Since the turn of the millennia, no genre has dominated popular culture quite like superhero stories. From comic books to video games to TV shows to theme park attractions, superheroes have beeneverywhere. In particular, they have overrun the multiplex, from small indie movies to the warring titans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC Extended Universe, plus whatever the X-Men were up to while still at Fox. Every movie was an event, and every event more hotly anticipated than the last.
So it’s with this in mind that we rank the top 45 superhero movies since 2000 – tales of selflessness and valor, full of laser beams and exploding planets. Put on your spandex, don’t forget your mask, and do your stretching exercises. Because this is a doozy.
Spoilers below (obviously).
And for even more 21st century lists, check out our roundups of thebest sci-fi moviesandbest comedies.
45. Kick-Ass (2010)
There have been a ton of low-budget, mean-spirited independent superhero movies made in the past 20 years (hell,Guardians of the Galaxykingpin James Gunn made one himself before joining the big leagues) andKick-Assis arguably the least annoying and the most fun. Co-writer/directorMatthew Vaughnhas a clear love for the source material, an even-filthier comic book byMark MillarandJohn Romita Jr., even though he gets somewhat lost along the way, bogged down by a number of subplots and side characters (the funniest is an Adam West-voiced vigilante played by superhero aficionadoNicolas Cage). Sometimes its own bargain basement cheapness gets in its own way, but there are also plenty of moments of pure exhilaration and it should be applauded, if not for its craft, than for its audacious, in-your-facespirit.
44. Man of Steel (2013)
Arguably the least obnoxious DC movie fromZack Snyder,Man of Steelawkwardly attempts to draw inspiration fromChristopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy without ever understanding what a tonal mismatch that is for the Superman character. It’s a shame, too, that he does so little with such a strong cast, led byHenry Cavill, a gifted actor who never gets to toggle between steel-jawed Superman and nebbish Clark Kent in the wayChristopher Reevedid. (He gets a job at the Daily Planet in the movie’sfinal scene.) Still, few filmmakers can conjure such gorgeously choreographed destruction like Snyder can, even if it opens up a moral can of worms they spent the entire second movie dealing with. Also, while not holding a candle toJohn Williams’ iconic piece,Hans Zimmer’s Superman theme is pretty great.
43. X2 (2003)
Bryan Singer’sX-Menin 2000 effectively kicked off the era of the cinematic superhero, even if the filmmaker didn’t have the money or the support to properly realize the vision of the beloved team. His follow-up,X2, is a noticeable improvement from the very first frames of Nightcrawler’s attempted assassination of the president to the final, teasing glimpse of the Phoenix. Sadly in the years since Singer has proven himself to not only be a total creep but also an incompetent filmmaker, as his subsequent installments (the weirdly embracedDays of Future Pastand the properly dismissedApocalypse) have proven. Still,X2was a lot of fun when it came out, suggesting long-term, sophisticated storylines for some of the comic book industry’s most complex characters. Sadly that never came to pass, instead leaving us with the dismal realization that the main continuity X-Menmovies are mostly bunk.
42. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2011)
Sure, the firstGhost Riderwas a snooze, limply brought to the screen by the same guy who disgracedDaredevil. But the sequel, which also functions as a soft reboot meant to emphasize more of the character’s horror elements while still maintaining a multiplex-friendly PG-13, is an underrated gem. Directed byNeveldine/Taylor, the unhinged team behindCrankand its equally deranged sequel,Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeancetakes almost nothing from the first film besides Nicolas Cage as the title character, amping up the violence and imbibing it with the kind of frenzied kinetic energy that made their filmmaking so exciting in the first place. (Shout out to cinematographerBrandon Trost.) The plot doesn’t make much sense, besides halfheartedly setting up a subsequentGhost Riderfilm that never happened (Marvel Studios now owns the character, although plans for a Hulu series were recently canceled), although the supporting cast, full of colorful character actors (includingCiaranHinds,Christopher LambertandIdris Elba) and the amped up visuals more than make up for a lack of plot cohesion.
41. Punisher: War Zone (2008)
At the time ofPunisher: War Zone’s release, an R-rated superhero movie was even rarer than it is today. Part of the poorly utilized (and now defunct) Marvel Knights label,Punisher: War Zoneostensibly served as a follow-up to the abysmal 2004Punishermovie, but functioned more as a wholesale reboot, with an entirely new cast (led byRay Stevenson) and a new creative team under the direction of filmmakerLexi Alexander. There isn’t much toPunisher: War Zonebeyond embracing its pulpy comic book roots, which means cartoonish bad guys and an almost pornographic level of violence (exemplified bythis scene). It was proof that you could make aPunishermovie that had its own irreverent sense of humor and wasn’t just Frank Castle having PTSD and going to self-help meetings for hours on end (something that the Netflix adaptation didn’t understand). It’s a shame there was never a proper sequel to this blood-soaked version of thePunisher.
