RANKED

Every MCU Movie, Ranked (and in Order)

By Matt Oakes · July 30, 2014

No franchise in movie history has been bigger than the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Since Iron Man kicked things off in 2008, the MCU has released 38 films that have grossed more than $30 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film franchise ever. Under producer Kevin Feige, it pioneered the shared-universe blockbuster, built a decade-long Infinity Saga that peaked with Avengers: Endgame (which briefly became the highest-grossing film of all time) and gave us Black Panther, the first superhero movie ever nominated for Best Picture.

The years since Endgame have been bumpier. The Multiverse Saga brought sprawling Disney+ tie-ins, superhero fatigue and The Marvels, the lowest-grossing film in the franchise’s history, along with genuine bright spots like Spider-Man: No Way Home and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Now the Avengers are back: Joe and Anthony Russo return to direct Avengers: Doomsday, with Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, in theaters December 18, 2026, followed by Avengers: Secret Wars a year later.

This ranking covers every MCU movie (no Disney+ series or specials). Avengers: Endgame tops my list and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania sits at the very bottom, with a few hot takes in between. Yes, The Winter Soldier really is down at #28. Here’s every Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, ranked.

Originally published in July 2014 as “A Definitive Ranking of Marvel’s Movies.” Updated in October 2026 with every MCU film through Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Quick list:

Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
The Avengers (2012)
Iron Man (2008)
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Iron Man 3 (2013)
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Black Panther (2018)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Doctor Strange (2016)
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
Thor (2011)
Black Widow (2021)
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
Captain Marvel (2019)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
Ant-Man (2015)
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Captain America: Brave New World (2025)
Thunderbolts* (2025)
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
The Fantastic 4: First Steps (2025)
Eternals (2021)
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
Iron Man 2 (2010)
The Marvels (2023)
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)

38. ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA (2023)

Ever since Endgame, the Marvel machine has seen its meticulously-plotted designs start to come apart at the seams. Another entry to grind its wheels forward in this shared universe is Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and let me tell you: it’s not good folks. It is very, very not good. Throughout 31 (!!!)

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is bereft of plot, humor, and meaning: a cloying journey into teeny tiny stakes that only amplifies how rudderless the MCU has become in its multiverse era. The worst MCU entry to date.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

37. THE MARVELS (2023)

The lowest-grossing film in MCU history is a body-swapping team-up between Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) and Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), whose powers get entangled so they switch places every time they use them. Vellani is a delight and a planet where everyone communicates in song is a bold swing, but at a brisk 105 minutes it still feels rushed, choppy and weightless, with a villain nobody will remember. A lot of energy in search of a movie.

▶ Streaming on Disney Plus

36. IRON MAN 2 (2010)

But there was so much that didn’t work. Take for instance the Rockwell-Rourke parrot scene – a perfect metaphor for the film at large in that it just had no idea what it was doing or any sense of what it was trying to accomplish. That or Stark lounging in an over-sized doughnut. That kinda hits the nail on the head as well. Overall, Iron Man 2 is an over-stuffed, derivative and often just plain bad film. I guess you can credit it for bridging the gap between Iron Man and The Avengers but it just didn’t work for me and is not a film I ever seek out for a re-watch.

▶ Streaming on Disney Plus

35. THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER (2022)

It’s probably safe to define Thor: Love and Thunder, the fourth film in the main Thor series and eighth total appearance by Chris Hemsworth as the titular character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, by what it is not. It is not as good as its predecessor Ragnarok. Going a step further, I’d wager to say that it’s likely the worst of the Thor-central flicks – the often maligned Thor: The Dark World included.

Thor: Love and Thunder is an unnecessary addendum to the titular character’s story, one that tries to hide its lack of narrative prowess underneath colorful sets and costumes and behind Hemsworth impressive god bod.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

34. ETERNALS (2021)

Eternals, the twenty-sixth or so entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (it gets confusing when you factor in the various limited series they now have going on over on Disney+), attempts to harness exactly these storytelling skills, unveiling immortal beings called Eternals who live amongst humankind but have remained in the shadows for centuries.

