Determining whether a film is a sequel or a prequel is not as clear as one might think. Some of the films listed below, such as Three Colors: Red (1994) and Dogma (1999), can be called sequels only in the loosest sense. Furthermore, some can make a case that films like The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and Pulp Fiction (1994) are sequels. Unless otherwise indicated, the original film(s) are on the Master List and rank higher than the sequel.
| Rank | Title | Year | Director(s) | Original Film(s) | Overall Rank |
| 1 | The Godfather: Part II | 1974 | Francis Ford Coppola | The Godfather (1972) | 13 |
| 2 | The Empire Strikes Back | 1980 | Irvin Kershner | Star Wars (1977) | 43 |
| 3 | Aliens | 1986 | James Cameron | Alien (1979) | 66 |
| 4 | Terminator 2: Judgment Day | 1991 | James Cameron | The Terminator (1984) | 110 |
| 5 | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | 2003 | Peter Jackson | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers1 (2002) | 113 |
| 6 | The Good, the Bad and the Ugly | 1966 | Sergio Leone | A Fistful of Dollars1 (1964) and For a Few Dollars More1 (1965) | 116 |
| 7 | Bride of Frankenstein | 1935 | James Whale | Frankenstein1 (1931) | 121 |
| 8 | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | 2002 | Peter Jackson | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) | 139 |
| 9 | Return of the Jedi | 1983 | Richard Marquand | Star Wars (1977) and The Empire Strikes Back (1980) | 185 |
| 10 | Goldfinger | 1964 | Guy Hamilton | Dr. No1 (1962) and From Russia with Love1 (1963) | 195 |
| 11 | Dawn of the Dead | 1978 | George A. Romero | Night of the Living Dead (1968) | 241 |
| 12 | Three Colors: Red | 1994 | Krzysztof Kieslowski | Three Colors: Blue1 (1993) and Three Colors: White1 (1993) | 243 |
| 13 | Toy Story 2 | 1999 | John Lasseter | Toy Story (1995) | 290 |
| 14 | The Road Warrior | 1981 | George Miller | Mad Max1 (1979) | 293 |
| 15 | The World of Apu | 1959 | Satyajit Ray | Pather Panchali (1955) and Aparajito1 (1957) | 316 |
| 16 | In the Mood for Love | 2000 | Kar Wai Wong | Days of Being Wild1 (1991) | 331 |
| 17 | Evil Dead II | 1987 | Sam Raimi | The Evil Dead1 (1981) | 385 |
| 18 | Playtime | 1967 | Jacques Tati | Mr. Hulot’s Holiday (1953) and Mon Oncle1 (1958) | 398 |
| 19 | The Godfather: Part III | 1990 | Francis Ford Coppola | The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather: Part II (1974) | 419 |
| 20 | Aparajito | 1956 | Satyajit Ray | Pather Panchali (1955) | 448 |
| 21 | Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade | 1989 | Steven Spielberg | Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom1 (1984) | 460 |
| 22 | Three Colors: White | 1994 | Krzysztof Kieslowski | Three Colors: Blue (1993) | 559 |
| 23 | Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan | 1982 | Nicholas Meyer | Star Trek: The Motion Picture1 (1979) | 616 |
| 24 | Manon of the Spring | 1986 | Claude Berri | Jean de Florette (1986) | 655 |
| 25 | Before Sunset | 2004 | Richard Linklater | Before Sunrise1 (1995) | 659 |
| 26 | Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom | 1984 | Steven Spielberg | Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) | 699 |
| 27 | The Dark Knight | 2008 | Christopher Nolan | Batman Begins1 (2005) | 701 |
| 28 | Kill Bill: Vol. 2 | 2004 | Quentin Tarantino | Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) | 734 |
| 29 | Mon Oncle | 1958 | Jacques Tati | Mr. Hulot’s Holiday (1953) | 741 |
| 30 | From Russia with Love | 1963 | Terence Young | Dr. No (1962) | 766 |
| 31 | Spider-Man 2 | 2004 | Sam Raimi | Spider-Man (2002) | 790 |
| 32 | Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace | 1999 | George Lucas | Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Return of the Jedi (1983) | 837 |
| 33 | Ivan the Terrible, Part II | 1958 | Sergei M. Eisenstein and M. Filimonova | Ivan the Terrible (1945) | 876 |
