10 Movie Trends That Need to Retire (And 3 That Deserve a Comeback)

Every generation of cinema births two things: innovation and bad habits. And Hollywood, bless its bloated heart, clings to both like a sequel clings to nostalgia. Some trends deserve mercy kills. Others deserve resurrection. I’m not here to cancel the movies — I’m here to send them to rehab. So grab your popcorn and your opinions, ‘cause Pappy’s calling ‘em like I see ‘em.

1. The “Shared Universe” Obsession

It started with a dream — and now it’s a spreadsheet. Every studio wants its own cinematic universe, complete with Easter eggs, spin-offs, and crossovers nobody asked for. What used to be storytelling has turned into brand architecture. Characters don’t exist anymore; they orbit one another for franchise synergy.

It’s exhausting watching creative directors turn into continuity accountants. The audience can feel it too — that manufactured interconnectedness where every line of dialogue doubles as a teaser trailer. Marvel pulled it off once because it earned the buildup. Everyone else? They’re just chasing that same infinity high.

Not every movie needs a cousin in another genre. Sometimes the best universe is a self-contained one. The world doesn’t need The Cereal Mascot Cinematic Universe (don’t tempt them). Let stories end. Let characters rest. Let filmmakers tell a movie, not a marketing plan.

2. Overwritten Origin Stories

If I see one more slow-motion parent death or training montage, I might apply for witness protection. We’ve hit the point where even side characters get full traumatic flashbacks for emotional depth that never pays off.

The magic of a great hero used to be mystery. We didn’t need to know Indiana Jones’ childhood trauma to root for him — the hat and the smirk said enough. Nowadays, it’s as if Hollywood thinks therapy notes equal character development.

Here’s the truth: audiences are empathetic. We get it. Show us who the character is, not what their childhood pet’s name was. The best origin story is how a person acts now, not how they were victimized thirty minutes ago. So please — let’s bury the “tragic backstory montage” and move forward, capes or not.

3. Post-Credit Scene Addiction

There was a time when a movie ended. Now every theater looks like a hostage situation, filled with people glued to the seats, waiting for some mid-credit scene featuring a mysterious glove or hologram cameo.

Marvel popularized it; everyone else turned it into homework. Instead of ending with emotional resonance, films now trail off with “stay tuned.” Imagine finishing a novel, only for the author to whisper, “check back next book.” It’s the cinematic equivalent of a cliffhanger text at 3 a.m.

A movie’s last moment should leave you fulfilled or haunted — not confused about future spin-offs. If your best idea comes after the credits, maybe it should’ve been in the film. Let the lights come up. Let us clap, cry, and leave in peace.

4. Gritty Reboots of Everything

Not everything needs trauma and rain. Somewhere out there is a Hollywood executive pitching a “dark, realistic” reboot of Shrek as a medieval political drama — and it’ll probably get greenlit.

“Gritty” used to mean grounded. Now it just means gray. Everything’s color-corrected into oblivion, all joy filtered out. Remember when movies were allowed to be fun? Not “quirky with trauma,” not “camp with irony” — just fun.

We’ve mistaken seriousness for quality, as if laughter doesn’t count as art. Bring back hope, color, and absurdity. The world’s already dark enough. Let the screen remind us of light.

5. Biopics That Worship Instead of Question

The biopic used to be one of cinema’s great moral playgrounds — a way to study flawed icons. Now? They’re press kits in 4K. We’ve entered the era of the “authorized legend,” where every historical figure becomes a misunderstood hero who just needed better PR.

If you’re making a biopic and the subject’s estate is producing it, you’re not making art — you’re making propaganda. Genius is messy. Greatness is complicated. I don’t want to admire these people; I want to understand them.

The best biopics show contradictions, not coronations. Raging Bull. Amadeus. Steve Jobs. Let’s put the halo away and dig into the humanity again.

6. The “IP Over Everything” Era

We’ve entered the era of “brand before story.” Everything’s an adaptation, a reboot, or a legacy sequel. Studios now treat creativity like real estate: buy up the familiar, remodel it, and rent it back to nostalgia.

It’s not that IP can’t be art — it’s that we’ve forgotten how to make anything new. Risk is gone, replaced by franchise farming. The biggest box-office surprises used to come from originals — The Matrix, Inception, Get Out.