Over-plotted and underwhelming, Eternals is a choppy, self-serious dud for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With a huge cast that fails to get enough individual breathing room, this sprawling should-be-epic fails to connect, despite obvious ambition. If Zhao is such a naturalist, why then does Eternals feel so plastic?▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

33. THE FANTASTIC 4: FIRST STEPS (2025)

The MCU is dead. The MCU is back. The MCU is dead. The MCU is back. Someone put a fork in it. She’s cooked. But just you wait until the next one! And on and on the content carousel spins. Even as someone who had gripes with the Marvel machine well before Endgame, I found myself tossing out more than a few positive reviews in that era.

‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ is yet another reminder that Marvel’s multiverse era is more about setups and disappointments than payoffs. And while this entry is relatively self-contained, it still very much feels like just that: first steps. There’s talent all over this thing, but none of it is enough to make this limp reboot feel anything close to fantastic.▶ Streaming on Disney Plus · Read the full review

32. THE INCREDIBLE HULK (2008)

One of the two Marvel movies that I just straight up don’t like at all, The Incredible Hulk is a certifiable disaster. It’s an impoverished goon of a supertale crunches down its characters and caterwauls its dialogue. I know I’m not entirely alone in finding Ang Lee’s Hulk a vastly superior film but somehow, that is not the popular opinion. This Hulk is just a mess from front to back; as boorish as the Hulk, as inexperienced as Bruce Banner. It’s a generic action figure spectacle from the get-go and never once manages to define its role as a film nor any of its thin stable of characters. Louis Leterrier shot it as if we’re expected to pretend everything we’re seeing is new and yet be familiar enough with the territory to miraculously find it compelling. Let me assure you, it is not.

▶ Streaming on Disney Plus

31. THUNDERBOLTS* (2025)

There was a time when Marvel movies were actually kind of fun. They weren’t always particularly good, sure, and they leaned heavily on a tried-and-true formula, to the point where you could watch one trailer and predict every algorithmic story beat, crocodile tear moment, and ironic quip that would tumble out over the next two hours.

Thunderbolts* has all the right ingredients for success, including an interesting assemblage of talent in front of and behind the camera, but it’s squandered on yet another MCU entry that fails to offer any passion or momentum. Superhero team-ups movies are often greater than the sum of its parts, the opposite proves true here.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

30. CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD (2025)

Sam Wilson is the new Captain America, having been given the shield by Steve Rogers in Avengers: Endgame and later reckoning with what that truly means in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

The MCU remains stuck in neutral with this wheel-spinning fourth Captain America movie, which, much like ‘Falcon and The Winter Soldier’, asks what it means for Sam Wilson to take up the mantle without ever finding a compelling answer. The film itself is mid at best, and Mackie just isn’t up to the task of carrying it on his shield-clad back.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

29. AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON (2015)

What to say about The Avengers: Age of Ultron? It’s certainly a Marvel movie; a spectacle-heavy rationing of motormouthed zingers, busy with whip-pan, slo-mo action montages and done up like a prom queen with CG glitz.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron, though single-serving entertainment sure to delight the masses, is a clumsy effort to consolidate stories that prove irreconcilable. With the MCU amoeba-ing into larger, stranger shapes and sizes, the disparate stable of its characters will only prove further inharmonious.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

28. CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER (2014)

Growing up in the 1940s gives Steve Rogers an excuse to not understand the mechanics of speed dial. But when neo-Nazi’s threaten the freedom of the entire world, you have to wonder why he’s not more focused on contacting his nuclear suit-wearing chum, Tony Stark, or the bad Shakespeare in the park actor/Norse God, Thor.

Give me more super-noir, less hapless explosions. Give me the humor and tragedy of Cap being a man lost in time. Screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely show savvy sneaking in some of the political hot buttons of the day as subtext but fail to tell the more personal story of a lost man adapting to a whole damn new century. But this is bane of the Russo Bros’ film; it takes one step forward, two steps back.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

27. THOR: THE DARK WORLD (2013)

Between Chris Hemsworth’s washboard abs and the razzle-dazzle signature FX of Marvel’s brand, Thor: The Dark World uses blinding awesomeness to cast shade on its portended plotting.