| 34 | Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones | 2002 | George Lucas | Star Wars (1977) et al. | 899 |
| 35 | X2 | 2003 | Bryan Singer | X-Men (2000) | 944 |
| 36 | A Shot in the Dark | 1964 | Blake Edwards | The Pink Panther (1963) | 948 |
| 37 | Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit | 2005 | Steve Box and Nick Park | A Grand Day Out1 (1991), The Wrong Trousers1 (1993), and A Close Shave1 (1995) | 1002 |
| 38 | She Wore a Yellow Ribbon | 1949 | John Ford | Fort Apache1 (1948) | 1008 |
| 39 | Zoolander | 2001 | Ben Stiller | Derek Zoolander: Male Model2 (1996) and Derek Zoolander University2 (1997) | 1015 |
| 40 | Back to the Future Part II | 1989 | Robert Zemeckis | Back to the Future (1985) | 1035 |
| 41 | Alien: Resurrection | 1997 | Jean-Pierre Jeunet | Alien (1979), Aliens (1986) and Alien³1 (1992) | 1053 |
| 42 | The Bourne Ultimatum | 2007 | Paul Greengrass | The Bourne Identity (2002) and The Bourne Supremacy1 (2004) | 1065 |
| 43 | Stolen Kisses | 1968 | François Truffaut | The 400 Blows (1959) and Love at Twenty2 (1962) | 1070 |
| 44 | Alien³ | 1992 | David Fincher | Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986) | 1128 |
| 45 | Back to the Future Part III | 1990 | Robert Zemeckis | Back to the Future (1985) and Back to the Future Part II (1989) | 1144 |
| 46 | The Matrix Reloaded | 2003 | Andy and Larry Wachowski | The Matrix (1999) | 1163 |
| 47 | The Wrong Trousers | 1993 | Nick Park | A Grand Day Out1 (1991) | 1201 |
| 48 | The Long Day Closes | 1992 | Terence Davies | Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988) | 1207 |
| 49 | The Barbarian Invasions | 2003 | Denys Arcand | The Decline of the American Empire2 (1986) | 1223 |
| 50 | Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire | 2005 | Mike Newell | Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets1 (2002), and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban1 (2004) | 1243 |
| 51 | Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith | 2005 | George Lucas | Star Wars (1977) et al. | 1269 |
| 52 | Casino Royale | 2006 | Martin Campbell | Dr. No (1962) et al. | 1279 |
| 53 | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | 2004 | Alfonso Cuarón | Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001) and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets1 (2002) | 1312 |
| 54 | Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me | 1992 | David Lynch | Twin Peaks2 (1990) | 1318 |
| 55 | The Bourne Supremacy | 2004 | Paul Greengrass | The Bourne Identity (2002) | 1356 |
| 56 | O Lucky Man! | 1973 | Lindsay Anderson | If.... (1968) | 1366 |
| 57 | The Color of Money | 1986 | Martin Scorsese | The Hustler (1961) | 1421 |
| 58 | Army of Darkness | 1992 | Sam Raimi | The Evil Dead (1981) and Evil Dead II (1987) | 1441 |
| 59 | For a Few Dollars More | 1965 | Sergio Leone | A Fistful of Dollars (1964) | 1472 |
| 60 | Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home | 1986 | Leonard Nimoy | Star Trek: The Motion Picture1 (1979), Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982), and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock2 (1984) | 1493 |
| 61 | Chasing Amy | 1997 | Kevin Smith | Clerks. (1994) and Mallrats1 (1995) | 1502 |
| 62 | Kriemhild's Revenge | 1924 | Fritz Lang | Siegfried1 (1924) | 1506 |
| 63 | Superman II | 1980 | Richard Lester | Superman (1978) | 1518 |
| 64 | César | 1936 | Marcel Pagnol | Marius (1931) and Fanny1 (1932) | 1520 |
| 65 | Shrek 2 | 2004 | Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury, and Conrad Vernon | Shrek (2001) | 1539 |
| 66 | Star Trek: First Contact | 1996 | Jonathan Frakes | Star Trek: The Motion Picture1 (1979) et al. | 1579 |
| 67 | I'm All Right Jack | 1959 | John Boulting | Private's Progress2 (1956) | 1595 |
