As long as films have been around, so have prequels, with the 1920s German silent black-and-white horror Golem: How He Came into the World being the first ever prequel.
Despite this, it’s fair to say that the trend of expanding stories with spin-offs, prequels and sequels has ballooned over time.
2026 is shaping up to be the year of prequel TV shows, so what can we expect to see on our screens, asks Film News Blitz writer Jude Chisman.
‘Elle’
Elle follows the story of the Legally Blonde main character ‘Elle Woods’ before the events of the 2001 film take place.
The show follows Elle moving from LA to Seattle, which has been met with mixed reviews from fans of the original film. Many felt like the movie was perfect as it was and did not need to be added to.
The series aired earlier this month on Amazon Prime.
‘Crystal Lake’
Set to premiere on 15 October 2026, Crystal Lake is an expansion of the Friday the 13th story, set before the original 1980 film.
Friday the 13th is not new to spin-offs, with 12 films in the original franchise, a 2009 reboot, a TV series, a video game and a collaboration with the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise in Freddy vs Jason.
The series is being developed by A24 and is set to follow the traditional Friday the 13th format, with it being based around a group of camp counsellors at Camp Crystal Lake, who will likely meet the match of a crazed slasher.
‘Vought Rising’
Vought Rising is an Amazon Prime production that’s set in the 1950s before the events of The Boys takes place.
It will detail the emergence of the company Vought and will give us backstory for characters from the beloved The Boys series, Soldier Boy and Stormfront.
It is planned to release in early 2027.
‘Call the Midwife: Sisters in Arms’
This BBC Call the Midwife spin-off will release in late 2026 and will follow many of the beloved characters from the main series during WWII.
It will initially air as a three-part series, but a later feature-length series is planned to air at a later, unconfirmed date.
Call the Midwife is a beloved, iconic show with 15 series already, and fans have expressed their excitement for this upcoming prequel and don’t seem to want the story to end anytime soon.
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But why are we seeing so many prequels?
Well, there are a couple of ideas that people have about this.
Expanding the story
On the positive side of the debate, fans like to see their favourite stories expanded and their favourite characters get developed backstories.
We’ve seen the prequel formula in the past work well with shows like Young Sheldon, Better Call Saul and Mixed-ish earning high praise and running for multiple seasons, becoming big shows in their own right, not just being known for being prequels.
On the other hand…
Financial safety
The other argument people suggest is that these studios are just ‘playing it safe’ and rely on the show to make money from its existing fanbase.
This school of thought also suggests a ‘lack of creativity’ amongst these productions and that audiences would prefer completely original stories to be told.
However, not all prequels are seen as quick cash grabs and the more ‘inventive’ ones that tell original stories, such as Vought Rising, are met with more anticipation and find themselves safe from these critiques.
Shows like Elle and Crystal Lake unfortunately don’t get this grace, especially since Friday the 13th is well known for reboots and remakes, and the Legally Blonde franchise has already been given sequels and an original stage show, so many question their true need for a prequel.
Prequels don’t seem like they’ll be going anywhere anytime soon and will continue to be a larger part of the film and TV industry. It’s easy to critique the companies who seemingly like to churn out content from the same few franchises, but if people are watching, who can blame them?
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