10 Classic Sci-Fi Movies That Need to Be Continued in the Comics

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For years, fans have been curious about scenes cut from the movie Event Horizon. Now, the new Dark Descent comic prequel provides a deeper look into those lost horrors. While many sci-fi stories never get continued in movies, Event Horizon: Dark Descent and other related projects prove the story can live on beyond the theater.

Though some don’t consider the 1997 film Event Horizon a sci-fi classic, tastes change over time. This creates opportunities for great sci-fi stories – and characters – to be further explored, and comics are a perfect medium to continue those narratives.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind Ends Too Early

Okay, so Spielberg’s done aliens a bunch of times, but for me, Close Encounters of the Third Kind from ’77 feels different. It’s not just sci-fi; it’s about what it would actually be like if people started seeing things, getting visions. This group of people, all having experienced something with aliens, start dreaming about this one mountain, and it pulls them all together for this huge, final meeting with the extraterrestrials. It’s a really cool setup.

The movie concludes with Roy Neary, played by Richard Dreyfuss, being selected to go with the aliens. It’s a poignant moment – while hopeful, it’s also sad to see Roy leave his family and everyone else behind. A comic book series could delve deeper into what happens next without ruining the impactful and thought-provoking ending the film already delivers.

Logan’s Run Left a Lot Out of the Source Material

The 1976 film Logan’s Run was based on a 1967 novel about a seemingly ideal society. In this world, young and attractive people lived safely inside enclosed cities. But there was a dark side: when people reached the age of 30, they were killed as part of a ritual supposedly allowing them to be reborn. Some citizens tried to escape this fate by ‘running,’ but they were pursued by enforcers called Sandmen.

The movie centers on a runner and a mysterious figure called the Sandman as they flee the city, eventually working together to dismantle a protective dome and usher in a new age for humanity. While the film deviates from the original story, that story continued in a couple of sequels that explored concepts like time travel and alternate universes. A new comic book adaptation could either build upon the established story or boldly reimagine this classic science fiction tale.

Dark Star’s 20-Year Mission Was Barely Touched

John Carpenter’s first film as director was the 1974 sci-fi comedy Dark Star. It’s about a spaceship and its crew on a decades-long mission to blow up planets considered unsafe for humans. The crew uses a freezing process to slow down aging, but the ship runs into a series of problems, leading to a darkly funny and ultimately tragic end for everyone on board.

Comics are a great format for blending science fiction, dark humor, and satire. Although continuing the story of Dark Star after its original ending might not fit the characters, there’s plenty of potential for funny stories about the ship and crew from their earlier years – lots of mishaps and adventures that could be really entertaining in comic form.

They Live Kicked Off an Incredibly Relevant Revolt

More than ten years later, John Carpenter turned a science fiction short story, “Eight O’Clock in the Morning,” into the film They Live. The movie, named after its main character, Nada, stars “Rowdy” Roddy Piper as a man who uncovers a secret alien invasion. These aliens are using hidden messages to control people all over Earth.

The movie centers around Nada, who discovers a pair of glasses that reveal the true forms of aliens hiding in plain sight, along with their hidden messages. He then sparks a rebellion to overthrow these alien invaders and dismantle their system of subtle control. A comic book series could build on this story, showing humanity’s ongoing fight for freedom against these alien oppressors – a continuation that would remain relevant today, much like the original film.

Stalker Opened Many Doors to Explore Further

Despite being made in the Soviet era, the film Stalker eventually gained a dedicated, though small, following as a cult classic. The film’s title refers to guides, called Stalkers, who navigate a dangerous, post-apocalyptic area known as the Zone. These guides are experts at avoiding the Zone’s dark obstacles and supernatural dangers, leading people towards a room said to grant wishes at its center.

