Bollywood has announced plenty of high-profile sequels with fanfare, only for a few of them to vanish into endless delays, casting chaos and development hell.
Key Points
- Several major Bollywood sequels, including Don 3, Hera Pheri 3 and Tiger vs Pathaan, have faced repeated delays.
- Franchises once considered sure-shot box office winners are now struggling to move forward amid changing audience tastes.
- Many of these high-profile sequels remain trapped in development limbo with no confirmed production timeline.
For some reason, Bollywood finds itself in a wildly inconsistent phase when it comes to churning out sequels.
On one hand, we keep getting regular extensions from franchises like Baaghi, Drishyam and Housefull, with results ranging from entertaining to exhausting.
In some cases, we even get sequels for films that never really needed one in the first place, like Rock On!! and De De Pyaar De.
And then there are those ambitious films that loudly promised sequels with hype and hoopla.
Announcements were made, social media exploded with hype, fans dissected every update, and yet, when the time came to actually deliver, the projects slipped into development hell.
Case in point: the ongoing brouhaha surrounding Don 3 after Ranveer Singh exited the film that had already spent years in limbo.
Sreeju Sudhakaran looks at 10 Bollywood sequels that were promised to audiences, only to remain trapped in uncertainty for a myriad of reasons.
Don 3
Where do we even begin?
Don 3 was originally meant to continue the story with Shah Rukh Khan reprising the titular role.
Reports suggested that Director Farhan Akhtar struggled to crack a script compelling enough to justify the return. After years of delays, with Farhan increasingly occupied with acting commitments, SRK walked away from the project.
Farhan then attempted a fresh direction by casting Ranveer Singh as the new Don, with Pushkar and Gayathri of Vikram Vedha fame scripting the screenplay.
A title announcement teaser featuring Ranveer was even released, though reactions to his casting were sharply divided.
Kiara Advani was cast as the female lead, but her pregnancy delayed the shoot further.
Then Dhurandhar happened, pushing Ranveer back into the industry’s top league.
With the actor reportedly prioritising his zombie thriller Pralay, he allegedly exited Don 3 just days before production was set to begin, leading to reports of tension between him and Farhan.
The latest update claims that the Federation of Western India Cine Employees has imposed ‘non-cooperation’ against the actor. This means no members of the FWICE would work with Ranveer Singh unless compensation dues are settled.
The Don once said, ‘Don ko pakadna mushkil hi nahin, namumkin hai‘. Right now, making Don 3 itself seems namumkin.
No Entry Mein Entry
Plans for a sequel to No Entry started floating around almost immediately after the original became a success.
Early reports claimed Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor and Fardeen Khan would return, this time in double roles. Despite years of buzz, however, the project never moved beyond the discussion stage.
Producer Boney Kapoor remained determined to revive the sequel, eventually planning it with an entirely new cast.
Anees Bazmee returned as director, while Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh and Arjun Kapoor were expected to headline the film. But repeated production delays led to reported exits from both Varun and Diljit, pushing the project back into limbo.
In a previous interview, Anees Bazmee admitted the film had stalled ‘due to one actor or the other’. He still hopes to revive it someday, but for now, this sequel remains firmly stuck in the No Entry zone.
Hera Pheri 3
Ah, Hera Pheri 3.
Few sequels have tortured fans with this level of anticipation. After the success of Phir Hera Pheri, audiences naturally expected Baburao, Shyam and Raju to reunite soon. The only question was when.
Serious movement finally happened in 2017 when Hera Pheri 3 was announced with a surprising major casting overhaul.
Akshay Kumar and Suniel Shetty were out, replaced by Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham. Then Paresh Rawal exited, with rumours suggesting Nana Patekar would replace him.
Director Neeraj Vora, who helmed the second film and was supposed to direct the third movie, tragically passed away, shelving the project for the time being.
In 2025 came another grand official announcement, this time with original director Priyadarshan returning with the OG leads, and a promo was reportedly shot.
Once again, Paresh Rawal exited the threequel claiming ‘personal’ reasons which led to an ugly fallout, only to later return and all felt well then.
Sadly, nobody, including Akshay Kumar, seems certain when Hera Pheri 3 will actually begin production as the film keeps facing new legal hurdles.
Let us just hope Hera Pheri 3 does not pull a hera pheri on fan expectations.
Brahmastra Part 2: Dev
Brahmastra Part One: Shiva received mixed reactions from critics and audiences but it performed decently at the box office and ended with an ambitious tease for a much larger cinematic universe. The sequels were announced for 2026 and 2027, though they never materialised.
To be fair, even the first film spent years in development after beginning pre-production back in 2014.
Then came another setback: Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions reportedly stepped away from the sequels.
Director Ayan Mukerji got busy with War 2, while Ranbir Kapoor was tied up with multiple acting commitments.
When War 2 underperformed and Ayan’s direction faced criticism, confidence around the delayed sequel weakened further.
Mukerji remains publicly committed to continuing the franchise, and Namit Malhotra of Prime Focus, who is producing India’s costliest film(s) in Ramayana, has now boarded the project.
