Every now and then, when a TV show ends, the story is extended with a feature-length movie. Not including movies where the series was still ongoing, these films continue their TV shows in a way that is often satisfying for fans and even ties up some loose ends. Some even became more popular than their respective series, which had vanished into obscurity long before the movies went into production.
However, though these movies are some of the greatest ever endings to long-running series, they still aren’t rated too highly on IMDb. Perhaps this is because it’s hard for viewers to understand what’s going on if they haven’t seen the TV shows, especially when some of those shows have close to 10 years' worth of character development.
Entourage (2015) - 6.6
Just like the network did with Sex and the City, HBO followed the final series of Entourage with a movie, and though it wasn’t as successful, it was more acclaimed. The movie follows movie star Vincent Chase, who is currently struggling with his directorial debut, but just as it always did in the TV show, everything works out perfectly for the actor.
The film was essentially a feature-length episode of the show, but it was full of everything that fans of the series loved, including the fly on the wall look at Hollywood and all of the exclusive parties. And as Entourage was known for its celebrity cameos, the movie is full of similarly surprising appearances, as it features Liam Neeson, Warren Buffet, Pharrell Williams, and many others.
The Inbetweeners (2011) - 6.7
British comedy is fairly niche for those outside of the U.K., which is why The Inbetweeners is a fairly unknown TV show and movie in the United States. There was a U.S. remake of the show, but it was canceled after just one season due to low ratings. However, The Inbetweeners is the ultimate British teen comedy, and it was a huge success in its native country.
The series follows four friends navigating teenage life who are generally outcasts and socially awkward around women. After the show ended in 2010, the movie was quickly greenlit and it sees the gang go on vacation to Malia, a popular destination amongst British men for a “lads’ holiday.” It carried over the show’s comedy perfectly, and there was even a sequel that came out three years later.
Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (2013) - 6.9
Alan Partridge is a long-running U.K. fictional TV character played by Steve Coogan who has led several different TV shows over the years. The character is a parody of British television personalities, and Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa is a direct continuation from the series, I’m Alan Partridge. And just like The Inbetweeners, it carries that classic British humor of self-deprecation and satirizing everyday life.
However, the movie ups the stakes and gives Alan Partridge a real action hero send-off, as he must save 12 hostages in a period of 24 hours. Partridge goes about it in the most haphazard way possible, and it’s a delight to watch. But it might not land as well with viewers who don’t know the character.
Jackass Number 2 & Jackass 3D (2006 & 2010) - 7.0
Amazingly enough, Jackass has become more famous thanks to the movies. The TV series of the pranksters getting up to dirty tricks and pulling vulgar stunts was nothing more than a cult show on MTV, but the first movie opened up the flood gates for millions of more fans. However, the second and third movies are considered much better than the original, as they have a shared score of 7.0 on IMDb.
Jackass Number Two saw the crew attempting stunts that were more death-defying than ever before. And the third film saw the series use the novelty of 3D, which ironically ended up being one of the best 3D movies ever. And the franchise isn’t over yet, as the series is returning with Jackass Forever.
El Camino (2019) - 7.3
El Camino follows Jesse after he escapes captivity from Uncle Jack’s clubhouse and attempts to make enough money to get a new identity from The Disappearer. Breaking Bad was wrapped up so neatly, with an ending so flawless that it achieved the impossible by satisfying every fan who had their own very specific theories.
But that meant that a follow-up movie might have been unnecessary and could have possibly even undone the show’s legacy. However, as El Camino picks up just seconds after where the finale left off, the film wasn’t just a feature-length episode, but it was more of a tasteful epilogue to Breaking Bad. It tied up Breaking Bad’s loose ends and was a perfect farewell for some of the fan-favorite characters who didn’t get a goodbye in the movie.
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992) - 7.3
As Twin Peaks is all about the mystery of who murdered Laura Palma, Fire Walk With Me is a prequel that explores the last seven days of Laura’s life. Though movies that continue the narrative of TV shows are going to be hard to follow, Fire Walk With Me is on another level, as the film is confusing even to fans of the series.
The confusion may have something to do with the fact that there were a ton of scenes deleted from the movie. There were so many that they even made up their own 90-minute movie, Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces, which came 22 years later. However, Fire Walk With Me is still full of classic Lynchian surrealism and oddities that are still captivating, despite how disorienting the narrative is.
Deadwood: The Movie (2019) - 7.4
HBO continuing their beloved cinematic TV series with follow-up movies has become common practice. Though it’s looking as if the Many Saints of Newark is going to supersede it, Deadwood: The Movie is one of the best HBO original movies and the network’s best continuation of a series in a movie format.
Deadwood: The Movie is the greatest example of this practice, as it has the magnificent vistas of the desert and epic production value that only a movie budget could allow. And as the finale of the TV show wasn’t wholly satisfying, the film gives the fans closure in a way that few other TV show-turned-movies can.
The Naked Gun (1988) - 7.6
The Naked Gun is a continuation of The Police Squad, and against all odds, the movie has become more well known than the TV show. The series was way ahead of its time, as not everybody was immediately on board with the idea of a parody of procedural police shows filled with absurd non-sequiturs.
The Police Squad was canceled after six episodes, but the movie was so successful that it led to two sequels. Even to this day, the movie has the legacy of being one of the greatest comedies of all time, and it’s being discovered by younger audiences who don't necessarily even know that it’s based on a TV show from 1982.
Batman: Mask Of The Phantasm (1993) - 7.8
Few kids’ morning shows come with the sheer prestige that Batman: The Animated Series does. The show has gone on to influence movies, and showrunner Paul Dini even created Harley Quinn. Mask of the Phantasm was the perfect finale to The Animated Series’ legacy.
Just like the show did with Harley Quinn, the movie again creates a new villain, the Phantasm, and it tells Batman’s origin story in a way that’s unique to any of the live-action portrayals. Because Mask of the Phantasm is an animated movie, people might not be expecting the mature and adult themes, but it delivers them in such a cohesive narrative, and it’s even in the running for the best Batman movie.
Serenity (2005) - 7.8
Though his television shows tend to have a dedicated cult following, most of Joss Whedon’s series tend to get canceled before the full story is told. For example, Angel, the spin-off of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, ended on a huge jaw-dropping cliffhanger that was never resolved.
However, while the space Western series Firefly was canceled too early, Universal jumped at the chance to produce a follow-up movie, and it was the most satisfying conclusion to a TV show that almost never happened. Serenity is one of the most gripping and action-packed sci-fi movies of the 2000s, and it makes sense to viewers who have never even heard of Firefly too.