up to be the GrandFinale of ''Film/TheFastAndTheFurious'' series, even going as far as to give a fitting sendoff to Creator/PaulWalker, who tragically died in a car accident prior to the movie's release. However, Creator/VinDiesel signed up for three more installments.[[Film/TheFateOfTheFurious three]] [[Film/{{F9}} more]] [[Film/FastX installments]].
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** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe thrown into his skull in the movie’s climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survived
to:
** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe thrown into his skull in the movie’s climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survivedsurvived.
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None
Changed line(s) 10 (click to see context) from:
** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe throw into his skull in the movies climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survived
to:
** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe throw thrown into his skull in the movies movie’s climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survived
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* ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' has no less than ''four'' films that was meant to be the final one:
to:
* ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' has no less than ''four'' films that was were meant to be the final one:
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SeriesFauxnale in {{Film}}s.
----
* ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'':
** ''Film/{{Aliens}}'' ends with the only known xenomorphs in the ''entire universe'' being turned into a cloud of vapor the size of Nebraska in a thermonuclear explosion. Yes, it was a good bet that other eggs existed ''somewhere'' out there, but the chances we'd run across them by accident was literally astronomical. Of course, the writers found another way...
** Creator/SigourneyWeaver came back for ''Film/Alien3'' only on the condition that Ripley be killed so that she wouldn't be asked to make any more ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies. A few years later, she changed her mind.
* ''Film/BeneathThePlanetOfTheApes'' was originally meant to be the final entry in ''Franchise/PlanetOfTheApes'' franchise, [[spoiler: which is why it ends with Earth being blown up by a nuclear weapon]]. However, the producers wanted to squeeze more money out of what had become a CashCowFranchise, and decided to continue the series by [[spoiler:using TimeTravel to [[Film/EscapeFromThePlanetOfTheApes take the surviving protagonists back to the period in history just before the apes took over]]]].
* ''Film/TheBourneUltimatum'' ended with Jason Bourne helping blow the whistle on [[NoSuchAgency Treadstone and its successor agency Blackbriar]]. The franchise was subsequently followed by two more movies, ''Film/TheBourneLegacy'' (a spin-off that gave this film a HappyEndingOverride), and a direct sequel, ''Film/JasonBourne''.
* ''[[Film/FinalDestination4 The Final Destination]]'', the fourth film in the ''Film/FinalDestination'' series, was meant to close out the franchise for good (hence the '''''The''''' in the title) and offered a (controversial) reason for Death to allow the premonitions to happen. It promptly became the highest-grossing film in the series and was followed by ''Film/FinalDestination5''. [[spoiler:Subverted in a way, in that the twist ending reveals ''Final Destination 5'' is actually a prequel, thus leaving ''The Final Destination'' as the finale chronologically.]]
* ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' has no less than ''four'' films that was meant to be the final one:
** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe throw into his skull in the movies climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survived
** ''Film/FridayThe13thTheFinalChapter'' was indeed meant to be one, but... [[Film/FridayThe13thPartVANewBeginning wasn't]].
** Also [[Film/FridayThe13thPartVIIIJasonTakesManhattan the eighth movie]] [[spoiler:where Jason is turned back into a little boy]].
** Also, ''Film/JasonGoesToHellTheFinalFriday'', which was the ''ninth'' movie in the franchise. It was followed by [[Film/JasonX two]] [[Film/FreddyVsJason more]] Jason films, and [[Film/FridayThe13th2009 a remake]] of the original.
* ''Film/Furious7'' was built up to be the GrandFinale of ''Film/TheFastAndTheFurious'' series, even going as far as to give a fitting sendoff to Creator/PaulWalker, who tragically died in a car accident prior to the movie's release. However, Creator/VinDiesel signed up for three more installments.
* ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'':
** ''Film/DestroyAllMonsters'' was going to be the last ''Godzilla'' film, as it takes place in the future, the Big Bad is killed, and they all live happily ever after. But it wasn't.
** It would be attempted again with ''Film/GodzillaVsDestoroyah'', where everything comes full circle with the birth of a monster from the very thing that killed the original Godzilla to [[spoiler:the death of the then current Godzilla]]. After ''Film/Godzilla1998'', however, Toho decided to show everyone how it's done by making more Godzilla movies, coming to a head with ''Film/GodzillaFinalWars''.
** And even ''Godzilla: Final Wars'' wasn't the true end to the franchise! After the success of [[Film/Godzilla2014 the 2014 American remake]], Toho decided to bring the series out of retirement and released ''Film/ShinGodzilla'' two years later.
* ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'':
** ''Film/HalloweenII1981'' was originally supposed to conclude the [[Film/{{Halloween 1978}} the original film's]] story (which itself wasn't supposed to have a sequel), and [[Film/HalloweenIIISeasonOfTheWitch the third film]] had a brand new story. Instead, [[Film/Halloween4TheReturnOfMichaelMyers the fourth film]] brought back Michael Myers for good.
** ''[[Film/HalloweenH20TwentyYearsLater Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later]]'' was very clearly meant to be the definitive final film in the series. Then ''Film/HalloweenResurrection'' came along, retconning the ending of ''H20'' into a DownerEnding to set the stage for another sequel, which failed to revitalize the franchise anyway. The series then [[Film/{{Halloween 2007}} got rebooted]] to a new continuity with Music/RobZombie at the helm. And then another film, ''Film/Halloween2018'', retcons everything but the original.
* ''Film/JamesBond'': ''Film/{{Spectre}}'' ends in a way that it simultaneously wraps up Craig-Bond's story, while also having a note of AndTheAdventureContinues. Creator/DanielCraig was contracted to appear in one more film but struck a deal with the studios; of course [[WillReturnCaption "James Bond Will Return"]], but for a time it was touch-and-go on whether or not Craig would be back. He finally confirmed he would be reprising the role for one final outing, ''Film/NoTimeToDie''.
* When ''A Madea Family Funeral'' was released in 2019, Creator/TylerPerry said that it would be the last outing of the Madea character. However, a few years later, he worked out a deal with Netflix for a new film, ''A Madea Homecoming'', which furthermore was meant as [[PoorlyDisguisedPilot a backdoor pilot]] for a prequel TV series made with Showtime.
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
** ''Film/IronMan3'' was made so that it could serve as a conclusion to the ComicBook/IronMan character just in case Creator/RobertDowneyJr did not want to reprise the role in future MCU films (as it was the final movie on his original contract with Marvel), which is presumably why it ended with Tony destroying all of his Iron Man suits and promising to devote himself to his girlfriend Pepper. While Downey would go on to play the character for another 6 years until ''Film/AvengersEndgame'', no other solo ''Iron Man'' movies were ever produced.
** ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' could’ve been the GrandFinale of the Marvel Cinematic Universe because it concludes a story arc that has been going for 10 years but is simply the end of the Infinity Saga and the story that began in ''Film/IronMan1'', not the total end of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The point is driven home because it was one of the only MCU films not to have a [[TheStinger post-credits scene]]. ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'', which served as an epilogue to the Infinity Saga, teased more to come.
* ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' :
** ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd'' was advertised in multiple media as ''The Final Chapter of the Epic Trilogy'' since it was supposed to be the end of the series. Despite that, there have been two more movies and one more coming in the way (although they follow a different story that is slightly connected to the first three).
** In a similar way ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanDeadMenTellNoTales'' was announced as ''The Final Adventure Begins'' which make fans wonder if this was supposed to be the final movie or just the beginning of the final adventure (which could be from 2 or 3 movies). The movie itself can work as a conclusion with [[spoiler:Will and Elizabeth finally ending up together and Jack Sparrow sailing in the Black Pearl to the horizon in a similar way to the first movie finale]] until we get to TheStinger where [[spoiler:it turns out Davy Jones has revived and tries to kill Will and Elizabeth]].
* ''Film/SawIII'' was clearly intended to finish the ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'' series since it wraps up everything pretty nicely. There was even a box set released of the "Saw Trilogy". A few {{Sequel Hook}}s were added (Jigsaw's brief flashback, as well as the wax-covered tape and Amanda's letter) so that the series could continue. And then ''Film/Saw3D'' aka ''Saw: the Final Chapter'' was meant to be the last before ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}'' was announced.
