Trilogies (Ancient Greek: τριλογία trilogia)34 date back to ancient times. In the Dionysia festivals of ancient Greece, for example, trilogies of plays were performed followed by a fourth satyr play. The Oresteia is the only surviving trilogy of these ancient Greek plays, originally performed at the festival in Athens in 458 BC. The three Theban plays, or Oedipus cycle, by Sophocles, originating in 5th century BC, is not a true example of a trilogy because the plays were written at separate times and with different themes/purposes.
Technical changes in printing and film in the mid-to-late 20th century made the creation of trilogies more feasible, while the development of mass media and modern global distribution networks has made them more likely to be lucrative. Examples of trilogies in modern fiction include the Wayfarers trilogy by Knut Hamsun, the Cairo Trilogy by Naguib Mahfouz, The Border Trilogy by Cormac McCarthy, and His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman. A pivotal example is J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings (1954–1955), which was written as a three-volume novel but published (for economic reasons) as a trilogy, thus helping to popularize the trilogy format.
Main article: List of feature film series with three entries
The increase in sequels in recent years means there are a number of franchises that have produced three films, often with II and III appended to their title as an indication. Less obvious film trilogies include:
The term is less often applied to music. One example is the Berlin Trilogy of David Bowie, which is linked together by musical sound and lyrical themes, all having been recorded at least partly in Berlin, Germany. Another example can be found in the Guns N' Roses songs "November Rain", "Don't Cry" and "Estranged", whose videos are considered a trilogy.5 Tyler, the Creator's Wolf Trilogy (named by fans) consists of his first three albums; Bastard, Goblin, and Wolf. The Weeknd's 2012 compilation album Trilogy is a remastered and remixed collection of his 2011 mixtapes House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence. Taylor Swift's eighth studio album, Folklore, contains the songs "Cardigan", "August" and "Betty", a trilogy that tells a story of a love triangle.
Creators of trilogies may later add more works. In such a case, the original three works may or may not keep the title "trilogy".
"The Marshall Trilogy". Tm112.community.uaf.edu. Archived from the original on 7 January 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20150107021630/http://tm112.community.uaf.edu/unit-1/marshall-trilogy-1823-1832/ ↩
"Tor.com: "Trilogy, why for art thou?"". 26 December 2013. https://www.tor.com/2013/12/26/the-trilogy-why-for-art-thou/ ↩
From the compound prefix τρι- tri- "thrice", the noun λόγος logos "discourse" and the feminine abstract suffix -ία -ia; see τριλογία, τρι-, λόγος. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%CF%84%CF%81%CE%B9- ↩
Harper, Douglas. "trilogy". Online Etymology Dictionary. https://www.etymonline.com/?term=trilogy ↩
Dombal, Ryan. "Revisiting the Magnificent Excess of Guns N' Roses' Use Your Illusion Video Trilogy." Pitchfork. N.p., April 15, 2016. Web. September 28, 2016. ↩
Patterson, John (2021-09-23). "Game Cred: Causality, Generational Trauma, and Failed Masculinity in 'The LISA Trilogy'". Film Cred. Retrieved 2022-09-29. https://film-cred.com/game-cred-the-lisa-trilogy/ ↩
"Douglasadams.com creations". Douglasadams.com. Retrieved 2 December 2017. http://www.douglasadams.com/creations/hhgg.html ↩
"New Jersey Trilogy - Everything2.com". Everything2.com. Retrieved 2 December 2017. http://everything2.com/title/New+Jersey+Trilogy ↩
Surrell, Jason (2005). Pirates of the Caribbean: From The Magic Kingdom. Turtleback Books. ISBN 978-1-417-692-74-3. 978-1-417-692-74-3 ↩
Singer, Michael (2007). Bring Me That Horizon: The Making of Pirates of the Caribbean. Disney Editions. ISBN 978-1-4231-0319-6. 978-1-4231-0319-6 ↩
"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" (PDF). Disney Enterprises, Inc. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 31, 2012. Retrieved November 14, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20120131161944/http://media-file.net/7/onstrangertides/images/PIRATES%204%20PRESS%20KIT%20FINAL.pdf ↩
"Exclusive: Gore Verbinski Reflects on His 'Pirates' Trilogy and the Intense Production of the Sequels: "It Was Survival Mode"". Collider. 14 March 2021. https://collider.com/gore-verbinski-interview-pirates-of-the-caribbean-2-pirates-3-production/ ↩