Starting a series is almost like starting a relationship — it’s a big commitment. But when you’ve found the best movie series, you know it. If you’re looking for both quality and quantity in your next movie night, we have the best list for you to make choices from. There are numerous reasons committing to film franchises is a better idea than watching a bunch of one-off movies.
Here is our list of movie series to binge watch
1. Mission: Impossible
With a total of 6 films in the franchise, and a box office total of over $4 billion beginning in 1996, the Mission Impossible movie series feature an American spy who works for a fictional espionage agency known as the Impossible Missions Force (IMF)
The movies show an insane amount of death defying stunts, car chases, gun fights and generally a lot of action. Starring Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt. What makes this show so unique ? It is its storyline, its characters, its visual style and its music : a real trade mark.
The franchise is an impeccable and Machiavellian series of films. All details are planned in advance to create fast paced and action packed scenes
2. Lord of the Rings
Total of 3 adventure fantasy film series based on a novel of the same name written by J.R.R Tolkien. The films are titled The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002), and The Return of the King (2003). Amassing $2.991 billion in worldwide receipts while being regarded as one of the greatest and most influential film series ever made. “The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the Earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it….”
Set in middle earth, a story of a young hobbit, Frodo, who has found the One Ring that belongs to the Dark Lord Sauron, begins his journey with eight companions to Mount Doom, the only place where it can be destroyed. Everything about this film trilogy is seemingly perfect; the characters, the musical scores, the story, the locations, the styles of the clothing, the weapons, the magic, everything is so compelling and so captivating.
3. Pirates of the Caribbean
With a total of 5 films and grossing $4.5 billion worldwide, making it the 14th-highest-grossing film series of all time. The film series started in 2003 and was met with a great reception and was a huge success, Walt Disney Pictures revealed that a film series was in the works.
Starring Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow. The series is regarded for its top acting, extremely believable and advanced CGI. However, the plots of the four sequels have received mixed reviews, with the general consensus that they are too bloated and convoluted to follow.
4. Fast and Furious
A fast action film franchise centered around illegal street racing, heists, spies and betrayal. The film series started in 2001 with the 9th movie in the series F9 made in 2021. The movie franchise became massively successful, being Universal’s biggest franchise with a combined gross of over $6 billion
5. How to train your Dragon
This franchise from Dreamworks animation consists of three feature films and two short films with the first movie in the series starting in 2010. The franchise grossing a total of almost $2 billion.
The plot revolves around Hiccup who is a Norse teenager from the island of Berk, where fighting dragons which is their way of life. His progressive views and weird sense of humor make him a misfit, despite the fact that his father is chief of the clan. Tossed into dragon-fighting school, he endeavors to prove himself as a true Viking, but when he befriends an injured dragon he names Toothless, he has the chance to plot a new course for his people’s future.
The story is well-paced and well-executed, with some decent dialogue and nice character chemistry. It’s more than just a kid and a pet story, it’s a coming-of-age story of an adolescent boy trying to find himself and finally be welcomed into adulthood. The emotional rollercoaster ride the main character takes, grabs the audience in a completely different way.
6. Kung Fu panda
Kung Fu panda is a movie franchise from Dreamworks Animation. Having a total of 3 films, 3 short films and a tv series for the Nickelodeon TV network. With the first film starting starting in 2008. The plot is set in a version of ancient China populated by anthropomorphic animals and revolves around a bumbling panda named Po, a kung fu enthusiast and follows his journey full of action and adventure.
The film has some awe inspiring visuals which are wonderful to look at and amazing score. The movie series also has a strong cast of characters, including a lovably optimistic main character named Po, his likable father, his mentor Shi Fu, as well as several others. As a comedy, this movie definitely delivers, with clever humor, but also a lot of drama vividly executed.
It’s also a great action movie, as all of the anthropomorphized animal characters each have specific styles of fighting the use in the film that are appropriate for his or her species, giving the film some credibility for effort. The story itself may have been done before, but it works every well in the universe this film is set in, and feels very natural for the characters involved in the plot.
7. Die Hard
Die Hard is an American action movie series that consists of five films in total . The films have grossed a combined $1.4 billion worldwide. First film was released in 1988. Plot revolves around a police detective who continuously finds himself in the middle of a crisis where he has to save himself from. The films are fast paced featuring a lot of action, shooting scenes and car chases.
The movies have some of the best stories ever put on an action film and you are constantly on the edge of your seat, fearing for the hero’s survival. It also has a great cast, as Bruce Willis gives a magnificent performance as John McClane and you root for him for the entire film.
8. Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a film series based on a novel of the same title written by J.K Rowling. The series was mainly produced by David Heyman, and stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson as the three leading characters: Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger. The film consists of 8 fantasy films grossing a whooping $7.7 billion with a total budget of $1.2 billion. First film was released in 2001 and the last in 2011.
The plot revolves around Harry Potter who is an orphaned boy brought up by his unkind Muggle (non-magical) aunt and uncle. At the age of eleven, half-giant Rubeus Hagrid informs him that he is actually a wizard and that his parents were murdered by an evil wizard named Lord Voldemort. The film series follows him on his magical adventure with his friends as they try to survive the different dangers they constantly face.
It has been said severally that the Harry Potter books are among some of the most well-developed, thoroughly planned, terrifically intriguing, thought-provoking and meaningful books most people have ever read and those same qualities have been able to be perfectly transferred into the film series.
9. Ice Age
Ice Age is a film series centered on a group of mammals surviving the Paleolithic ice age. A total of 5 films has been released thus far, the first movie was released in 2002. And as of April 2016, the franchise had generated $6 billion in revenue, making it one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time.
The film series is a really good comedy but what makes them stand out from other comedies is it has some really sad and serious moments. It can sometimes be dramatic or intense as well. Moments that could make you feel cry or really care about these characters. Also, the camaraderie and character development of each character has been done so well and they are easily relatable.
10.Toy Story
The very first fully Computer Generated animated movie released by Disney and Pixar. Toy Story consists of 4 main CGI animated films with the first being released in 1995. Produced on a total budget of $520 million, the Toy Story films have grossed more than $3 billion worldwide, becoming the 20th-highest-grossing franchise worldwide and the fourth-highest-grossing animated franchise.
The franchise is based on the anthropomorphic concept that all toys, unknown to humans, are secretly alive and the films focus on a diverse group of toys that feature a classic cowboy doll named Sheriff Woody and a modern spaceman action figure named Buzz Lightyear, principally voiced by Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. The group unexpectedly embark on adventures that challenge and change them.