(Note: Zathura: A Space Adventure from 2005 is based on a companion book by Chris Van Allsburg but is not considered a numbered Jumanji film, as it focuses on a different game entirely.)

For years, a sequel to the Robin Williams classic seemed impossible—and perhaps disrespectful. How do you follow up a performance that defined a generation? The filmmakers found the answer by flipping the script entirely. "Jumanji 2," officially titled Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle , is the rare legacy sequel that matches, and some argue surpasses, the original.

Sequels often struggle to justify their existence, but The Next Level succeeded by messing with the formula established in the previous film. The gang returns to the game to rescue

The third installment sees the same group of friends re-entering the game to rescue one of their own, but the game is "broken." This time, the avatars are shuffled among different players, and new characters—including those played by —are pulled into the adventure. They must navigate new terrains like scorching deserts and snowy mountains to survive.

Before diving in, it is essential to clarify what "Jumanji 1, 2, and 3" actually refers to in 2024. Strictly speaking, the canonical franchise consists of:

Over 20 years later, the franchise was revitalized by transforming the board game into a vintage video game. Four teenagers in detention are sucked into the game, where they inhabit adult avatars that are the polar opposites of their real-world selves. Jumanji (1995) - Plot - IMDb

The story begins in 1969 when a young boy named Alan Parrish finds a mysterious board game called Jumanji . Upon rolling the dice, he is sucked into the game’s jungle dimension, trapped for decades. Twenty-six years later, two siblings find the game and inadvertently release Alan—now a wild, bearded adult (Robin Williams)—along with a stampede of animals, a monsoon, and a big-game hunter.

In 1969, a young boy named Alan Parrish (Adam Hann-Byrd) stumbles upon a cursed board game. When he plays it with his friend Sarah, he is inexplicably sucked into the game’s jungle dimension. Twenty-six years later, two orphaned siblings, Judy and Peter, move into the old Parrish house. They discover the game, roll the dice, and release a now-adult Alan (Robin Williams) back into the real world. Unfortunately, they also release a menagerie of stampeding rhinos, carnivorous plants, mosquitos carrying a dangerous virus, and a psychotic big-game hunter named Van Pelt.

Whatever happens, the legacy of is secure. It is a rare franchise that successfully transitioned from a sacred solo classic into a blockbuster machine without alienating the original fanbase.

Officially titled Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle , this is the film most people call .