40. The LEGO Batman Movie (2017)
Considering that Batman (voiced byWill Arnett) was one of the highlights ofThe LEGO Movie, a spin-off was all but assured. The fact thatThe LEGO Batman Movieworks as well as it does as both a LEGO movie and a Batman movie is sort of a miracle. It maintains the characterization fromThe LEGO Movie, with Batman as a man embracing the darkness of his past with a little too much gusto, and inserts this version of the character into a more traditionally Batman-ish scenario, involving the Joker (Zach Galifianakis) and various attempts to destroy the city. But in this Batman adventure everything is gleefully LEGO-ized, from Batman’s relationship with the Joker taking on a weird romantic subtext, to a third act twist what incorporates villains from across the LEGO universe. While it wasn’t the smash the originalLEGO Moviewas,The LEGO Batman Movieremains a gonzo blast.
39. Big Hero 6 (2014)
The first (and so far only) Marvel property appropriated by Walt Disney Animation Studios,Big Hero 6does away with much of the adult-skewing content of the original comic book (created bySteven T. SeagleandDuncan Rouleau), which isn’t entirely surprising considering one of the villains in the comic is the Everwraith, a spectral projection of those that died in the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear attacks. Eep. Disney’sBig Hero 6instead focuses on teen genius Hiro Hamada (Ryan Potter), who is getting over the loss of his older brother by constructing a friendly nurse robot. Eventually Hiro uncovers the truth about his brother and the movie takes on the shape of a classic team-up film, as each of the overachieving nerds discovers what it takes to become an actual hero. And Baymax, the inflatable robot voiced by Scott Adsit, is an adorable tour-de-force, an iconic character that you can’t help but want to hug. Surprisingly emotional and gorgeously designed using state-of-the-art technology,Big Hero 6is sophisticated and deeply felt.
38. Sky High (2005)
WhenSky Highwas released into theaters in 2005, nobody paid much attention. But over the years, a strong but dedicated fanbase has arisen for the film (sadly it doesn’t hit Disney+ until this December) – and for good reason, too. BecauseSky Highis really great. EssentiallyHarry Potter-meets-Superman, it focuses on a group of kids who attend a high school for superheroes. (It’s located in a floating space station, hence the title.) With an outstanding cast led byKurt Russell(channeling his goofy, aw-shucks ‘60s Disney movie charm) and energetic direction fromMike Mitchell,Sky Highis only slightly hampered by its rudimentary visual effects and general early-2000’s aesthetic. If there were any justice in this world, we’d be getting aSky HighTV series on Disney+ with the budget it deserves.
37. Doctor Strange (2016)
Here’s the thing:Doctor Strange? Pretty good! The magical side of the MCU was always going to be a hard nut to crack, but directorScott Derricksonand writersJon SpaihtsandC. Robert Cargilldo an admiral job and the movie weaves a spell all its own.Benedict Cumberbatchis outstanding as the gifted surgeon whose physical skills are rendered useless after a tragic car accident and who rebuilds himself with the help of a shamanistic mentor (Tilda Swinton). Sure, the stuff withMads Mikkelsenas an evil monk (or something) doesn’t make much sense, but you’ve got to give the movie credit for going all in on the trippy visuals and for having a hero who essentially annoys the cosmic bad guy into letting him go. It’s unfortunate it has taken so long to get a proper sequel off the ground, although Strange’s appearances inThor RaganarokandAvengers: Infinity Warwere highlights of both films.
36. Chronicle (2012)
At the time,Chronicleseemed like an incredibly novel idea: a found footage take on the superhero genre. Not only would it subvert expectations of what one of these movies would be, but it would also subvert how they’re supposed to be made, since you could hide its lean budget within its extreme stylization. Part of what makesChroniclework is the commitment of the young leads (Dane DeHaan,Alex RussellandMichael B. Jordan) and the inventiveness with which the action is choreographed. For a little while directorJosh Trankseemed like he could be the unconventional savior of the genre, but shortly afterChroniclewas released he was tapped to rebootFantastic Four(with Jordan as part of the team) and the results were … abysmal. ButChronicleremains a neat little film, signaling a direction that the superhero movie could have taken but never did.