* ''Film/StarTrekIITheWrathOfKhan'' was supposed to be the GrandFinale for ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' and the ''Franchise/StarTrek'' franchise itself, since the TV spin-offs didn't exist at the time. A lot of this came down to the TroubledProduction and lukewarm reception to ''Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture'', leaving Paramount with feelings that that the franchise was at an end, but wanting to recoup something of the bloated budget of ''[=TMP=]''. Further, it was known that Creator/LeonardNimoy had cooled to playing Spock any more [[note]][[CommonKnowledge contrary to popular belief]], this was NOT because he [[IAmNotSpock hated the character]], but because he wanted new challenges and desired to escape typecasting -- he was also not happy with how Paramount and Creator/GeneRoddenberry seemed indifferent to his likeness as Spock being used without his permission in advertising, including a Heineken beer ad that really got under his skin[[/note]], and with no Spock, there really was no ''Star Trek'' as he was the show's BreakoutCharacter. But a couple of funny things happened on the way to shutting the franchise down -- first, general audience reaction to test screenings was overwhelmingly positive, leading executives to think they could have a hit on their hands. Further, Creator/LeonardNimoy was having second thoughts about completely parting ways with ''Star Trek''.[[note]]Nimoy recounts a humorous exchange with then-Paramount head Michael Eisner in his book ''I Am Spock'' over this point. When he asked about directing the upcoming ''Film/StarTrekIIITheSearchForSpock'', Eisner expressed doubts because he had heard Nimoy had it written into his contract for ''Khan'' that he wouldn't return ever again to the character or ''Trek''. Nimoy challenged Eisner to go down to the records department of the very building the two were in (where his contract was) to see that there was no such clause.[[/note]] Because of this, and fan despondency surrounding the scene of Spock's death, which was much more final in the original test cut, [[SequelHook a scene was shot with Spock putting his katra into McCoy's mind]] in case Nimoy wanted to return for any sequels.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'': ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' was intended to be the last movie made, while chronologically ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' was meant to be the GrandFinale. However, in 2012, Creator/{{Disney}} brought the rights to Creator/{{Lucasfilm}} and decided to develop the Sequel Trilogy, with ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' being the true finale of the saga (though Disney will still be making movies after the release of Episode IX, no future movies will officially be part of the Skywalker Saga).
* ''Franchise/{{Terminator}}'':
** The original alternate ending of ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' showed the now aged Sarah and the grown up John playing with his child at the park.
** VERY averted with ''[[Film/TerminatorSalvation Salvation]]'', ''Geny''.. ''Gine''... [[Film/TerminatorGenisys the fifth one]], '''and''' ''[[Film/TerminatorDarkFate Dark Fate]]'', each of which was supposed to be the beginning of a second trilogy. However, none of them made quite enough money at the box office for those trilogies to materialize.
* ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon'' was going to be the last ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' movie, as it ended with [[spoiler:Cybertron being destroyed and all of the Decepticons killed off]]. The film was obviously a box-office hit, so the series was {{Retool}}ed with ''[[Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction Age of Extinction]]''.
----
* ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'':
** ''Film/{{Aliens}}'' ends with the only known xenomorphs in the ''entire universe'' being turned into a cloud of vapor the size of Nebraska in a thermonuclear explosion. Yes, it was a good bet that other eggs existed ''somewhere'' out there, but the chances we'd run across them by accident was literally astronomical. Of course, the writers found another way...
** Creator/SigourneyWeaver came back for ''Film/Alien3'' only on the condition that Ripley be killed so that she wouldn't be asked to make any more ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies. A few years later, she changed her mind.
* ''Film/BeneathThePlanetOfTheApes'' was originally meant to be the final entry in ''Franchise/PlanetOfTheApes'' franchise, [[spoiler: which is why it ends with Earth being blown up by a nuclear weapon]]. However, the producers wanted to squeeze more money out of what had become a CashCowFranchise, and decided to continue the series by [[spoiler:using TimeTravel to [[Film/EscapeFromThePlanetOfTheApes take the surviving protagonists back to the period in history just before the apes took over]]]].
* ''Film/TheBourneUltimatum'' ended with Jason Bourne helping blow the whistle on [[NoSuchAgency Treadstone and its successor agency Blackbriar]]. The franchise was subsequently followed by two more movies, ''Film/TheBourneLegacy'' (a spin-off that gave this film a HappyEndingOverride), and a direct sequel, ''Film/JasonBourne''.
* ''[[Film/FinalDestination4 The Final Destination]]'', the fourth film in the ''Film/FinalDestination'' series, was meant to close out the franchise for good (hence the '''''The''''' in the title) and offered a (controversial) reason for Death to allow the premonitions to happen. It promptly became the highest-grossing film in the series and was followed by ''Film/FinalDestination5''. [[spoiler:Subverted in a way, in that the twist ending reveals ''Final Destination 5'' is actually a prequel, thus leaving ''The Final Destination'' as the finale chronologically.]]
* ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' has no less than ''four'' films that was meant to be the final one:
** ''Film/FridayThe13thPartIII'' was originally meant to be the final installment, ending the series as a trilogy. This explains why Jason had an axe throw into his skull in the movies climax; he was meant to be KilledOffForReal here. But true to his MadeOfIron self, the next film (which was also meant to be the final one, as described below) reveals that he survived
** ''Film/FridayThe13thTheFinalChapter'' was indeed meant to be one, but... [[Film/FridayThe13thPartVANewBeginning wasn't]].
** Also [[Film/FridayThe13thPartVIIIJasonTakesManhattan the eighth movie]] [[spoiler:where Jason is turned back into a little boy]].
** Also, ''Film/JasonGoesToHellTheFinalFriday'', which was the ''ninth'' movie in the franchise. It was followed by [[Film/JasonX two]] [[Film/FreddyVsJason more]] Jason films, and [[Film/FridayThe13th2009 a remake]] of the original.
* ''Film/Furious7'' was built up to be the GrandFinale of ''Film/TheFastAndTheFurious'' series, even going as far as to give a fitting sendoff to Creator/PaulWalker, who tragically died in a car accident prior to the movie's release. However, Creator/VinDiesel signed up for three more installments.
* ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'':
** ''Film/DestroyAllMonsters'' was going to be the last ''Godzilla'' film, as it takes place in the future, the Big Bad is killed, and they all live happily ever after. But it wasn't.
** It would be attempted again with ''Film/GodzillaVsDestoroyah'', where everything comes full circle with the birth of a monster from the very thing that killed the original Godzilla to [[spoiler:the death of the then current Godzilla]]. After ''Film/Godzilla1998'', however, Toho decided to show everyone how it's done by making more Godzilla movies, coming to a head with ''Film/GodzillaFinalWars''.
** And even ''Godzilla: Final Wars'' wasn't the true end to the franchise! After the success of [[Film/Godzilla2014 the 2014 American remake]], Toho decided to bring the series out of retirement and released ''Film/ShinGodzilla'' two years later.
* ''Franchise/{{Halloween}}'':
** ''Film/HalloweenII1981'' was originally supposed to conclude the [[Film/{{Halloween 1978}} the original film's]] story (which itself wasn't supposed to have a sequel), and [[Film/HalloweenIIISeasonOfTheWitch the third film]] had a brand new story. Instead, [[Film/Halloween4TheReturnOfMichaelMyers the fourth film]] brought back Michael Myers for good.
** ''[[Film/HalloweenH20TwentyYearsLater Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later]]'' was very clearly meant to be the definitive final film in the series. Then ''Film/HalloweenResurrection'' came along, retconning the ending of ''H20'' into a DownerEnding to set the stage for another sequel, which failed to revitalize the franchise anyway. The series then [[Film/{{Halloween 2007}} got rebooted]] to a new continuity with Music/RobZombie at the helm. And then another film, ''Film/Halloween2018'', retcons everything but the original.
* ''Film/JamesBond'': ''Film/{{Spectre}}'' ends in a way that it simultaneously wraps up Craig-Bond's story, while also having a note of AndTheAdventureContinues. Creator/DanielCraig was contracted to appear in one more film but struck a deal with the studios; of course [[WillReturnCaption "James Bond Will Return"]], but for a time it was touch-and-go on whether or not Craig would be back. He finally confirmed he would be reprising the role for one final outing, ''Film/NoTimeToDie''.
* When ''A Madea Family Funeral'' was released in 2019, Creator/TylerPerry said that it would be the last outing of the Madea character. However, a few years later, he worked out a deal with Netflix for a new film, ''A Madea Homecoming'', which furthermore was meant as [[PoorlyDisguisedPilot a backdoor pilot]] for a prequel TV series made with Showtime.
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
** ''Film/IronMan3'' was made so that it could serve as a conclusion to the ComicBook/IronMan character just in case Creator/RobertDowneyJr did not want to reprise the role in future MCU films (as it was the final movie on his original contract with Marvel), which is presumably why it ended with Tony destroying all of his Iron Man suits and promising to devote himself to his girlfriend Pepper. While Downey would go on to play the character for another 6 years until ''Film/AvengersEndgame'', no other solo ''Iron Man'' movies were ever produced.
** ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' could’ve been the GrandFinale of the Marvel Cinematic Universe because it concludes a story arc that has been going for 10 years but is simply the end of the Infinity Saga and the story that began in ''Film/IronMan1'', not the total end of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The point is driven home because it was one of the only MCU films not to have a [[TheStinger post-credits scene]]. ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'', which served as an epilogue to the Infinity Saga, teased more to come.
* ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' :
** ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd'' was advertised in multiple media as ''The Final Chapter of the Epic Trilogy'' since it was supposed to be the end of the series. Despite that, there have been two more movies and one more coming in the way (although they follow a different story that is slightly connected to the first three).
** In a similar way ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanDeadMenTellNoTales'' was announced as ''The Final Adventure Begins'' which make fans wonder if this was supposed to be the final movie or just the beginning of the final adventure (which could be from 2 or 3 movies). The movie itself can work as a conclusion with [[spoiler:Will and Elizabeth finally ending up together and Jack Sparrow sailing in the Black Pearl to the horizon in a similar way to the first movie finale]] until we get to TheStinger where [[spoiler:it turns out Davy Jones has revived and tries to kill Will and Elizabeth]].
* ''Film/SawIII'' was clearly intended to finish the ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'' series since it wraps up everything pretty nicely. There was even a box set released of the "Saw Trilogy". A few {{Sequel Hook}}s were added (Jigsaw's brief flashback, as well as the wax-covered tape and Amanda's letter) so that the series could continue. And then ''Film/Saw3D'' aka ''Saw: the Final Chapter'' was meant to be the last before ''Film/{{Jigsaw}}'' was announced.
* ''Film/StarTrekIITheWrathOfKhan'' was supposed to be the GrandFinale for ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' and the ''Franchise/StarTrek'' franchise itself, since the TV spin-offs didn't exist at the time. A lot of this came down to the TroubledProduction and lukewarm reception to ''Film/StarTrekTheMotionPicture'', leaving Paramount with feelings that that the franchise was at an end, but wanting to recoup something of the bloated budget of ''[=TMP=]''. Further, it was known that Creator/LeonardNimoy had cooled to playing Spock any more [[note]][[CommonKnowledge contrary to popular belief]], this was NOT because he [[IAmNotSpock hated the character]], but because he wanted new challenges and desired to escape typecasting -- he was also not happy with how Paramount and Creator/GeneRoddenberry seemed indifferent to his likeness as Spock being used without his permission in advertising, including a Heineken beer ad that really got under his skin[[/note]], and with no Spock, there really was no ''Star Trek'' as he was the show's BreakoutCharacter. But a couple of funny things happened on the way to shutting the franchise down -- first, general audience reaction to test screenings was overwhelmingly positive, leading executives to think they could have a hit on their hands. Further, Creator/LeonardNimoy was having second thoughts about completely parting ways with ''Star Trek''.[[note]]Nimoy recounts a humorous exchange with then-Paramount head Michael Eisner in his book ''I Am Spock'' over this point. When he asked about directing the upcoming ''Film/StarTrekIIITheSearchForSpock'', Eisner expressed doubts because he had heard Nimoy had it written into his contract for ''Khan'' that he wouldn't return ever again to the character or ''Trek''. Nimoy challenged Eisner to go down to the records department of the very building the two were in (where his contract was) to see that there was no such clause.[[/note]] Because of this, and fan despondency surrounding the scene of Spock's death, which was much more final in the original test cut, [[SequelHook a scene was shot with Spock putting his katra into McCoy's mind]] in case Nimoy wanted to return for any sequels.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'': ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' was intended to be the last movie made, while chronologically ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' was meant to be the GrandFinale. However, in 2012, Creator/{{Disney}} brought the rights to Creator/{{Lucasfilm}} and decided to develop the Sequel Trilogy, with ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' being the true finale of the saga (though Disney will still be making movies after the release of Episode IX, no future movies will officially be part of the Skywalker Saga).
* ''Franchise/{{Terminator}}'':
** The original alternate ending of ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' showed the now aged Sarah and the grown up John playing with his child at the park.
** VERY averted with ''[[Film/TerminatorSalvation Salvation]]'', ''Geny''.. ''Gine''... [[Film/TerminatorGenisys the fifth one]], '''and''' ''[[Film/TerminatorDarkFate Dark Fate]]'', each of which was supposed to be the beginning of a second trilogy. However, none of them made quite enough money at the box office for those trilogies to materialize.
* ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon'' was going to be the last ''[[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Transformers]]'' movie, as it ended with [[spoiler:Cybertron being destroyed and all of the Decepticons killed off]]. The film was obviously a box-office hit, so the series was {{Retool}}ed with ''[[Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction Age of Extinction]]''.
