Akshay Kumar set to reverse the trends for sequels with Jolly LLB 2

December 20, 2016 - 12:01 PM IST

What's common between Rock On 2, Tum Bin 2, Force 2, Kahaani 2, Kya Kool Hain Hum 3, Raaz Reboot, 1920 London, Tere Bin Laden - Dead or Alive, Chaar Sahibzaade - Rise of Banda Singh Bahadur? Well, most of these sequels either failed miserably at the Box Office or went on to be under performers. Not even a single one of these films emerged as a success and that pretty much tells how 2016 has been mighty disappointing for sequels.

Akshay Kumar set to reverse the trends for sequels with Jolly LLB 2

No wonder, all eyes are on the first sequel release of 2017, Jolly LLB 2, to reverse the trend.

"Thankfully, the month of January doesn't see a single sequel hitting the screens, and that is some relief," says a film insider, "The manner in which all sequels have gone down as nine-pins in last few weeks has been so scary. It seems as if audiences just didn't care. They should though for February 10, release Jolly LLB 2 which appears to be a genuine sequel in the offering, and not just a franchise which is being put together for the sake of it."

It is a different matter though that though the film has Jolly LLB as the central character, the actor playing him has changed from Arshad Warsi to Akshay Kumar.

"While from the commercial standpoint it was always a good decision, now in the hindsight it sounds like an even better one," a trade expert adds, "With all due respect to Arshad, Jolly LLB was actually his last commercial success and post that he has faced several disappointments at the Box Office. On the other hand Akshay Kumar is on a career high. In 2016, he has seen three back to back Rs. 100 crore grossers [Airlift, Housefull 3 and Rustom]. Now when he is arriving as Jolly LLB 2, there are talks about his versatility all over again. The film has become hotter than ever."

Meanwhile, the promo of the film has pretty much established that director Subhash Kapoor has retained the rustic charm that made first in the series so delightful.

"Well, if there were any such doubts than they have been put to rest by the theatrical promo of the film," a close associate of the maker comments, "There is no compromise with the theme, vision or narrative of Jolly LLB as Akshay has been rightly projected as a simpleton instead of a macho hero. It is going to be simplicity and mind games at work here."

In a superstitious industry like Bollywood which relies on that one big film to reverse the trend of continued misfortunes, Jolly LLB 2 is being rightly looked at as a sequel that would reverse the current trend associated with sequels. After all, it is going to rain sequels/ franchise/ prequels in March [Commando 2, Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya, Sarkar 3, Naam Shabana] and a fresh start to 2017 would anyways do wonders to the Box Office prospects of these films.