Critics have long knocked Marvel for a lack of originality and constant adherence to formula, but they seem to forget that the reason Marvel continues with this low-risk, high-reward rubric is because they are so consistently satisfying.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

26. SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME (2019)

The post-Endgame Spider-Man sequel sends Peter Parker (Tom Holland) on a European school trip and pits him against Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio, whose illusion-heavy set pieces are the film’s most inventive moments. Gyllenhaal clearly relishes the role, but the film spends too much time on Peter’s grief over Tony Stark and too little letting Spider-Man become his own hero, and the teen romance feels like filler. The mid-credits twist is a doozy, though.

▶ Streaming on Disney Plus and fuboTV

25. ANT-MAN (2015)

After Edgar Wright exited over creative differences, Peyton Reed delivered a breezy, small-scale heist comedy that plays like a palate cleanser after Age of Ultron. Paul Rudd is effortlessly likable as ex-con Scott Lang, Michael Peña steals every scene with his rambling, rapid-fire story montages, and a climactic fight on a toy train set is a clever use of the shrinking gimmick. Fun, forgettable and a little too eager to plug itself into the larger MCU.▶ Streaming on Disney Plus and Philo · Read the full review

24. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3 (2023)

James Gunn’s farewell to the Guardians is his most emotional chapter and, for me, the most uneven. Rocket’s harrowing origin story, told in flashback, lands genuine gut-punches, and Chukwudi Iwuji’s unhinged High Evolutionary makes for a memorable villain. But the bloated runtime, jokes that feel more like routine than inspiration and a sprawling third act keep it well short of the first film. A heartfelt goodbye that overstays its welcome.

▶ Streaming on Disney Plus

23. CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019)

True to its name, Captain Marvel is pure Marvel. That’s not to say that it’s necessarily a top-tier entry to the now twenty-one film franchise (it is however a worthy middle entry) but the film perfectly sums up what the Marvel brand is: a family-friendly blend of sci-fi and action adventure, led by postured heroes in colorful spandex, lit up by busy, expensive CGI and regularly relieved with whip-snap jokes.

Though it takes few creative risks, Captain Marvel is the MCU’s first big step towards gender equality and makes the blending of its first leading female superhero into its male-dominated stable seem as natural and effortless as it ought to have always been. With all the spectacle and heart you’d expect, Captain Marvel runs on the star power of Brie Larson, Sam Jackson and a scene-stealing Ben Mendelssohn, who make the whole thing more-than-serviceable blockbuster entertainment with positive real-world side effects.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

22. SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS (2021)

Indebted as much to Ang Lee’s Oscar-winning Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as anything within the Marvel Cinematic Universe proper, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is the MCU’s spin on a Wuxia epic.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings introduces new heroes, new landscapes, new powers, and new threats, giving us a more fantasy-inspired taste of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. But stiff performances, iffy dialogue, and a general sense of familiarity keeps the superhero action grounded.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

21. SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING (2017)

Tom Holland may be the third Spider-Man to crawl across our cineplexes in the last decade but, as a much younger version of Peter Parker than his predecessors, he and director Jon Watts have presented a new enough spin on an old classic.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is a fine entry in the MCU, a superior option to any of the last three Spider-Man efforts, but Jon Watts’ vision doesn’t top Sam Raimi’s nor does his breezy fun times take on the character offer much in the way of substance. Holland may be strong as both Peter Parker and his suited up alter ego, and the MCU world-building is kept to a minimum, but there’s just not quite enough of the goods to really propel this iteration of Spider-Man into primo superhero territory.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

20. DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS (2022)

As a Marvel movie, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is a bit of a mystic mess.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is a tale of a corporate identity crisis; the punchline to what happens when a mediocre Marvel movie and a rip-roaring Sam Raimi joint walk into a bar. It contains some of the very best and very worst material in the whole MCU. But it’s a wild ride.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

19. BLACK WIDOW (2021)

The second to last of the original Avengers to get her own standalone bow (with Hawkeye’s very own miniseries hitting Disney+ late 2021), Black Widow has been long overdue her turn in the spotlight for some time now.

If you can ignore the fact that admittedly minor-note Black Widow fits oh-so-awkwardly into the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline, you’ll find one of the franchise’s more entertaining solo entries. At least for most of the movie. Florence Pugh and David Harbour are fantastic additions to the MCU even if they outshine titular star and franchise mainstay Scarlett Johansson as she (presumably) exits the frame for the last time.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

18. THOR (2011)

One of Marvel’s earliest superhero movies, Thor is a surprisingly fresh take on the superhero movie. Our main hero, the god of thunder Thor, is an inherently silly character. He wields a giant magical hammer that has a name, wears a silly giant red cap, a thick plate of armor and sports a blond lion’s mane as hair.

