I would honestly be bummed if Shyamalan ever quit making movies. Unlike guys such as Michael Bay and Roland Emmerich who have different goals of just making movies that are fun and entertaining and whatever, M. Night Shyamalan seems to want to make earnest movies, stories that have an effect on people and matter to viewers and maybe even the culture. It’s just that his slump has lasted longer than most people in his position.
But a point of positivity: it’s lasted longer because he has shown resiliency and not simply hung up his megaphone. Packing up and going home would be admitting defeat, and the persistence he has shown is admirable, in a way. He hasn’t even really slowed down, releasing a movie every second year since 2000, plus one extra year to finish After Earth. Maybe his other projects were too rushed! Maybe that extra year’s delay in After Earth will finally result in M. Night Shyamalan’s return to the greatness promised by The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable.
One can only hope.