Over the history of cinema, some films have been split into multiple parts. This has been done for creative, practical, and financial reasons. Originally done in the form of low-budget serial films, more recently it has often been done with big-budget feature films.
History
Early examples were serials, which were produced in chapters of 10–30 minutes each, and presented in theaters one each week as a prelude to feature films on the same ticket. With each episode typically ending in a cliffhanger, they encouraged regular attendance at the cinema, and the short running length kept down the cost of each installment, and the number of reels needed to show them.
Later feature films would be produced with a similar strategy in mind, deliberately setting up plot developments to be developed in subsequent features. When the initial film has been highly successful, additional installments may be produced concurrently, taking advantage of economies of scale and the availability of actors and directors to facilitate production. (e.g. The Matrix, Back to the Future)
A common reason for splitting a film has been to accommodate an extended running time; many people would find it uncomfortable to sit for a single three- or four-hour presentation. Some films have addressed this by adopting a practice typical in stage theater: having an intermission at the approximate midpoint of the film, during which members of the audience can stand and walk around, use the restroom if needed, or get a snack or refill their beverage at the concession stand. (e.g. Gandhi, Gods and Generals) Other directors have instead split the film into separate releases. (e.g. Kill Bill)
In the 21st century, it became increasingly common for big-budget films – usually those based on novels which might otherwise have to be substantially condensed, but especially the last in a series – to be released as multiple features. The film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was one of the first to do so with the final book in a series, a pattern followed by the Twilight, The Hunger Games, and Divergent series. Peter Jackson's film adaptation of The Hobbit – a final follow-up to his The Lord of the Rings series – was released as three separate features.[1]
Criticism
In many cases, the process of splitting films has been criticized, citing financial motivations in turning successful books into longer film series.[1] In 2012, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation called it "a recent Hollywood trend of splitting a single book into multiple movies to maximise box office returns from blockbuster franchises".[2]The Hobbit proved particularly controversial because the running time was the result of adding material that was not part of the original book.[3]
Notable examples
Die Nibelungen were fantasy epics directed by Fritz Lang in 1924. The first half of the film is called Die Nibelungen: Siegfried and the second half of the film is called Die Nibelungen: Kriemhilds Rache (Kriemhild's Revenge).
Soviet war drama film War and Peace was released in four parts in 1966 and 1967.
A Touch of Zen, was originally released in two parts in 1970 and 1971 running for a total of 200 minutes. A version combining the two parts was released later in 1971 with a runtime of 180 minutes.
Polish historical drama film The Deluge from 1974 was split into two parts, due to its length (over 5 hours).
Bernardo Bertolucci's 317-minute-long epichistorical drama film1900 (Novecento) was originally presented in two parts upon its European theatrical release (the American release was edited into a single 247-minute version); this presentation was preserved for most of the film's DVD and Blu-ray releases, which present both parts on separate discs.
Kill Bill by Quentin Tarantino was originally planned as one film, but was split into two films – Volume 1 and Volume 2, released six months apart in 2003 and 2004 – to avoid cutting it to a shorter length.
The Japanese epic film trilogy The Human Condition, directed by Masaki Kobayashi and based on the six-volume novel by Junpei Gomikawa, had a run time of almost ten hours as a single film, resulting in the one film being split into three; Volume 1, No Greater Love, was released in 1959, Volume 2, Road to Eternity, also in 1959, and Volume 3, A Soldier's Prayer, in 1961. These were also further split into two parts each for a total of 6 films for the Japanese theatrical release.
In 2010, Indian film Rakta Charitra was released as two films back-to-back months apart.
In 2012, Indian films Gangs of Wasseypur – Part 1 and Gangs of Wasseypur – Part 2 were originally shot as a single film of 319 minutes, but since no Indian cinema would screen a film of that length, it was divided into two parts (160 mins and 159 minutes) for the Indian market.[5]
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns is a two-part animated adaptation of Frank Miller's graphic novel of the same name. The first part was released in 2012, and the second in 2013.[6] A Deluxe Edition combining both parts into an unabridged film was released in late 2013.
Nymphomaniac was originally intended to be a single film; but, because of its four-hour length, Lars von Trier made the decision to split the project into two separate films.
Blood-Club Dolls, a live-action film of Blood-C anime series was split into two parts: 1 was released on 13 October 2018, and 2 was released on 11 July 2020.[10]
Avengers: Endgame is a direct continuation of Infinity War and was subtitled Infinity War – Part 2 at one point in its development. Infinity War was released on 27 April 2018 and Endgame a year later on 26 April 2019.[citation needed]
The biography of N. T. Rama Rao was originally supposed to be a single film but because of its length, it was split into the films NTR: Kathanayakudu and NTR: Mahanayakudu. Both were released one month apart in January and February 2019.[11]
Sailor Moon Eternal is a two-part anime film that is a direct continuation (and a "fourth season") for the Sailor Moon Crystal anime series. Both were released in January and February 2021.[12]
Sailor Moon Cosmos, a sequel to Sailor Moon Eternal (and a "fifth and final season" for Sailor Moon Crystal) will also be presented in two parts, with both films releasing in Summer 2023.[13]
The 2021 film Dune is an adaptation of Frank Herbert's 1965 science-fiction novel. However, it is titled onscreen as Dune: Part One as it only adapts the first half of Herbert's novel. A sequel titled Dune: Part Two was released in March 2024, adapting the second half of Herbert's novel.[14]
The film adaptation of the novel Ponniyin Selvan was split into two parts, the first being 167 minutes and the second being 165 minutes, with release dates 30 September 2022 and 28 April 2023 respectively.[15]
The sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was split into two parts as Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse with Part One releasing on June 2, 2023 and Part Two set to release a year later on March 29, 2024[16] before it was removed from Sony's release calendar due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.[17] Initially promoted as Part One, this was later removed from the title of Across the Spider-Verse, while the second was renamed to Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.[18]
Rebel Moon was originally pitched as a singular film, which concerned Netflix Films chairman Scott Stuber due to its length. Unwilling to "lose all the character", director Zack Snyder then decided to split the film into two parts, respectively titled A Child of Fire and The Scargiver.[19]
Based on Ugramm and directed by Prashanth Neel, the Indian film Salaar was announced as a single movie. On 8 July 2023, Hombale Films revealed that Salaar would be released in two parts.[20] The Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire was released on 22 December 2023. The Part 2 – Shouryaanga Parvam will be released in the latter half of 2025.[21]
The film adaptation of the Broadway musical Wicked is being split into two parts with the first part released in November 2024 and the second scheduled for November 2025.[25]
The 2000 film adaptation of Battlefield Earth was set to be split into two parts. The first part was released in May 2000 and the sequel was set to be released in May 2002, but because of the first film's bad reviews and poor box-office performance, the sequel was permanently canceled.[citation needed]
The film adaptation of the third Divergent novel Allegiant was set to be split into two parts: Allegiant released in March 2016 and Ascendant was set to be released on 9 June 2017.[26] Due to Allegiant's poor box office performance, a theatrical release for Ascendant was dropped in favor of reconfiguring the project as a television film for Starz that would be followed by a spinoff series. Both projects were later canceled, effectively ending the franchise.[27]