HOLLYWOOD’S SEQUELITIS WORSENS

Lending further credence to film industry critics’ claims that Hollywood fears innovation and originality, the industry website BoxOfficeMojo.com reports that one out of five films that are planned for release this year will be either a sequel, a prequel, or a spin-off. In all, 27 films fall into that group, a record. The previous high, said the website, was 24 set in 2003. This year’s crop of sequels includes Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides; Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon; Cars 2; X Men: First Class; Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol; and a sequel to a sequel — Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two. One of the sequels debuts today (Friday), Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son, starring Martin Lawrence. Commented Box Office Mojo’s publisher, Brandon Gray: “Hollywood is dipping into the well of past glory more than ever. It’s truly unfortunate that the story is held in such little regard.”