Before we even start counting down our ranked list of every single Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, we think it's necessary to take a moment to acknowledge just how massively the MCU has changed the game since its inception in 2008. Across 34 films, 11 Disney+ streaming series, and a couple of one-off specials, the screen adventures of Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Panther, Spider-Man, the Guardians Of The Galaxy and more have given audiences an incredible interconnected comic book movie universe — one that spans Earth, the microscopic Quantum Realm, and even the infinite, mind-boggling expanse of the Multiverse. It’s the ultimate playground for films packed with amazing adventures, serious spectacle, and considerable character development, told across over 16 years of cinematic storytelling.
With Deadpool & Wolverine heralding in the beginning of the, er, Endgame for Kevin Feige and co’s Multiverse Saga this summer, Team Empire felt it high time to assemble our Avengers – or, rather, the MCU die-hards among the editorial team behind the world’s biggest and most beloved film magazine – and re-rank every movie in the franchise so far. It was our own veritable Civil War of epic proportions, with more bickering than a Guardians Of The Galaxy action sequence and a greater number of outcomes than Doctor Strange looked through in Infinity War. But after multiple Time Stone rewinds, a reality-breaking spell, deliberations that lasted longer than an Eternals family reunion, and more swears than Deadpool’s first Marvel Cinematic Universe outing, the final list is here, perfectly balanced as all things should be.
If you want to know more about us and the motley crew of critics who helped compile this ranking, then head this way. And if you want to stream the movies from this list, then you can find them all (with the exception of Jon Watts’ Spider-Man trilogy) on Disney+ right now. But without further ado, check out Empire’s brand-new, official MCU ranking below — we hope you love it 3000. And if you don’t? Well, sun’s getting real low…
Every MCU Movie Ranked — From Worst To Best
34) The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Director: Louis Leterrier
Starring: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt, Tim Blake Nelson
AKA the red – green? – headed stepchild of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Rights issues with Universal have kept Marvel from trying again with a stand-alone Hulk movie, so The Incredible Hulk stands as an outlier in the series. The film had a notably troubled production, with Edward Norton re-writing the script and disagreements about casting, and the result is a movie that feels more compromised than its stablemates, though its central star makes a solid stab at portraying Banner's pain and rage. Lessons were learned on this film, Marvel figuring out what it didn't want to do in future, while also finding a way to handle the Hulk himself. Anyone want to indulge in a little 'What If', and ponder what would happen had Norton stayed in the role? Nah… Us neither.
Read Empire’s The Incredible Hulk review.
33) Iron Man 2 (2010)
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Mickey Rourke, Sam Rockwell, Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson,
Even the Iron Man movies aren't immune from Tough Sequel Syndrome, and the second outing for Tony Stark largely tries to recapture what made the original great, without always succeeding. Yet director Jon Favreau still marshals some thrilling sequences, including the Monaco racing scenes and the final drone suit clash. Plus, it introduces Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow, sets up Don Cheadle's take on Rhodey and has the sheer pleasure of a dancing, preening Sam Rockwell as Tony's corporate rival Justin Hammer. Mickey Rourke's Ivan Vanko perhaps doesn't work as well as he might, but Iron Man 2 doesn't tarnish the Stark memory even if it's a lesser entry in the canon.
Read Empire’s Iron Man 2 review.
32) Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Director: Alan Taylor
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Christopher Eccleston, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Kat Dennings
Looked down upon as the far lesser of the four Thor movies to date, The Dark World suffered from a cultural clash behind the camera, as Game Of Thrones veteran Alan Taylor didn't quite seem to mesh with the Marvel machine. And the film's story of dark elves looking to find the Aether (one of the Infinity Stones) and bring their particular brand of chaos back to the universe never really sings. Still, there are pleasures to be found here – Kat Dennings always entertains as Darcy ("Mew mew!") and Tom Hiddleston's Loki is naturally a delight, even if his death fake-out is hardly the most convincing con job. Oh, and we'll never feel OK about those wrong tube directions.
Read Empire’s Thor: The Dark World review.
31) Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
Director: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Kathryn Newton, Michelle Pfeiffer, Michael Douglas, Bill Murray
Okay, so Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania may not have quite turned out to be the ‘Jodorowsky’s Dune within Marvel’ fans had been promised, and its wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey shenanigans might have wound up skewing a little more head-scratching than mind-bending, but Peyton Reed’s jaunt to the Quantum Realm wasn’t without its merits. Talking broccoli, hole-obsessed aliens, and MODOK all lend the Quantum Realm a comic authentic kookiness; of the Ant-Man trilogy, this one has by far the best actual ant-based action; and, despite everything that has happened on- and off-screen since, the introduction of Jonathan Majors’ Kang The Conqueror as the MCU’s then-next big bad was undeniably well executed. Unfortunately, said things that have happened since render an otherwise fair-to-middling, fun flick almost entirely redundant in retrospect. More Quantumehnia than Quantumyaynia, then.
Read Empire’s Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania review.
30) The Marvels (2023)
Director: Nia DaCosta
Starring: Iman Vellani, Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Zawe Ashton, Samuel L. Jackson, Gary Lewis
Coming off the back of the underwhelming Quantumania and the overwhelming Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, The Marvels arrived like a plasma blast to offer a short, sharp plasma blast of high-energy fun to Marvel’s somewhat stuttering Multiverse Saga. Sure, there’s some bigger table-setting stuff afoot with the Kree/Skrulls conflict, but by and large director Nia DaCosta’s first Marvel rodeo is a blessedly simple affair. Part goofy bodyswap caper, part action-packed superhero team-up, DaCosta’s film is driven by the electric chemistry of its leads, with Brie Larson’s Carol ‘Captain Marvel’ Danvers, Teyonah Parris’ Monica ‘Photon’ Rambeau, and Iman Vellani’s MVP Kamala ‘Ms. Marvel’ Khan all joining forces to thrilling effect. And with an all-singing planet, an inspired Cats needledrop, and some slick-as-you-like setpieces thrown in for good measure, you’ll barely even notice how woefully underdeveloped Zawe Ashton’s big bad is.
Read Empire’s The Marvels review.
29) Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
Director: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Lupita Nyong’o, Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta, Danai Gurira, Angela Bassett, Winston Duke
How do you live after loss? How do you keep building when your foundations fall? How do you love while allowing yourself to hurt? These are the questions asked by Ryan Coogler’s deeply personal Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, a film whose very existence is something of a miracle, given the tragic loss of Chadwick Boseman that precipitated its creation. Awash with colour, brimming with raw emotion, and kaleidoscopic in its approach to grief in its many forms, Coogler’s sophomore Black Panther movie may be scrappy and often unwieldy as it juggles canon-shaping commitments with something more soulful and searching, but it’s a beautiful, heartfelt tribute to the phenomenal actor and brilliant man Boseman was. How Angela Bassett didn’t win an Oscar for her stunning, courageous turn as Queen Ramonda we may never know. And that ending? The breeze-swept trees, the crackling fire… *chef’s kiss*.
Read Empire’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever review.
28) Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness (2022)
Director: Sam Raimi
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Xochitl Gomez, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong
Sam Raimi’s first comic book movie rodeo since Spider-Man 3 offers up a welcomely horror-inflected, only somewhat self-sabotagingly chaotic dose of multiversal madness. At the heart of the insanity, Benedict Cumberbatch's returning Master of the Mystic Arts and Xochitl Gomez' multiverse hopper America Chavez just about hold everything together, while Elizabeth Olsen — making a swift, somewhat discombobulating heel-turn after WandaVision's cathartic climax — continues to shine as the super powerful, super traumatised Wanda Maximoff. Sure, there's an argument to be made that the movie's litany of cameos and easter eggs, cool as they may be (and they are very cool), could lose any non-obsessives just looking for a fun blockbuster — but for those who remain, once that climactic musical battle hits, you'll likely be too high on Raimi's dynamic directorial supply to care who’s who or what’s what any more.
Read Empire’s Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness review.
27) Ant-Man And The Wasp (2018)
Director: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Hannah John-Kamen, Randall Park, Michelle Pfeiffer
Peyton Reed's follow-up to his first Ant-venture doesn't quite manage the blend of comedy and of superhero story as successfully, but it remains a watchable, goofy antidote to the bigger stories. Evangeline Lilly gets a little more mileage as Hope this time around, and the Giant Man moments have their charms. It's just saddled with a more forgettable villain and a less compelling story, sometimes feeling as though it's marking time waiting for other films to start. Which is a shame, as Paul Rudd continues to shine, and he pings well off of the likes of Randall Park and Michelle Pfeiffer.
Read Empire’s Ant-Man And The Wasp review.
