Batman Begins Set the Origin Story Template That Rebooted Bond, Star Trek, Robin Hood and Planet of the Apes

Origin stories existed long before Batman Begins, but its success helped popularize a very specific kind of Hollywood reboot: take an aging franchise, go back to the beginning, and show audiences how the icon became the icon.

Casino Royale reset James Bond using the same blueprint a year later

Casino Royale followed the same blueprint just a year after Batman Begins. Instead of simply casting another actor as James Bond and sending him on another adventure, the film meets him as he is earning his 00 status.

The film then shows how falling in love and being betrayed is what turns him into the cold, emotionally guarded womanizer audiences have watched for decades.

Star Trek rebuilt its crew from Kirk's birth in 2009

Star Trek did the same thing in 2009. Instead of simply recasting Kirk and Spock and sending them on another adventure aboard the Enterprise, the movie literally begins with Kirk's birth, then jumps through his childhood before following him into Starfleet.

From there it shows exactly how Kirk, Spock, Bones and the rest of the crew all eventually end up together aboard the Enterprise.

Even Robin Hood, an 800 year old story, got the prequel treatment

Even Robin Hood, an 800 year old story from English folklore, was not spared. Rather than telling another adventure about the legendary outlaw stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, the entire movie is structured as a prequel.

It explains how an ordinary archer named Robin Longstride eventually became Robin Hood.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes took the approach the furthest

Perhaps no reboot took the go back to the beginning approach further than Rise of the Planet of the Apes. The original Planet of the Apes had always been built around discovering the strange planet where intelligent apes ruled over primitive humans, culminating in the famous twist that this seemingly alien planet was actually Earth, hundreds of years in the future.

Instead of dropping viewers into a world already ruled by apes and asking, "What happened here?" Rise of the Planet of the Apes went back to the beginning and showed exactly how we got there.

Basically, Batman Begins helped turn the origin story into Hollywood's reset button. Which of these origin story reboots do you think pulled off that formula best?