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In 2022, Netflix released a sci-fi movie about a giant troll wreaking havoc in Norway aptly titled Troll, which turned out to be a monster hit on the platform, paving the way for its upcoming sequel. The name of said follow-up is Troll 2, which, for some people, including myself, poses a bit of a problem.
Now, to be clear, I am not blindly criticizing this upcoming Netflix movie because I am against sequels or even cheesy disaster movies for that matter. My issue is that the title is a little too unoriginal, and in more than one way. Allow me to explain for those unaware…
The year 1990 saw the release of a film called Troll 2 (available to stream on Tubi), which barely counts as a sequel to a 1986 movie called Troll (no relation to the Netflix original movie, either) as it boasts absolutely no connection to the campy creature feature. In fact, there are no trolls to be found in the movie, but goblins disguised as humans who magically turn people into plants for feasting on.
Due to its sub-par special effects, nonsensical screenplay from Italian filmmakers Claudio Fragasso (who also directs) and Rosella Drudi, and some gloriously cheesy acting from a cast predominantly made up of first-timers, it is not considered one of the best horror movies, but is certainly one of the most beloved so-bad-its-good movies of all time.
Even one of the most acclaimed horror movie documentaries, 2009’s Best Worst Movie, follows and celebrates its incredible legacy as a cult phenomenon. Quite frankly, I believe Troll 2’s legacy is a special one on par with Tommy Wiseau's The Room and does not deserve to share its name with a completely unrelated film with the potential to push it into obscurity.
To be frank once again, even if not for 1990’s Troll 2, I would still be pretty disappointed by this new movie’s title. I cannot be the only one who is bothered by the fact that we still have sequels differentiating themselves from their predecessors with mere numbers (unless they get creative with it, like how 22 Jump Street followed 21 Jump Street). I mean, I might prefer it over those legacy horror sequels with the same title as the original classics (i.e. 2018’s Halloween and 2022’s Scream) but with all the progress that the MCU has made with their subtitled sequels (i.e. Avengers: Endgame or Spider-Man: Homecoming), I refuse to see us regress like this.
Since Troll 2 is going to be about another awakened troll wreaking havoc, why not just call it Another Troll or, perhaps, Troll: The Second Coming? I would even accept Troll: Chapter Two, especially since it sounds like the next part of a fantasy story, which this franchise essentially is. Seriously, anything could be better than just adding a plain old numeral two at the end of the title, especially when a Troll 2 already exists.
Despite my unwavering disdain for its title for the reasons above, I wish to make it clear that I am not protesting Troll 2. In fact, it is among the streaming-exclusive upcoming 2025 movies that I am looking forward to the most.
I enjoyed the original Norwegian monster movie on Netflix from director Roar Uthaug (who qualifies for the job by name alone, I believe) a whole hell of a lot more than I expected to. I even noted in my collection of thoughts I had while watching Troll that I was unusually happy to see it tease the idea of a follow-up at the end because I was totally down to see more.
I guess Troll 2 is further proof that some wishes do come true. Now, while the sequel still has yet to receive a specific premiere date, I have only one additional wish: please change the title.
