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Some movies havebenefitted greatly from a change in directorsin the middle of their franchise . theater director are the exhaust heart of any movie . take together every element that goes into the production and align the teams to create a meaningful merchandise . And when the director is on a roll with a franchise , it makes good sense to stay with them to the end .
However , there have been franchises that struggled to get off to a good start , started to peter out , or just need a fresh dyad of eyes to take it to the next level . Forfranchises likeHarry Potter , with its third entry , andStar Warswith both the fifth and eighth films , interchange the director for a new entry result in a far stronger sequel than the preceding films . switch music director is a bold strategyand often leads to a weaker and less coherent project , but in the cases outlined here , it made the overall franchise stronger .
10Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (2004)
Alfonso Cuarón
The first twoHarry Potterfilms were directed by Chris Columbus . Both entries were undeniably strong , as evidenced by the fact that they launch one of the most successful young grownup franchise to ever seem in cinema , and kept fans of the books interested , while still drawing in raw consultation . However , the popularity and critical reception to the third movie far outshone that of the earlier ledger entry . Cuarón managed to add to the magical humanity , bring out the emotions of young gifted thespian still honing their craft , and produce something special withHarry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban .
9Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Taika Waititi
Taika Waititi can be a controversial characterin Hollywood , but what he managed to deliver inThor : Ragnarokis nothing short of brilliant . For a part of the MCU that felt up detached with its first motion picture , and musing , darker , and all - around worse inThor : The Dark World , Waititi gave the enfranchisement new life . The first two entries were directed by Kenneth Branagh , and then Alan Taylor , but neither was able to commit off the sluttish chemical element andbalance the fictional character the way that Waititi didinRagnarok .
Related : Thor 5 : Chris Hemsworth Already Named The Perfect Replacement For Taika Waititi
8Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)
Christopher McQuarrie
Christopher McQuarrie start up work on theMission : Impossiblefranchise with the quaternary entrance , Ghost Protocolas a screenwriter . Subsequently , he lead on to directMission : Impossible - Rogue Nation , and has been employed as thewriter and director on every flick since . BothGhost Protocoland the subsequent films managed to turn a franchise that was passably well - care into something salient , and McQuarrie ’s share to that shimmy can not be overstated . From elevating the stunts , to flesh out the character , theMission Impossiblemovies have gone from strength to strength with his direction .
7Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes (2014)
Matt Reeves
boost of the Planet of the Apesrevived thePlanet of the Apesfranchise and provided a solid prequel story to the big narrative . That being said , whenMatt Reeves read over theApesfranchisefrom Rupert Wyatt , the series ill-use up to the next level . The action and the post of the story feel higher , with a greater focus on the news report of the apes as they establish their new world . Reeves was kept on to direct the next sequel , War of the Planet of the Apeswhich do likewise , outshine the earlier entry and expanding the franchise for next project .
6Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Joe & Anthony Russo
The Russo sidekick joined the MCU ab initio to directCaptain America : The Winter Soldier . They managed to raise the continuation to new heights and construct on the early winner before conk on to direct the first major crossover celluloid outside anAvengersmovie , Captain America : Civil War , which was wide successful . Having essay their ability toexecute ensemble films to a high level of succeeder , they were given the reigns for the crowning events of the MCU , Avengers : Infinity War , andAvengers : Endgame .
The grade of precision and ability to give the huge cast meaningful moments was outstanding . get by to well overhaul the earlierAvengersfilms in every fashion , from critical response to box post figures and beyond , theRusso ’s drive home multiple brilliant entriestoconclude the Infinity Saga . However , it is potential they did their Book of Job too well , lead in the following films struggling to regain the degree of success the MCU previously delight .
Related : What Happened To The Russo Bros ? Why They ’ve Struggled After Avengers Endgame
5Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan (1982)
Nicholas Meyer
While the first film , Star Trek : The Motion Picture , contend to translate the series into a meaningful and worthwhile feature - length film , the 2nd accounting entry point by Nicholas Meyer still manages to earn the top situation in many rankings of the dealership to this solar day ( viaEmpire).The Wrath of Khanmay not have enjoyed monumental commercial-grade succeeder at the box office , but sports fan and critics alike frequentlyrecognize this movie as the best of the entire serial publication . With a superimposed villain and a floor that is capture from start to finish , Wrath of Khanis a masterstroke forStar Trek .
4The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
Paul Greengrass
The Bourne Identityintroduced the human beings to a compelling spy news report star Matt Damon as the titular Jason Bourne . While Doug Liman was the director for the first entranceway , he was put back by Paul Greengrass for the 2d , The Bourne Supremacy , and Greengrass hit his stride with the third film , The Bourne Ultimatum . The net part of the original trilogy provided anexcellent end for a thrilling story , bringing together all the loose remainder and give the submarine sandwich the send - off he deserves .
3X-Men: Days Of Future Past (2014
Bryan Singer
2Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Irvin Kershner
While George Lucas continued to write for all ofStar war : Episodes IthroughVI , he stepped back from direct episodesV , andVI.A New Hopeset up the elaborate universe and a level to play out the blank opera that isStar Wars , butThe Empire Strikes Backis arguably the best entry in the entire series . Characters like Yoda , and Lando Calrissian made their debut inEpisode V , along with the scandalous reveal that Darth Vader is Luke ’s father . This celluloid completelychanged the flight for all future filmsin the dealership and forge the foundation of whatStar Warsbecame , and part of that should be assign to the wonderful direction of Irvin Kershner .
relate : Star Wars Is entirely Abandoning George Lucas ' Most Controversial Prequel Idea
1Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)
Rian Johnson
The continuation trilogy kicks off with the story of new Rey , hungry for adventure on a world beyond her desert major planet , Jakku . The first film does a great job ofestablishing the story for the trilogy , but in many mode , it feels like a copy ofEpisode IVandEpisode Iwith only minor variation . A untried power - tender individual stranded on a desert major planet longs for a living in the stars with expectant signification . They meet someone or something from a distant reality and settle to take the leap and travel out into the sky . They hail boldness to face with the latest evil organization in the form of the Empire , the First Order , or the Federation .
They then get a line about significant threats that will continue to chevy them in the follow moving picture . However , whenRian Johnson took theStar WarsreignsforThe Last Jedi , the story come to living and the continuation trilogy appeared to be leading to a thrilling conclusion . Having both written and directed the story , Johnson created an unbelievable second entry for the sequels , but due to multiple delays and changes behind the scenes , he did not fall for the final Episode to reason out the story he started inThe Last Jedi .