Still, until cameras actually roll, it is wiser to keep expectations lower about returning to this cinematic universe.
Dhoom 4
It is genuinely astonishing that despite every Dhoom film becoming bigger than the last, Yash Raj Films still has not managed to crack a fourth instalment.
Over the years, various reasons have surfaced: Producer Aditya Chopra reportedly rejecting scripts, uncertainty over casting, and even plans to reboot the franchise entirely, which would potentially remove long-time leads Abhishek Bachchan and Uday Chopra.
Names like Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh and Vicky Kaushal have all been linked to the film at different stages.
At one point, Ayan Mukerji was rumoured to direct it. Then War 2 happened, and those whispers vanished overnight.
Dhoom 4 still resurfaces in occasional rumours, but as of now, there is nothing concrete enough for fans to truly go Dhoom Again over.
Tiger vs Pathaan
In 2023, the YRF Spy Universe officially came together, uniting the Tiger and War franchises through Pathaan. The Shah Rukh Khan-led film became an all-time blockbuster and featured a hugely celebrated cameo by Salman Khan’s Tiger.
Suddenly, the universe looked unstoppable. Plans emerged for multiple expansions, including a spin-off centred on John Abraham’s supposedly dead villain Jim, and of course, the biggest event film of them all: Tiger vs Pathaan.
The cracks appeared within months. Tiger 3 underperformed, War 2 became the franchise’s first outright flop, and the female-led Alpha got delayed.
Suddenly, Bollywood’s biggest franchise looked shaky. The success of Dhurandhar also shifted audience interest away from glamourous spy spectacles.
Reports now suggest YRF has temporarily frozen the future of the universe, including Tiger vs Pathaan, with the exorbitant salaries of its two superstars cited as a major concern.
For now, Jhoome Jo Pathaan has become Baith Jaa Pathaan and Tiger has been sent back to its cage!
Krrish 4
Budgetary concerns may also be why Krrish 4 remains stuck. Krrish 3 was a blockbuster despite mixed reviews, but superhero sequels are expected to go bigger every single time.
Hrithik Roshan and his father Rakesh Roshan reportedly struggled for years to crack a script worthy of continuation.
Rakesh Roshan’s health issues further delayed progress. Eventually, Yash Raj Films came on board as producers, and in a surprise move, Hrithik announced he would direct the fourth film himself.
Yet, development remains inactive for the moment. Reports suggest YRF and Hrithik are not in sync over the massive projected budget.
The underperformance of expensive spectacles like Tiger 3 and War 2, alongside the blockbuster success of comparatively modestly budgeted hits like Saiyaara, may have made Yash Raj more cautious about its finances.
Who would have thought Krrish, who once defeated the powerful Kaal, would eventually be stopped by the most dangerous villain of all: Money.
Kick 2
Kick 2 almost exists in a quantum state. It is both happening and not happening at the same time, going by how the film is being teased.
During the shoot of Sikandar in 2024, Producer-Director Sajid Nadiadwala posted a monochrome photo of Salman Khan with the caption, ‘It was a great Kick 2 photoshoot Sikandar.’
Media immediately treated it as an official announcement.
Then Sikandar released and flopped, denting Salman’s already wavering box office standing.
Salman later mentioned on the finale of Bigg Boss 19 in December 2025 that he would soon begin shooting Kick 2, though many fans believed he was merely joking around with one of the contestants.
Since then, Salman has completed Maatrubhumi and committed to projects with Vamshi Paidipally and reportedly with Raj & DK, but Kick 2 still refuses to move.
Right now, it feels like the sequel itself has been ‘kick’ed out of Bhai’s schedule.
Dostana 2
Rumours of a sequel to Dostana began circulating almost immediately after the first film’s success in 2008.
Early chatter suggested Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham would return alongside two new male leads, but those plans quietly disappeared.
Then in 2019, Karan Johar officially announced Dostana 2 starring Kartik Aaryan, Janhvi Kapoor and Lakshya.
Production had even begun before COVID-19 halted everything. Soon after, the now infamous fallout between Kartik and Karan Johar reportedly led to the project being shelved indefinitely.
The two have since reconciled and collaborated again (Tu Teri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri and the upcoming Naagzilla), but Dostana 2 continues to remain in limbo despite fresh rumours of recasting, including reports of Vikrant Massey replacing Kartik.
In this Dhurandhar-era, there is no place for Dostana in this world, it seems!
Go Goa Gone 2
Go Goa Gone was a wildly entertaining zombie comedy that underperformed during its theatrical run before eventually achieving cult status.
The film ended with an obvious sequel tease promising an apocalyptic Goa, but getting the follow-up made proved surprisingly difficult.
Complications increased after Saif Ali Khan parted ways with Maddock Films.
Still, the makers officially announced Go Goa Gone 2 in 2020 with the original cast expected to return.
Then the pandemic arrived and the project quietly drifted into uncertainty.
To this day, there is still no proper update regarding when, or even if, the sequel will actually happen.
Ironically, a film with Goa in its title has become exactly like that Goa trip you endlessly plan with your friends but never manage to accomplish.
Photographs curated by Satish Bodas/Rediff
