Editing Highlander (franchise) (section)

===''Highlander: Endgame'' (2000)===
{{Main|Highlander: Endgame}}
''[[Highlander: Endgame]]'' was released to theaters on September 1, 2000. Rather than a direct sequel in the ''Highlander'' film franchise, it followed the continuity of the recently ended ''[[Highlander: The Series]]'', acting as a franchise bridge by starring both previous film protagonist Connor MacLeod and TV series protagonist [[Duncan MacLeod]]. In the canon of the TV series, the events of the original ''Highlander'' film still took place but the Prize was not won because many immortals still lived on Earth in 1985. The series protagonist Duncan is introduced in the first episode as another immortal of the Clan MacLeod who was born decades after Connor left the clan. Christopher Lambert appeared as Connor in the first episode, revealed to have been Duncan's teacher in the ways of immortals.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.flipsidearchive.com/highlanderendgame.html|title=Highlander: Endgame - Movie Review - Flipside Movie Emporium|access-date=2014-04-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140428051648/http://www.flipsidearchive.com/highlanderendgame.html|archive-date=2014-04-28|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Taking place in the present day, the film's antagonist is Jacob Kell ([[Bruce Payne]]), an evil immortal who ignores the rules of the Game. Kell holds a centuries-old grudge against Connor MacLeod and kills his adopted daughter Rachel Ellenstein when he bombs their old antique shop in New York City. Following Rachel's death, Connor is disillusioned with life and spends a decade in a hidden fortress known as the Sanctuary. When Kell discovers the Sanctuary ten years later, Connor and Duncan join forces against him. Believing neither of them can defeat Kell alone, Connor, tired of his immortal life, insists he be killed by Duncan so the younger MacLeod may possess their combined power. Duncan reluctantly does so and defeats Kell.

Critical reaction to ''Highlander: Endgame'' was negative. It holds a 11% "rotten" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 52 reviews,<ref>[https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/highlander_endgame/ Rotten Tomatoes entry on Highlander: Endgame], retrieved January 15, 2010.</ref> higher than ''Highlander II'' and ''Highlander III'', both of which hold ratings of 5% or lower,<ref>[https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/highlander_2_the_quickening/ Rotten Tomatoes entry on Highlander 2], retrieved January 15, 2010.</ref><ref>[https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/highlander_3_the_final_dimension/ Rotten Tomatoes entry on Highlander 3], retrieved January 15, 2010.</ref> and a score of 21 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on 16 reviews.<ref>[https://www.metacritic.com/video/titles/highlanderendgame?q=Highlander:%20Endgame Metacritic entry on Highlander: Endgame] {{Dead link|date=September 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}, retrieved January 15, 2010.</ref>

The film was a [[box office bomb]], managing to garner $15m of its $25m budget. The film opened at #3, grossing $5,067,331 in the opening weekend. It went on to gross $12,811,858 domestically and gather $3,031,750 from foreign markets for a worldwide total of $15,843,608. The film however sold better when it was released on DVD. This prompted the producers to release the director's cut version of the film, adding new footage along with better special effects and audio tracks, and re-editing certain parts of the story. The reception to the director's cut was mixed but better than the overall fan reception to the theatrical release.