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Distributed by Sony Columbia, The Legend of Zorro had a production budget of $75 million. It opened in the US on October 28, 2005, landing at #2 with an opening weekend take of $16.3 million, a lot less than what the first film opened to. What they didn’t count on was the strength of a low budget horror sequel, for it was beaten to the top spot by Saw II, which surprised everyone by opening to nearly twice as much as The Legend of Zorro. Saw II eventually ended up earning more than The Legend of Zorro in the long run, resulting in plenty of yearly sequels. Zorro, however, did not see another sequel. Taking just $46.4 million at the US box office, the second film earned less than half of what the first one managed. An overseas gross of $95.9 million helped push the film to a worldwide total of $142 million. It’s okay, but a major disappointment when compared to the $250 million worldwide that The Mask of Zorro earned.

Reviews were mostly negative, with many feeling that it came across as an unnecessary and mindless action adventure sequel. Even some of the positive reviews lamented on how this was no better than the first film.

It had also been seven years since The Mask of Zorro was released. A sequel should have come sooner. Since then, swashbuckling action adventures such as The Mummy and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl had upped the ante, both of which had also introduced elements of fantasy.

One of the main draws for The Legend of Zorro was the action. Some of the stunt work for the first film is incredible and unfortunately, this sequel fails to top any of it. It’s good, yet one can’t help but compare to what we’ve seen before. The action is also somewhat lacking, for after the opening sequence it’s a little over half an hour until the film delivers another action set piece involving Zorro. The climax on a train does have its moments, though.

A film that concludes with the hero married and starting a family would generally imply that it’s all happily ever after. So do audiences really want to return for a sequel involving that family? The closest comparison here would be The Mummy Returns, which was successful but is largely remembered for its faults and rushed special effects. In The Legend of Zorro, the iconic hero is now a husband and a father and audiences get to see him having a family spat and getting drunk. Basically, it’s bogged down with moments that feel more suited to a soap opera rather than an action film.

Also, why split up Alejandro and Elena? It’s a misguided decision that removes one of the great things about the first film, their banter and chemistry together. A story where they’re still a couple could have worked, generating humor as they quarrel on strategies and fight the bad guys together, disagreeing (or even complimenting) each other’s approach. A small part of this exists in the final third once Elena and Zorro finally work together to take down Armand. Given that it was initially considered, one also has to wonder what kind of film this could have been if Elena herself donned a mask and joined in on the action.

As a fan of The Mask of Zorro, my expectations for the sequel were rather high.

I viewed The Legend of Zorro at a preview screening and was ultimately left under-whelmed. It would be nice if this franchise had continued, but the result here felt like an unnecessary cash-in made up of leftovers. However, this might not be the last we’ve seen of the masked outlaw. Sony Columbia did pick up the rights to Isabel Allende’s novel Zorro. As an origin story on the character, it would suggest that they intend to reboot the franchise. 20th Century Fox also have a Zorro project, taking him in a completely different direction by producing the dark, post-apocalyptic Zorro Reborn. Let’s just hope that neither film borrows from The Legend of Zorro by featuring a horse on a train. I mean, just look at what happened to Disney’s The Lone Ranger.

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