threequel

English

Alternative forms

• 3quel, 3-quel, three-quel

Etymology

Blend of three +‎ sequel

Noun

threequel (plural threequels)

1. (narratology) The chronologically third part of any series of works, especially a movie trilogy.

   Synonym: trequel

   • 1979 May 25, Janet Maslin, “Inside a Floating Hulk”, in The New York Times:

     When last seen, the “Poseidon” had been blown into small pieces. With any luck, this means Mr. Allen can’t possibly make a threequel.

   • 1999 June 30, Katherine Anne Ackley, Perspectives on Contemporary Issues, Readings Across the Disciplines, Harcourt, fourth edition, Thomson Wadsworth (2006), →ISBN, page 267

     On the contrary, last summer saw two jocular parodies of 1970’s blaxploitation films: the minor hit Undercover Brother and Beyonce Knowles’s portrayal of Foxxy Cleopatra, a character in the Austin Powers “threequel.”

   • 2007 January 5, Stephen Humphries, “At theaters in 2007, the year of the 'threequel'”, in The Christian Science Monitor:

     This may be the year of the threequel, but not all the franchises will be successful, predicts Mr. Gray.

   • 2007 April 16, Brian Mciver, “Return of the Threequel”, in The Daily Record:

     THE biggest threequels to date have included some great films.
     The third part of the original Star Wars trilogy, Return of the Jedi (1983), then Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005) were huge hits.

Related terms

• interquel
• midquel
• postquel
• prequel
• -quel
• sequel
• threepeat