26) Thor: Love And Thunder (2022)
Director: Taika Waititi
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, Brett Goldstein
Thor: Ragnarok, the electrifying threequel that saw Kiwi auteur Taika Waititi take Marvel’s God of Thunder and transform him from chiselled Shakespearean stoic into the still-chiselled but way cooler and less po-faced Thor we now all know and love, was always going to be a tough act to follow. But even though lightning doesn’t quite strike twice for Taika with Love And Thunder, it remains a distinctly weird and Waititian work all the same. The movie’s eye-popping palette, screaming goats, and unhinged Zeus (courtesy of one Russell Crowe) all feel winningly of a piece with Ragnarok. However, the abiding silliness and sleight hour-and-forty-five runtime do come at a cost — and it’s Natalie Portman’s underserved Jane ‘Lady Thor’ Foster and Christian Bale’s Gorr The God Butcher (who never gets to do any real God butchering) who pay the price. Still, as Korg would say, it’s another classic Thor adventure!
Read Empire’s Thor: Love And Thunder review.
25) Captain Marvel (2019)
Directors: Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden
Starring: Brie Larson, Ben Mendelsohn, Samuel L. Jackson, Annette Bening, Jude Law, Djimon Hounsou
It took more years than it really should have, but the MCU finally produced a movie with a female lead. And in Brie Larson, it found an Oscar-winning actor who could share the screen with (an astonishingly de-aged) Samuel L. Jackson without being acted off of it. Finding novel narrative spins on comic lore and boasting a killer Ben Mendelsohn turn, Captain Marvel has a deeply-embedded feminist stance woven into every fibre of the character and her narratively-complex beginnings that sets it apart from all previous origin stories. Directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck gave Carol Danvers a debut full of promise, taking women superheroes in comic book movies higher, further, faster than they’d ever been before.
Read Empire’s Captain Marvel review.
24) Black Widow (2021)
Director: Cate Shortland
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, Ray Winstone, Rachel Weisz, David Harbour, Olga Kurylenko
Finally, five years too late, Natasha Romanoff got her own movie. Set in the period between Civil War and Infinity War, with Natasha laying low after breaking the Sokovia Accords, it sees her reunited with her Russian 'family' from an undercover mission in her childhood – sister Yelena (Florence Pugh), mother Melina (Rachel Weisz) and Soviet super-soldier father Alexei (David Harbour) – to take down the Black Widow institution. A barely post-pandemic release meant an underwhelming performance at the box office, plus the fact that, oh yeah, Natasha already died in Endgame meant that this prequel-slash-filling-in-the-gaps-quel lost all the stakes and intrigue it could have had were it scheduled earlier in the franchise. Despite its faults, it did give us two great things – an excellent addition to the MCU ensemble in Florence Pugh (whose imminent return as Yelena Balova in Thunderbolts* has us all kinds of hyped), and a fitting solo sendoff for Scarlett Johansson.
Read Empire’s Black Widow review.
23) Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
Director: James Gunn
Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Kurt Russell
James Gunn's first Guardians felt like an immediate Greatest Hits set, and while the sequel suffers a little in comparison, it's far from a Difficult Second Album. Less disciplined than the previous film, Vol. 2 is still a wonderful galactic jaunt as Chris Pratt's Peter Quill confronts his daddy issues in a family reunion with Kurt Russell's living planet, Ego. The soundtrack is killer, while the team's chemistry remains fully intact (Drax and Rocket still thieve scenes), bolstered by the ludicrously adorable new addition of the mayhem-prone Baby Groot. Most surprisingly, it has a big, achy breaky heart courtesy of Michael Rooker's Yondu and Rocket's emotional baggage.
Read Empire’s Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 review.
22) Ant-Man (2015)
Director: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll, Michael Peña, David Dastmalchian
More a comedy-inflected crime caper than a traditional superhero movie, Ant-Man makes the most of its central hero's size-shifting abilities. Paul Rudd is on typically charming form as Scott Lang, small-time thief turned sort-of hero, while Michael Douglas gives good grouch as Hank Pym and Evangeline Lilly gives her all to Hope Van Dyne – though the break-out character has to be Michael Peña’s master storyteller Louis. If it's a minor entry in the series (and one of the lower box office performers), there are plenty of reasons to enjoy the lighthearted heroism and super-shrinking exploits – even if it's hard not to ponder what Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish's version might have looked like.