Ultimately, we can thank Branagh for adding layers of complexity to a character that just seems downright difficult to translate into film, as Thor really had massive potential to simply be terrible.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

17. ANT-MAN AND THE WASP (2018)

Bigger seems to always be better in the eyes of many studio executives but Ant-Man knows better. If only by contrast, Ant-Man and the Wasp’s shrunken stakes and narrower focus on character gives it that much more super-powered punch. Threats of world domination, universe destruction or the untethering of reality itself only carry so much weight, particularly when they’re doled out as often as an E.

Ant-Man and the Wasp is the closest Marvel has ever gotten to cute and cuddly, delivering a family movie filled with warmth and hope – and some nifty little uses of size – a needed small-scale anecdote from Marvel’s knack for everything yuge.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

16. DOCTOR STRANGE (2016)

With Doctor Strange, Marvel pries open a doorway to a new realm, one filled with magic and mysticism, dark dimensions and malevolent deities. Filled with heady three-dimensional visuals and eye-bulging psychedelic set pieces, Doctor Strange fulfills the promise of its inspired marketing push. That is, it is as close as Marvel has come to being Inception on crack. And let me assure you, that is a good thing.

Doctor Strange sparkles with inebriating visual pop but suffers the issues common to Marvel formula: a weak villain, over-reliance on ill-fitting witticisms and a third act universe-aggressive threat complete with an inter-dimensional portal. Benedict Cumberbatch’s mastery of megalomaniacal peculiarities prove a fine match for Strange’s odd skill set though and it’ll be interesting to see how his character fits in with the rest of the Avengers when the time comes.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

15. DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE (2024)

Reviewing Deadpool & Wolverine is about as useful as tits on a duck-billed platypus. After two movies featuring the foul-mouthed merc, played with childlike glee by Ryan Reynolds, indulging in cartoonish violence, 13-year-old-approved potty humor, and gratuitous fourth-wall-breaking meta commentary, viewers have already decided if this slice of the intersectional superhero universe gets them going or not.

Deadpool & Wolverine’ is a chaotic venture into the margins of the multiverse that delves into the entire spectrum of superhero history while unapologetically embracing its signature irreverent humor and over-the-top violence. Viewers’ mileage will depend entirely on how they have previously received what Deadpool is dishing up, though the unruly, rebellious, and explicit nature has been faithfully maintained in the transition to the Disney-run MCU.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

14. SPIDER-MAN: BRAND NEW DAY (2026)

Filling in the gaps since we last saw him, the film opens with a montage of Spider-Man putting Scorpion (Michael Mando) behind bars, fending off the red-clad ninjas of the Hand, and generally stuffing the jail cells of the Department of Damage Control. Years pass, but Peter’s solitude only deepens. Ned and MJ have forgotten him entirely, Aunt May is dead, and whatever personal life he once had has entirely disappeared.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day toys with the weight of self-erasure as Peter Parker disappears wholly into Spider-Man in this third sequel that still manages to remind audiences why (occasionally) superhero movies can still work. It’s among the best of the post-Endgame MCU.Read the full review

13. BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER (2022)

Not everything works in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and I have a not-insignificant list of gripes, but Ryan Coogler’s film remains one of the best movies to come from the MCU and easily the best of its largely disappointing phase.

Chadwick Boseman’s unexpected passing informs the heart and soul of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, a richly-textured, thematically-layered follow-up to one of Marvel’s biggest and best. The production elements shine and the writer-director Ryan Coogler finds a way to move the story forward while paying genuine tribute to his friend and collaborator. The best of Phase 4.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

12. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2 (2017)

In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, writer-director James Gunn reintroduces his rag-tag group of assholes as they defend priceless batteries from a monstrous gnash of teeth and tentacles, playing the whole fight under Electric Light Orchestra’s “Mr. Blue Sky” while the camera follows Baby Groot dancing in the foreground. It’s a brilliant little scene that sets the sardonic tone and chipper, music-heavy good vibes of the whole movie.

