The early 2000s and 2010s were a fantastic time for young adult stories. YA books were incredibly popular, and TV shows aimed at teens were doing well. Plus, movies based on YA books were major hits in theaters. Films like The Princess Diaries and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants were big successes, and we saw the beginnings of huge franchises like Harry Potter, Twilight, and The Hunger Games. However, not all YA adaptations worked out. While the Divergent series started strong, the third movie didn’t do well, and some franchises never really got off the ground – and one of those films is available to stream this month.
Released in 2011, I Am Number Four was intended to launch a big movie series. The film, based on the novel of the same name and part of the Lorien Legacies books, featured a strong cast including Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, Teresa Palmer, Dianna Agron, and Callan McAuliffe. It tells the story of a teenage alien (Pettyfer) who came to Earth as a child to escape being hunted along with seven others of his kind. You can now watch the film for free on Tubi.
What Happened With I Am Number Four (And Could We Get a Reboot?)
Everything suggested I Am Number Four would be a blockbuster franchise. The original book was a huge success, spending seven weeks at the top of the New York Times bestseller list, and a whole series of books offered plenty of material for future movies. Young adult stories were incredibly popular at the time, and the book’s plot was full of action and mystery. However, the film adaptation didn’t live up to expectations. Critics disliked its predictable science fiction storyline and found the acting unconvincing. While the movie started slowly, it did perform decently in theaters, it didn’t maintain that success. Because of this, plans for a sequel were cancelled, effectively ending the franchise before it really got off the ground.
There’s a possibility I Am Number Four could return to screens. In 2024, news surfaced about a potential new adaptation, with the original screenwriters involved. While there haven’t been any recent updates, making it uncertain if the project will actually happen soon, the timing could be better now than it was before. Nostalgia is a powerful force in entertainment, and the audience who enjoyed young adult movies in the early 2000s are now at an age where those memories hold strong appeal. Plus, young adult stories are becoming popular again, as seen with the continued success of The Hunger Games franchise, including The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and the upcoming Sunrise on the Reaping. If this I Am Number Four reboot moves forward, it could benefit from this renewed interest in the genre—and, with the right approach, overcome the challenges that held back the first film.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
https://comicbook.com/movies/list/5-sci-fi-movies-from-the-1980s-that-are-a-perfect-10-10/embed/#
Read More
- What Song Is In The New Supergirl Trailer (& What It Means For The DC Movie)
- Highly Anticipated Strategy RPG Finally Sets Release Date (And It’s Soon)
- TV legend Carol Kirkwood reveals the reasons why she decided to retire after 28 years with BBC
- Dune 3 Gets the Huge Update Fans Have Been Waiting For
- Why is Tech Jacket gender-swapped in Invincible season 4 and who voices her?
- Palworld! More Than Just Pals ‘Special Video’, characters detailed
- How Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds’ Kids Pranked Her on April Fool’s Day
- The OG Resident Evil 1, 2 and 3 Are Now Available on Steam With a Heavy Discount (and DRM)
- The Monsterverse’s Shocking New Time Travel Story – Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Season 2, Episode 6 Explained
- Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon – Merlin’s Tomb DLC Adds a New End-Game Dungeon for Free
2026-04-07 03:10