| 68 | Clear and Present Danger | 1994 | Phillip Noyce | The Hunt for Red October1 (1990) and Patriot Games2 (1992) | 1597 |
| 69 | Through the Olive Trees | 1994 | Abbas Kiarostami | Where Is the Friend's Home? (1987) and And Life Goes on1 (1991) | 1631 |
| 70 | The Queen | 2006 | Stephen Frears | The Deal2 (2003) | 1650 |
| 71 | Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest | 2006 | Gore Verbinski | Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) | 1724 |
| 72 | Day of the Dead | 1985 | George A. Romero | Night of the Living Dead (1968) and Dawn of the Dead (1978) | 1742 |
| 73 | Fanny | 1932 | Marc Allégret | Marius (1931) | 1745 |
| 74 | Die Hard 2 | 1990 | Renny Harlin | Die Hard (1988) | 1753 |
| 75 | And Life Goes on | 1991 | Abbas Kiarostami | Where Is the Friend's Home? (1987) | 1759 |
| 76 | Batman Returns | 1992 | Tim Burton | Batman (1989) | 1813 |
| 77 | Mallrats | 1995 | Kevin Smith | Clerks. (1994) | 1841 |
| 78 | The Matrix Revolutions | 2003 | Andy and Larry Wachowski | The Matrix (1999) and The Matrix Reloaded (2003) | 1887 |
| 79 | 28 Up | 1985 | Michael Apted | Seven Up!2 (1964) et al. | 1889 |
| 80 | Scream 2 | 1997 | Wes Craven | Scream (1996) | 1911 |
| 81 | A Close Shave | 1995 | Nick Park | A Grand Day Out1 (1991) and The Wrong Trousers (1993) | 1923 |
| 82 | Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me | 1999 | Jay Roach | Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) | 1964 |
| 83 | The Spy Who Loved Me | 1977 | Lewis Gilbert | Dr. No (1962) et al. | 2004 |
| 84 | Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets | 2002 | Chris Columbus | Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001) | 2008 |
| 85 | Antonio das Mortes | 1969 | Glauber Rocha | Black God and White Devil1 (1964) | 2037 |
| 86 | 42: Forty Two Up | 1998 | Michael Apted | Seven Up!2 (1964) et al. | 2041 |
| 87 | Star Trek | 2009 | J.J. Abrams | Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) et al. | 2052 |
| 88 | Rio Grande | 1950 | John Ford | Fort Apache (1948) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949) | 2074 |
| 89 | Tarzan and His Mate | 1934 | Cedric Gibbons | Tarzan the Ape Man2 (1932) | 2098 |
| 90 | GoldenEye | 1995 | Martin Campbell | Dr. No (1962) et al. | 2106 |
| 91 | Son of Frankenstein | 1939 | Rowland V. Lee | Frankenstein (1931) and Bride of Frankenstein (1935) | 2107 |
| 92 | Dogma | 1999 | Kevin Smith | Clerks. (1994), Mallrats (1995), and Chasing Amy (1997) | 2121 |
| 93 | Love on the Run | 1979 | François Truffaut | The 400 Blows (1959) et al. | 2161 |
| 94 | On Her Majesty's Secret Service | 1969 | Peter R. Hunt | Dr. No (1962) et al. | 2163 |
| 95 | Rocky III | 1982 | Sylvester Stallone | Rocky (1976) and Rocky II1 (1979) | 2175 |
| 96 | The Curse of the Cat People | 1944 | Robert Wise and Gunther von Fritsch | Cat People (1942) | 2195 |
| 97 | Drunken Master II | 1994 | Chia-Liang Liu | Drunken Master2 (1978) | 2207 |
| 98 | Rocky II | 1979 | Sylvester Stallone | Rocky (1976) | 2211 |
| 99 | Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End | 2007 | Gore Verbinski | Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) | 2216 |
| 100 | The Testament of Dr. Mabuse | 1933 | Fritz Lang | Dr. Mabuse: The Gambler (1922) | 2219 |
| 101 | Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome | 1985 | George Miller and George Ogilvie | Mad Max (1979) and The Road Warrior (1981) | 2249 |
| 102 | The Pink Panther Strikes Again | 1976 | Blake Edwards | The Pink Panther (1963) et al. | 2265 |
| 103 | Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country | 1991 | Nicholas Meyer | Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) et al. | 2268 |
1 Indicates that the original film is on the Master List but is ranked lower than the sequel/prequel.
2 Indicates that the original film is not even on the Master List.