The film’s intriguing mystery is a big part of what makes it good, and there are plenty of opportunities to expand this sci-fi universe without ruining that sense of wonder. The character of the Stalker isn’t the only one of his kind, hinting at new stories and unseen threats that the original film didn’t cover. We could also learn more about the Zone’s mysterious beginnings and the powerful, hinted-at mutants within it.

Flight of the Navigator Has More Stories to Tell

The 1980s sci-fi film Flight of the Navigator is a beloved classic that has been considered for several reboots over time. The story centers on a boy named Joey who vanishes for eight years, then reappears looking the same age but with knowledge from another world. It turns out he traveled to a distant galaxy aboard an alien spacecraft with its AI co-pilot, Max.

Though Joey was sent back to his own time and Max’s alien ship resumed its mission, the story felt open-ended. Joey unknowingly brought an alien back to Earth with him, promising future complications. Max and the ship were collecting creatures like Joey for the Phaelon scientists to study, a complex idea that could easily lead to more adventures for fans of The Navigator.

Scanners’ Sequels Ignored the Original’s Twist

David Cronenberg, a Canadian director, is famous for his unsettling and often body-horror films, a style that suited his 1981 movie, Scanners. The film presents a world where many people possess powerful telepathic abilities, and are known as Scanners. The story centers on Revok, a rebellious Scanner who starts a hidden war against the government organization that developed his powers, and which also created his brother, Vale – another newly discovered Scanner.

I was totally blown away by the ending of the first movie! It looked like Vale was destroyed in that psychic fight with his brother, Revok, and Revok won. But then, the very last scene showed Vale had actually switched bodies with Revok! It was a brilliant setup for a sequel, and I was so excited to see where they’d go with that. Sadly, the next two movies completely dropped the storyline. That’s why I think a comic book continuation would be amazing – it could finally explore the threat that was left hanging and give those characters the attention they deserve.

Ralph Bakshi’s Wizards Created a Unique World

Ralph Bakshi is a celebrated animator famous for his innovative and often unconventional work. He helped pave the way for adult animation with films like his first, Fritz the Cat. He’s also remembered for adapting The Lord of the Rings into an animated movie in 1978, following his distinctive science fiction fantasy film, Wizards, which came out the year before.

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The animated film Wizards takes place on a future Earth devastated by nuclear war. This conflict has created mutants and brought mythical creatures like elves and dwarves back into the world. The story centers on two twin wizards: one who thrives using magic, and the other who embraces lost human technology and the power of persuasion in the ruined lands. The film’s blend of science fiction and fantasy creates a rich setting with potential for many more stories, both within the world shown and in the unexplored future hinted at in the ending.

Dark City Has an Underrated Sci-Fi World to Explore

The 1998 film Dark City, directed by Alex Proyas, follows a man who wakes up in a perpetually dark city and finds he has strange new powers – the ability to alter reality. He soon learns the city isn’t what it seems, and that it was built by aliens who control humans within an artificial world. These aliens are actually corpses possessing human bodies, and they’re conducting experiments on people inside a ship they can manipulate with their minds.

The film feels instantly recognizable thanks to its connections to other classic science fiction stories, but it still offers a unique and intriguing mystery that kept viewers hooked. A comic book sequel could really delve into the future of the newly empowered being within this artificial world, and potentially surpass similar franchises like The Matrix in doing so.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers Was Only the Start

The story of Invasion of the Body Snatchers has been told in several movies, but the 1956 original and its 1978 remake are the most well-known. Both films center around scientists who realize aliens are secretly replacing people with identical duplicates grown from seed pods.

As a huge fan, I’ve always thought the core idea of ‘Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ is genuinely terrifying – the thought of people being replaced by emotionless duplicates is just chilling! It’s a shame we don’t see great adaptations very often. I’d love to see a comic book series continue the story, not just by showing us more about the aliens themselves, but also by exploring what happens to the world after the original movies, especially since the scientists didn’t seem to stop the pods from spreading. It would be fascinating to see the wider consequences and how society deals with that kind of hidden threat.

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2025-12-26 22:21