The MCU has got nothing on a surprisingly canonically and creatively consistent franchise

One of the most obvious recurring problems to blight any franchise that spans at least a handful of installments is that canon and continuity will almost always end up being tied in knots eventually, something the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been experiencing firsthand since the Multiverse Saga ignited.

That comes with the territory when multiple filmmakers, countless writers, and sprawling casts that aren’t immune to a recasting or two all need to be wrangled together every few years, and the list of properties that have completely avoided such pitfalls is a great deal shorter than the ones that have. That being said, an unlikely champion stands out among the crowded pack, and it’s Lethal Weapon.

The granddaddy of the buddy cop subgenre, the four installments combined to earn over $950 million at the box office, making it both ironic and bittersweet that the track record for remarkable consistency will draw to a close should Mel Gibson ever end up directing the fifth and final outing, given the death of veteran director Richard Donner.

As pointed out on Reddit, outside of the involvement of Donner, Gibson, and fellow lead Danny Glover, the saga kept the same core crew in place for its entire existence. The entire Murtaugh family, Captain Ed Murphy, Dr. Stephanie Woods, Lorna Cole, and Leo Getz were all firmly in place from their respective debuts until 1998’s Lethal Weapon 4, with every single major speaking role remaining the same throughout.

In addition, the producers, composer, and cinematographer and many key creatives remained on board for the duration, creating one clear and virtually uninterrupted line from the opening shot of the first film to the closing montage of the fourth. Then again, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia muddied the waters with Lethal Weapon 5 and 6, which a lot of people graciously accept as being entirely canonical to the property.