Shared universes and crossover movies have become somewhat normalized today, with many blockbusters clearly aiming for them from the get-go. However, true crossovers, where two successful films are mixed together to make an event movie, are rare. Some movies have managed it, like Alien Versus Predator, Freddy Versus Jason, and of course the series of Universal Monsters films that combined Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Wolfman.

Many more crossover films have been canceled before making it to production or were never even imaginable due to copyrights and studios. We present ten crossovers that could have capitalized on two ’80s films’ popularity to create instant classics.

The Muppets & Sesame Street

The two Jim Henson puppet powerhouses both had successful movies in the ’80s. With both in their prime, it would have been a great time to see how they fare in a team-up film. The two have had cameos with one another in the past, so they exist in the same universe. Seeing all the creatures on-screen together for a full adventure would have been an unforgettable children’s movie. Plus, Kermit and Big Bird working together to wrangle so many characters would basically fill out the whole runtime.

The Monster Squad Vs The Lost Boys

The Lost Boys has a side plot where a couple of kids decide to make themselves vampire hunters to mixed success. However, with the right kids, maybe that plotline could run a whole film. With the classic monsters successfully dispatched, the titular squad needs a new foe to take on, and who better than the cabal of traveling vampires?

Seeing the kids take on a group that is as cool and young as the vampires would be a completely new and interesting dynamic for both parties. The rating would probably need to be lowered to accommodate the squad, so it is unlikely any children will be eaten or turned. At the same time, it is unrealistic to think the team would kill the famous vampire members, so maybe this one ends with the vampires being run out of town after a hard-fought and fun battle.

Beverly Hills Cop & Police Academy

The police powerhouse comedies of the ’80s could have gone even further and united. Eddie Murphy going through the academy as a cadet or leading the group in some capacity would have both delivered comedy gold nonstop but also elevated the Police Academy team to a more serious action-comedy level for one film.

Both the team and Murphy’s Axel Foley prove they can crack a tough case in their own films, so together they should be able to solve even the wildest of mysteries. Add in the fact that both movies made hundreds of millions of dollars on their own, and this mashup is practically a license to print money.

Gremlins Vs Critters

Pure small creature chaos. The two most famous miniature monster franchises sharing a screen would be the most insane film on the list. If the critters came down from space at the same time that a mogwai was gotten wet somewhere else, the results could be an entire town completely overrun by creatures with bad attitudes.

The movie would be hilarious and likely beyond fast-paced. Highly doubtful that the two species of monsters could co-exist, which would likely mean there would be a turf war for the ages. The schlock and campy horror would outdo any film before it.

The Evil Dead Vs Child’s Play

Ash from the Evil Dead franchise has fought an insane amount of baddies on-screen and has even gone up against Freddy and Jason in comics, but the face-off that people don’t often clamor for — that would have worked perfectly — is Ash versus Chucky, the possessed doll from the Child’s Play series.

Chucky already uses black magic and voodoo. Have him get his hands on the book of the dead, and this thing practically writes itself. What makes this battle interesting is that both these characters have massive egos and are prone to trash talk. Watching them finally duke it out would be wild and probably shatter more furniture than a tornado in an IKEA.

Indiana Jones In Big Trouble

The archaeologist with a penchant for the supernatural could easily find himself tracking an artifact all the way to the mysterious version of Chinatown shown in the cult classic Big Trouble in Little China. Once he’s there, who better to help him around than Kurt Russell’s trucker-turned-hero Jack Burton?

The two couldn’t be more dissimilar, which makes them one of the most interesting team-ups on this list. Burton’s gimmick in the original film is that he talks big but lets the far more competent allies he’s teaming with tackle most of the threats. This relationship would translate well to him and Indy, who is known for finding a way to succeed no matter what.

Die Hard & RoboCop

What was more successful in the ’80s than mismatched cop partners finding a way to get along and save the day? Bruce Willis playing the haphazard everyman officer alongside the supercop machine would have been strange — but in a good way. The two would find chemistry with Willis making quips at the expense of the android, as well as just reacting to the immense firepower it possesses.

Then there’s the fact that neither of these cops have an issue with letting machine guns do the talking, so the film is sure to be a bloodbath. Yeah, the timelines don’t work, and it is difficult to justify why they would be together, but doesn’t imagining John McClane picking up RoboCop’s arm and firing it dissuade those concerns?

Rambo Vs Predators

While either of these characters could have interesting crossovers with many of the others on this list, they would mesh best in a fight to the death with one another. Rambo has proven that he is a cunning, ruthless survivalist who thrives when under threat in the jungle.

While we have seen the predator in a multitude of environments, the jungle was its original hunting ground, making this a fine set piece for the two to have a deathmatch. And while one predator is an almost insurmountable threat, for this epic crossover, adding a couple more to the mix is the way to go. Rambo usually works alone, and a crossover film this brutal needs a high body count. The deranged veteran would kill a few of the galaxy’s greatest hunters with traps and strategy before having an epic one-on-one fight for the finale.

Ghostbusters & Beetlejuice

Coming off their insanely popular debut film in 1984, the Ghostbusters could have faced off with any supernatural film character and made it work. Who better an ally/foe than the raunchy spirit who had his own hit movie four years later? The two films both had major cultural impacts, and it was in part due to them bringing a lighter tone to what was typically darker film subject matter with death, ghosts, and demons.

A team-up between the busters and Beetlejuice would be a blast, but the real money is in a full-fledged face-off. The number of quips and chaos that would unfold as the ghost-hunting heroes attempted to catch the trickiest specter of all-time would have made a cult classic for sure. The idea must have made it around at some point as it was used for a short-lived live show at Universal Studios.

Escape From The Terminator

The Terminator comes up in any discussion of films that people wanted crossovers from, and it even had a few in comic book form with RoboCop, Alien, and Predator. However, the crossover that would have fit perfectly along the original film would have been John Carpenter’s Escape From New York. 

Both films are futuristic sci-fi action movies that follow a hero’s mission to escort someone important. The film could have revolved around the Terminator appearing in the future to claim another target that will play a part in history, only this time Snake Plissken is brought in to protect the high-value target at all costs. Watching Kurt Russell’s famous character battle Schwarzenegger’s would have been the best action face-off of the ’80s.