As watchable as a Baby Groot dancing GIF, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 merrily continues the saga of its lovable band of space rascals. Upping the emotional ante and providing truly stunning intergalactic set pieces while leaning heavily on a pitch perfect playlist, James Gunn creates a sequel that, while very much in the same vein of its forebearer, is an effortlessly enjoyable summer blockbuster sure to please most inhabitants in this galaxy.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

11. BLACK PANTHER (2018)

Heavy hangs the crown in Black Panther, a Marvel movie whose real-life cultural and societal implications overshadow its storytelling prowess. The import and impact of Black Panther as a chapter in film history cannot be overstated.

Black Panther is a historic landmark of representation and inclusion on the big screen and has many elements to celebrate, most notably its kick-ass cast and many production marvels. The story and action spectacle however languish; the former – familiar; the later – busy and uninspired. Black Panther does, however, boast one of the MCU’s most fully-developed villains in addition to one of its all-around best ensembles.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

10. AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018)

Over the course of 18 films and 10 years, Kevin Feige and his army of Marvel men and women have laid a pretty nifty foundation upon which the Marvel Cinematic Universe rests.

Avengers: Infinity War draws together its ridiculously large ensemble to tell an epically-sized story with purpose and vision, sparring no shortage of the zippy one-liners and computer animated wizardry that Marvel is known for. The third Avengers flick likely won’t win over new converts but should satisfy fans craving a bloody showdown with Thanos, even if the movie ultimately fails to be self-contained.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

9. CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER (2011)

Captain America: The First Avenger is a vintage superhero flick set in the Golden American age but with enough modern special effects and Nazi baddies to make it a load of fun. From the get go, we know that Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) embodies the American spirit, although his 90 pound shrimp-like body and short stature hardly make him a perfect candidate for the war effort.

While some may tire of superhero origin tales, Captain America‘s origin makes for a perfect first act; setting up the pathos of the character and his strong motivations. It’s endearing fun with just enough heart and drama to captivate an audience. It’s the last step before The Avengers and does a great job of putting the final pieces in place while getting us all really stoked for what’s next.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

8. IRON MAN 3 (2013)

With Iron Man 3, the Marvel brand has tried something new and shown that they have some tricks up their sleeves after all. Up until now, every Marvel film has been an origin of sorts – Iron Man, Thor and Captain America all fleshed out the roots of individuals who were soon-to-be involved in a superhero collective and even Iron Man 2 served as more as an introduction to The Avengers than a story functioning aptly on its own.

There is a necessary amount of forgiveness involved in the Marvel Movie Universe but if you’re willing to engage and let this world full of superheroes and supervillians continue to grow and spread it’s roots, then this is a worthwhile stepping stone along the long and winding road. However inconsequential the end result is, Iron Man 3 is buttery blockbuster fare hitting all the right notes.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

7. CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR (2016)

Ever since Samuel L. Jackson cropped up in an eye patch in Iron Man’s post-credits, Marvel films have had their eye firmly planted on the future. Setting up incoming installments has been a precarious process, resulting in such face-palmingly clunky sequences as the infamous Thor in a Bath Tub” scene and the entirety of Iron Man 2.

Captain America: Civil War is the Marveliest Marvel movie yet. And in this context, that’s a good thing. With a battalion of supers at their disposal, Anthony and Joe Russo create a sublime visual feast tucked delightfully within an intriguing and ideologically satisfying narrative. The addition of Spider-Man and Black Panther only helps make the affair that much sweeter.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

6. THOR: RAGNAROK (2017)

Candy-colored Thor: Ragnarok is a retro, dimension-hopping hoot.

Pulsing with side-splitting energy, Thor: Ragnarok thrives working outside the boundaries of the tightly wound, hawkishly overlorded Marvel Cinematic Universe. A neon-plated smear of laughs bursting with colorful characters and jaw-dangling FX work, ‘Ragnarok’ really is something to marvel at when viewed as a comedy even if it’s limited by the usual cinematic universe constraints.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

5. SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME (2021)

Undisputedly the superhero event of 2021, Spider-Man: No Way Home is a breakneck collision of past and present that explores the generational legacy of Spider-Man in unrelentingly entertaining fashion.

