10 Most Consistent Movie Franchises, Ranked

It is very hard for franchises to retain a consistent level of quality, as most sagas that have a significant grasp on popular culture end up producing at least one disappointing installment. A franchise like Star Wars certainly had highlights like The Empire Strikes Back and The Last Jedi, but it is very hard to call it consistent when films like The Rise of Skywalker and Attack of the Clones also exist. Likewise, The Lord of the Rings would have a very consistent track record if it was not for the disappointing trilogy of The Hobbit films.

Franchises with a solid run of good entries succeed through ingenuity, as they hire interesting filmmakers to take different approaches to the material. While not every single installment is going to be a major blockbuster, it should at least have a respectful approach to the mythology that gives longtime fans of the series something to appreciate. Here are the ten most consistent movie franchises.

10 The Back to the Future Franchise

Number of movies: 3

Back to the Future is a relatively perfect trilogy of films, as Robert Zemeckis was able to maintain creative control over all three installments. While some may argue that Back to the Future: Part III took the series into far too ridiculous territory with its overt allusions to classic Western films, it at least provided a satisfying conclusion to the story arc involving the friendship between Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) and Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd).

It doesn’t seem like there will be another Back to the Future film, as Universal Pictures reportedly turned down Zemeckis’ suggestion of adapting the popular Broadway show Back to the Future: The Musical. Considering that it is one of the rare franchises that ended on a pitch perfect note, it is a good thing that no one is ground to try and mess with perfection.

9 The Man With No Name Franchise

Number of movies: 3

“The Man With No Name trilogy” is the loose title of three Western films starring Clint Eastwood that were directed by Sergio Leone. While A Fistful of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More, and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly can all be enjoyed as standalone adventures, they collectively tell the story of a mysterious drifter who takes down bounty hunters and killers throughout the Civil War era.

Quentin Tarantino praised the series as a personal favorite, claiming that it is one of the rare trilogies in which every single film is equally as good. While Leone eventually returned to the Western genre when he made the epic Once Upon A Time In The West, it starred Charles Bronson and Henry Fonda instead of Eastwood, and did not take place within the same continuity as the other “Dollars” films.

8 The Evil Dead Franchise

Number of movies: 5

Evil Dead is a unique franchise that managed to successfully reboot itself without ever feeling like it had begun to run out of ideas. The original trilogy of films succeeded because Sam Raimi was able to make each installment unique; The Evil Dead was a ruthless exploitation film, Evil Dead II was a madcap horror mashup, and Army of Darkness took the franchise into the past for a medieval adventure.

The recent installments in the Evil Dead franchise have managed to also be interesting, as the 2013 remake from Fede Alvarez was even more violent than the originals, and 2023’s Evil Dead Rise took a look at psychological dread and trauma. While horror sagas like Halloween and Friday the 13th have become entirely derivative of the past, Evil Dead has succeeded in passing the torch to a new generation of directors.

7 The Mad Max Franchise

Number of movies: 5

Mad Max is a franchise that exists because of the brilliance of George Miller, whose uncompromising approach to the post-apocalyptic western series is imaginative in a way that few blockbuster sagas have ever been. The original trilogy of Mad Max films starring Mel Gibson introduced a global audience to the “Australian New Wave,” with Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior often cited as one of the best action movies ever made.

The franchise got a significant boost of energy thanks to Mad Max: Fury Road, which became a massive hit and received many Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. While it was not a financial hit due to the high budget, the prequel Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga was an excellent revenge thriller in which Anya Taylor-Joy proved herself worthy of taking over the role from Charlize Theron.

6 The Scream Franchise

Number of movies: 6

Scream is a film that completely reset the horror landscape, as it offered a self-aware approach to the slasher genre. Maintaining that snarky sensibility may have been challenging, but Wes Craven was able to helm three sequels that dug further into the audience’s relationship with horror media. Scream 2 explored the disappointing nature of sequels, Scream 3 showed the growing commercialization of horror, and Scream 4 examined the possibility of a reboot.

