As much as the internet loves “Shrek,” we all know it didn’t need a third movie. There are countless TV shows, films, and even books that we all can agree didn’t need to have a sequel. We are looking at you, “The Cursed Child” in the Harry Potter series. It’s hard to explain why these sequels even exist to begin with, but it happens so often. So what’s the catch?

While we all used to love “That’s So Raven,” “Full House,” and “Boy Meets World,” we can see that their newer reboots pale in comparison. Honestly, when has anyone been excited over watching the next episode of “Fuller House?” Even the most iconic TV shows have terrible spinoffs. Take the infamous “Friends” show; Joey,  a character while beloved by all, after receiving his own spin off called “Joey,” it ultimately flopped after two seasons.

Largely, the widespread reasoning for absolute disappointment is because it’s not the original, and many feel bitter resentment towards the original shows’ demise, and the start of the new spin off. Much like the same feeling one might get when finishing their favorite book, trying to find another book that leaves the same satisfactory emotion is difficult;it doesn’t have the same plot, characters, and overall sentiment that you had when enjoying the first.Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Not only are these unnecessary sequels and spinoffs spoiling the originals for the viewer, it’s degrading the film and television industry. Instead of producing new content, all movie-goers and binge-watchers get to see is the same thing regurgitated over and over again. In a study done by Yahoo Entertainment, the number of original films has dropped below 25 percent, down from 60 percent in 1984. Sorry Bumblebee from “Transformers,” we didn’t really need all five movies with a sixth one just for you on the way. “Transformers” obviously isn’t the only franchise to do this, but it definitely calls into question as to why Hollywood keeps making them.

It may seem trite (and that’s because it is), but it largely has to do with the box-office value. If a movie or television show is successful on the first go-around, of course it would make sense to double dip for that extra cash. “Fast and Furious” has been going on for 15 years and every time a new movie was released, people have flooded the theaters. According to Box Office Mojo, each of the past three sequels since 2009 has made more money than the previous film.

Foreign gross box office also needs to be considered. While the aforementioned failure of “Transformers” might be true for the U.S., places like China make this movie a big success because their own film industry does not focus on that genre of movies. According to Forbes, the 2017 movie, “Transformers: The Last Knight” only pulled in $68 million on the first long weekend, compared to China’s box office of $125 million. This large incentive for money keeps filmmakers going.

Regardless of anyone’s personal sentiments towards these seemingly unnecessary sequels and spinoffs, they are going to be around for a long time continuing after every successful original film. There’s a place for every movie in the film industry, and whether it’s across the seas or on our TV screens, someone out there can appreciate them.