A legacy sequel that overdelivers on its promise to wrangle the three generations of Spider-Man together, Spider-Man: No Way Home is essentially a live-action Spider-Verse film that, while juggling a ton of balls, manages to be one of the best superhero movies of its era.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

4. IRON MAN (2008)

The one that started it all. What may have initially looked like a flash in the pan turned out to be a critical darling and a beloved iteration of the character for fans. Remember too that Iron Man came out the same summer as The Dark Knight and still managed to be a part of the conversation. That’s because, it looked like it actually was trying to say something. Seeing a weapons baron face the global implications of WMDs in a post-911 world while the conversation about terrorism was at an absolute peak was meaningful stuff. Seeing a billionaire beaten and forced to reckon with his monsters had a lick of power to it that Marvel’s been trying to top ever since.

▶ Streaming on Disney Plus

3. THE AVENGERS (2012)

Back in 2011, I poorly prognosticated that The Avengers would flop. I thought there was no way to balance five larger-than-life characters, give each the appropriate screen time to matter within the context of some larger, effects-driven summer spectacle and then somehow turn all that into cohesive, set-piece-orientated blockbuster pulp. Sitting in the glorious A/C of a Chiang Mai movie theater, I was happily proven wrong. Not only did Joss Whedon pull off the super-stunt of making it all work, he did it really, really well, delivering one of the most celebrated and critically acclaimed superhero films this side of Christopher Nolan. I shuffled this entry around a bit between first and second place but ended up having to give it the crown spot because of two things…

▶ Streaming on Hulu · Read the full review

2. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014)

Guardians of the Galaxy is the closest thing we’ve ever gotten to George Lucas’ 1977 original masterwork. Like that untouchable trilogy, it may be poorly acted (Chris Pratt aside), but it’s wonky, weird, wild, completely cartoonish and fun as fuck: Star Wars revisited.

For once, you won’t demand “But where are the other guys?!” Gunn’s triumph is happy to exist in its own little universe and for it, trumps Marvel’s other heroes. In 1977, George Lucas gifted the world Star Wars. In 2014, James Gunn gifted the world Guardians of the Galaxy, in all its strange glory.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

1. AVENGERS: ENDGAME (2019)

The Marvel Cinematic Universe began in earnest when Tony Stark proclaimed, “I am Iron Man.” Then Nick Fury stepped out of the shadows and assembled a team. The movie industry shook. Over the course of 21 films, the MCU has become the equivalent of global Saturday morning cartoons; serialized superhero adventure stories that somehow most of the world has bought into.

Avengers: Endgame accomplishes the magical task of wrapping up 12-years of storytelling while leaving the future bright and full of possibility and doing so in a nostalgic, self-referential, character-driven, technically-dazzling whirlwind that no other studio could really even dream of pulling off. It is the best Marvel movie to date.▶ Watch on Disney+ · Read the full review

How to Watch the MCU Movies in Order

Release order is the best way to watch: it’s how the story was designed to unfold, with every post-credits scene setting up the next film. (Disney+ also offers a chronological “timeline order” collection if you want to follow the in-universe chronology, which starts with Captain America: The First Avenger.)

Release order:

Iron Man (2008)
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Thor (2011)
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
The Avengers (2012)
Iron Man 3 (2013)
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Ant-Man (2015)
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Doctor Strange (2016)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Black Panther (2018)
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
Captain Marvel (2019)
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Black Widow (2021)
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
Eternals (2021)
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
The Marvels (2023)
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Captain America: Brave New World (2025)
Thunderbolts* (2025)
The Fantastic 4: First Steps (2025)
Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)

FAQ

What is the best MCU movie?

By my ranking, Avengers: Endgame (2019) is the best Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, followed by Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers.

What is the worst MCU movie?

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) sits at the bottom of my ranking.

How many MCU movies are there?

Thirty-eight through Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026). Avengers: Doomsday, the 39th, opens in theaters December 18, 2026.

What order should I watch the Marvel movies in?

Release order, starting with Iron Man (2008), is the easiest way to follow the MCU. Disney+ also offers a chronological timeline order that begins with Captain America: The First Avenger.

What is the next MCU movie?

Avengers: Doomsday, directed by Joe and Anthony Russo with Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, opens December 18, 2026. Avengers: Secret Wars follows a year later.