Audiences don’t hate new ideas; they hate bad ones. So stop feeding us reheated nostalgia and call it dinner. Give us something to discover again.

7. Fake Feminism in Blockbusters

I love seeing women lead action films. I hate seeing it treated like a marketing bullet point. Hollywood still confuses empowerment with aesthetics — a slow-motion strut, a pop anthem, and zero depth.

Real strength isn’t about being flawless; it’s about being human. Let women fail, rage, and contradict themselves. Let them exist beyond being “strong.” Give us Ripley, not a PowerPoint presentation on empowerment.

Representation isn’t a checklist — it’s storytelling that trusts complexity. Until we see women written with the same nuance as male antiheroes, “feminism” will remain a slogan, not a statement.

8. Endless De-Aging Tech

Hollywood’s obsession with digital youth is a special kind of denial. Watching a 75-year-old actor’s face smoothed into a wax museum version of itself isn’t inspiring — it’s uncanny.

Technology’s impressive, sure, but art thrives on imperfection. Wrinkles, lines, and age are storytelling tools. Every crease on De Niro’s face in Taxi Driver tells more truth than a billion pixels can fake. Hire young actors if you want youth. Let legends age gracefully if you want authenticity.

Cinema isn’t about freezing time — it’s about capturing it.

9. Three-Hour Runtime Just Because You Can

Some directors think runtime equals relevance. Spoiler: it doesn’t. Not every movie needs to be a four-course meal; some work better as tapas. Scorsese and Cameron can pull it off because they’ve earned it — they understand pacing like rhythm. But most modern epics mistake length for meaning. If your story drags, cut it. If it’s tight, don’t stretch it.

Give us the 100-minute thriller again. Give us the 90-minute comedy that ends before the snacks do. Theater seats weren’t made for endurance sports.

10. The Fake-Deep Dialogue Epidemic

“We are who we choose to be.” “Sometimes the strongest hearts…” Yeah, yeah. Modern movies love to talk like Instagram captions. Every blockbuster’s trying to sound profound instead of being it.

Characters don’t need to summarize the theme. They need to live it. Silence, gesture, subtext — that’s where real emotion hides. Tarantino, Kubrick, and Miyazaki understood that. Sometimes the smartest line in cinema is no line at all. Let the image speak. Let the audience feel clever for noticing.

3 Trends That Deserve a Comeback

1. Mid-Budget Dramas

Before IP swallowed Hollywood, the $30–$50 million drama was king. They weren’t “prestige pictures” — they were movies for grown-ups. Think Michael Clayton, The Insider, The Firm, Spotlight.These films balanced risk and restraint. Big enough for stars, small enough for vision. Studios today treat mid-budget films like a financial inconvenience. But audiences crave grounded, dialogue-driven stories that don’t need CGI to hit hard.Let writers cook again. Let actors act without green screens. Give us characters whose biggest explosions are emotional.

2. Practical Effects and Real Sets

You can feel a movie that’s real. The light hits differently, the weight lands, the chaos breathes. Compare the rain in Blade Runner to the pixels in The Flash — it’s not nostalgia; it’s texture.CGI is incredible when used sparingly. But overuse sterilizes the magic. There’s no friction, no danger, no gravity. The greatest filmmakers — Nolan, Villeneuve, Cameron, Miller — still blow stuff up for real.We don’t want perfection. We want presence. Bring back craft, not code.

3. Original Soundtracks That Actually Swing

Once upon a time, movie scores lived in your bloodstream. Star Wars, Back to the Future, The Bodyguard, Titanic. You could hum them decades later.

Now, everything sounds like “emotional wallpaper.” Same four chords, same strings, no hook. We’ve traded melody for mood.Music used to make a movie unforgettable — now it just fills space. Bring back composers who write themes that move the soul. I don’t want to feel a vibe. I want to leave the theater whistling.

Movies are like people — they get old, reinvent themselves, and sometimes forget who they were. Trends come and go, but good storytelling never does. Cut the noise, keep the heart, and for heaven’s sake — leave the cinematic universe to the universe.

Stay kind, stay curious, and don’t spill the butter on your way out.— Pappy Hull, The Popcorn Philosopher