Let’s call out the hypocrisy.
Akshay Kumar is playing the smartest game in Bollywood by turning legacy into franchise firepower
Bollywood has a funny way of judging stars. When some actors return to a franchise, it is called brand-building. When Akshay Kumar does it, it is suddenly called repetition. The same move is praised as a strategy in one case and dismissed as desperation in another. And that is why Akshay’s current phase deserves a sharper reading. Because this may not be a star hiding behind old titles. This may be a superstar tightening his grip on the world that made him unforgettable.
And that changes the entire conversation.
Look at the line-up: Welcome To The Jungle, Hera Pheri 4, Bhagam Bhag 2, and even Golmaal 5 in the distance. On the surface, it is easy bait for lazy criticism. Too many sequels. Too much familiarity. Too much dependence on the past. But that reading misses the larger truth. Akshay is not going back because he has nowhere else to go. He is going back because he knows these are the zones where his stardom still has emotional muscle.
That is not creative bankruptcy. That is market intelligence.
The truth is, Bollywood has become addicted to fake prestige. Stars disappear for months, treat one film like a coronation, and then expect the audience to applaud the aura. Akshay Kumar has never fully played that game. His stardom has always been more direct, more functional and far less decorative. He is not trying to look like a myth. He is trying to stay connected. And in today’s fractured theatrical climate, that may actually be the smarter play.
Because familiarity is not a dirty word anymore. It is business.
In an era where audiences are split, attention is fragile and original films struggle to even cut through the noise, franchises are not surviving out of nostalgia alone. They are surviving because recognition still sells. The crowd may claim to want novelty, but the box office repeatedly rewards what it already understands. That is the uncomfortable truth that many people do not want to admit. Akshay is not creating that reality. He is simply refusing to be blind to it.
And why should he be?
Why should a star with decades of mainstream goodwill run away from the very film worlds that helped build his bond with the public? Why should he pretend that comedy, chaos, ensemble madness and mass-friendly entertainment are somehow beneath him now? These are not random leftovers from an older career. These are some of the strongest pillars of Akshay Kumar’s screen identity. He knows it. The audience knows it. The trade definitely knows it.
In fact, that may be what irritates some people the most. Akshay’s franchise phase feels less like retreat and more like control. He is not abandoning his legacy. He is cashing in on it, tightening it, extending it and reminding the industry that memory can be monetised, especially when that memory comes attached to laughter, repeat value and family appeal.
And let us not ignore the emotional angle. Audiences do not always want stars to become strangers in the name of reinvention. Sometimes they want the familiar madness back. Sometimes they want the comfort of an actor who knows how to deliver a certain kind of entertainment with rhythm and confidence. Sometimes they do not want a transformation. They want a connection.
That is exactly what Akshay Kumar seems to understand in this phase.
Veteran trade analyst Taran Adarsh also believes that it’s not right to criticize someone just because he is doing quite a few franchises. “It only confirms the fact that you are making that particular brand popular. If it’s a film that justifies a part two or part three, then why not? I think criticising someone for doing so many franchises is wrong. Everyone thinks from their career point of view, and Akshay wants to secure his career by doing franchise films mainly. It’s his career, it’s his strategy, and he has every right to think about it. So many actors do this in the West as well.”
Adarsh gave an example of how Kesari Chapter 2, a new film set in a new era, was included in the Kesari franchise. “Maybe not many people might have gone to watch a new story. But when you link it to the Kesari brand, then people go to watch. And it was such a well-made film. It’s a very smart move from a business point of view. You have already got an audience ready to watch that particular film. We have a very unpredictable business scenario. A franchise offers a safety net. The content speaks, I’m not denying that. He got it right in Housefull 5 also. I loved Jolly LLB 3 too. There is also Welcome To The Jungle and Hera Pheri. Now, these are franchises which are very popular with the masses,” he said.
The trade expert also said that Akshay should be lauded because not every franchise turns out to be successful in Bollywood. “I would like to point out a film called Son of Sardaar 2. Firstly, you gave such a long gap, which is still understandable, as you did not get the script. But the script that you got was so bad. I think that was a forced second part in the franchise.”
So yes, people can debate whether too many franchises carry creative risk. That is fair. But dismissing this is not just lazy; it is wrong. This is a Khiladi reading the board faster than everyone else and playing where the odds are strongest.
Akshay Kumar’s franchise era is a power move.
Also Read: EXCLUSIVE: Akshay Kumar-starrer Vedat Marathe Veer Daudle Saat shoot complete, post-production underway; makers eyeing January 1, 2027 release
More Pages: Bhagam Bhag 2 Box Office Collection
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