Although Craven is without a doubt one of the best horror directors of all-time, the Scream franchise was able to pull off a successful legacy sequel, as the fifth and sixth installments in the series allowed Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega to join the original cast members. While the upcoming seventh film is the subject of significant controversy, there is still hope that original screenwriter Kevin Williamson has an idea that will reignite interest in the series.

5 The Mission: Impossible Franchise

Number of movies: 7

Mission: Impossible has become a massive success thanks to the star power of Tom Cruise, who risked his life in order to pull off some of the most impressive stunts in the history of the action genre. The films all took unique approached because of their directors; Brian De Palma turned the original Mission: Impossible into a psychological thriller, John Woo added action extremity to Mission: Impossible II, J.J.Abrams brought his television sensibilities to Mission: Impossible III, and Brad Bird injected a playful homage to classic spy shows with Mission: Impossible- Ghost Protocol .

Christopher McQuarrie added a greater scale and sense of serialization with the three Mission: Impossible sequels that he directed, and the upcoming Mission: Impossible- The Final Reckoning is certainly one of the most anticipated films of 2025, as it appears to be the last time Cruise will be playing Ethan Hunt.

4 The John Wick Franchise

Number of movies: 4

John Wick was an unexpected hit that came out of nowhere to change the action genre forever, as it combined elements of East Asian martial arts, 1970s crime thrillers, dark exploitation thrillers, neo-noir mysteries, classic westerns, and comic book worldbuilding into a brilliant saga that featured Keanu Reeves in the role that he was born to play.

Chad Stahelski directed all four John Wick films, and told an interesting story about how John came to cause a splinter within the High Table, which controls the secret society of assassins. While the fourth film ended with John sacrificing himself to restore peace, the upcoming spinoff From The World of John Wick: Ballerina will feature Ana de Armas as a new action hero that exists in the same universe, with Reeves appearing in some scenes that take place before his demise.

3 The Toy Story Franchise

Number of movies: 5

Toy Story is one of the most influential animated films of all-time, as it launched Pixar to be one of the most powerful and successful studios in Hollywood. While Pixar has released some underwhelming sequels like Cars 2 and Finding Dory, the Toy Story sequels were each thoughtful in their own way. In fact, there doesn’t seem to be a consensus regarding which of them is the best, as there are compelling arguments as to why any of them is the most complex and emotionally satisfying.

While it was not a financial hit, the spinoff film Lightyear was a lot better than it was given credit for. There does seem to be genuine anticipation for Toy Story 5, as it is set to be directed by the Pixar legend Andrew Stanton, who is responsible for classics like Finding Nemo and WALL-E.

2 The Planet of the Apes Franchise

Number of movies: 10

Planet of the Apes is a series that has existed for over five decades, as a critical change to the source material ended up creating one of the most complex franchises of all-time. Although they are ostensibly a series of science fiction adventure, the Planet of the Apes films have deeply relevant themes when it comes to race relations, police brutality, political conflict, and environmentalism.

The Planet of the Apes franchise pulled off an amazing reboot trilogy which featured groundbreaking work with computer-generated imagery and motion capture effects, with Andy Serkis considered to be a pioneer within the artistry. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes was a critical and financial success, and it appears that a sequel is in the works that will tie more closely into the events of the original film from 1968 by showing the perspective of both the humans and apes.

1 The James Bond Franchise

Number of movies: 27

James Bond is without a doubt one of the coolest movie characters of all-time, and has successfully managed to be reinvented for different generations. Certain fans of the franchise appreciate different aspects of the character; those who enjoy the sillier side of the series may enjoy the more comical films that starred Roger Moore, whereas those that appreciate the darker sensibilities of Ian Fleming’s original source material likely found more to love in the more recent installments that starred Daniel Craig.

Each actor who has played Bond has a unique stamp on the character, and the franchise has produced some genuine classics, such as Goldfinger, From Russia With Love, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Casino Royale, and Skyfall. Although it is unclear who will be playing 007 next, it remains exciting to see which direction this beloved franchise chooses to go next.

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