Informal sequel

An informal sequel, also called an unauthorized sequel or unofficial sequel, is a sequel to a novel, film, television show, or video game that is produced without the consent of the creators or rights owners of the original material. Today, informal sequels have become a staple theme of fan fiction writings on the Internet.

Producing informal sequels to works that have passed into the public domain is common, as the former copyright holders of the original work cannot bring legal action regarding copyright infringement against the creator(s) of the informal sequel. Many informal sequels to public domain works, such as H. G. Wells's 1895 novel The Time Machine and George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead, have been produced. Informal sequels to works still under copyright sometimes change the names of the characters and settings to avoid legal action.

Various informal sequels

Novels

• The Wind Done Gone by Alice Randall, created as a sequel to Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone with the Wind.
• Cosette: The Sequel To Les Misérables by Laura Kalpakian, created as a sequel to Victor Hugo's novel Les Misérables.
• Cosette or the Time of Illusions and Marius or The Fugitive by François Cérésa, also created as sequels to the novel Les Misérables.
• Psychohistorical Crisis by Donald Kingsbury, created as a sequel to Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy.

Films

• Happily Ever After, created as a sequel to Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
• War, Inc., has been described by John Cusack as an informal sequel to Grosse Pointe Blank, as both films are dark comedies which feature Cusack playing a hitman.
• 20th Century Fox's Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970), was originally conceived as an official sequel to the studio's earlier hit Valley of the Dolls (1967). The first script written for Beyond included at least two of the characters from the original. Jacqueline Susann, author of the original Valley of the Dolls novel, objected to the studio making a sequel without her involvement and subsequently sued the studio. The names of the characters were changed and the actors who were in line to portray them again were released from the project. Beyond ended up needing a disclaimer at the beginning of the film and on all posters stating it was not a sequel, though much of the spirit was in the same vein as the original, with occasional references in costumes and dialogue.
• Return to Oz, created as a sequel to Victor Fleming's 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz.

Games

• The Nightmare of Druaga: Fushigino Dungeon, created by Arika and Chunsoft as a sequel to Tower of Druaga, which was created by Namco.

See also

• Fan fiction
• List of fictional works using settings created by other artists

References