Read Empire’s Ant-Man review
21) Thor (2011)
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Stellan Skarsgård, Kat Dennings
After Iron Man, this was the MCU's next big risk – bringing a literal Norse God into a realm of robo-suited heroes. Sir Kenneth Branagh proved an inspired choice as director for the film's 'Shakespeare in space' premise, and Chris Hemsworth is well-cast as the hot-headed young warrior, delivering fish-out-of-water gags with ease – but it's Tom Hiddleston who became the instant fan-favourite as scheming ne'er-do-well Loki. The romance plot with Natalie Portman's Jane Foster doesn't quite take off and Taika Waiti’s Thor movies later on in the MCU are undeniably more fun, but the first Thor totally embraces its high-fantasy vibe and doesn't get the credit it necessarily deserves as Marvel's first cosmic-inflected movie.
Read Empire’s Thor review.
20) Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Director: Jon Watts
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau
After his, er, eventful trip to the depths of space in Infinity War, and his eventual un-dusting in Endgame, Peter Parker more than deserved a holiday. Which is why Homecoming sequel Far From Home sends him off to Europe with his classmates. It carries over what worked from the first film – especially support from the likes of Zendaya as the best MJ we've had, Jacob Batalon as bubbly best pal Ned, and Tony Revolori as smug, social media obsessed Flash – and adds in a memorable performance from Jake Gyllenhaal as Quentin Beck, aka Mysterio, who… well, we won't tell. But fair to say, Far From Home delivers some unexpectedly trippy thrills, hormone-powered teen romances, and the same peppy energy that Jon Watts conjured last time around.
Read Empire’s Spider-Man: Far From Home review.
19) Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
Director: Joe Johnston
Starring: Chris Evans, Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Tommy Lee Jones, Hugo Weaving, Dominic Cooper
It's the least great of Cap's three solo films, but the foundations of what makes Chris Evans' Steve Rogers special are there right from this origin story – a benefit of writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely penning both sequels and the later Avengers films – as are fellow fan favourite characters like Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes and Hayley Atwell's Peggy Carter. Director Joe Johnston deserves a lot of credit for making a World War II-set action film that feels akin to a Saturday serial throwback. Between the well-crafted battle scenes, the impressive CGI work on pre-serum Steve, the clever world building, and the fun Alan Menken-penned musical number, The First Avenger is undeniably impactful.
Read Empire’s Captain America: The First Avenger review.
18) Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings (2021)
Director: Destin Daniel Cretton
Starring: Simu Liu, Awkwafina, Tony Leung, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Yeoh, Fala Chen
Following the many farewells of Endgame, the MCU was in real need of new heroes – and within an hour of his introduction, Shang-Chi immediately punched, kicked, and otherwise martial artistically made his way into our hearts. Simu Liu is perfectly cast as Asian-American car valet Shaun, who's actually martial arts master Shang-Chi, having fled from his old life where he was raised by immortal crime lord Wenwu (the incredible Tony Leung). Cue a plot that sends him back to confront his father and his estranged sister Xialing (Meng'er Zhang, also excellent) with the help of best friend Katy (Awkwafina on typically funny form). With its impeccably-choreographed fist-fights – the extended bus brawl is a particular highlight – thematic explorations of grief, and influences from East Asian mythology, Shang-Chi feels like a true extension of the many worlds the MCU contains, even if the climactic CGI-heavy dragon fight doesn't impact as much as the kung-fu.
Read Empire’s Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings review.
17) Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Director: Shawn Levy
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin, Matthew Macfadyen, Dafne Keen
Listen up, you shit-spackled Muppet farts – Marvel’s merc with a mouth returned in 2024, as part of the MCU proper for the first time. Ryan Reynolds donned the tight red suit once again – but he wasn’t alone, teaming up with Hugh Jackman to give us Marvel’s most chaotic, curse-ridden double-act to date. After getting on the wrong side of the TVA’s Mr Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen), Deadpool, aka. Wade Wilson, and Jackman’s Logan find themselves pruned, hanging out in the void with Alioth and a tonne of surprise variants, as well as Emma Corrin’s long-fingered, brain-grabbing villain Cassandra Nova. An unholy meeting of comic-book behemoths, Deadpool & Wolverine broke the billion-dollar mark at the box-office, and made many a Marvel-lover extremely happy – not to mention propelling Dogpool to stardom. Let’s effin’ go!
Read Empire’s Deadpool & Wolverine review.
16) Iron Man (2008)
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Leslie Bibb, Paul Bettany
The seed. The origin. The one even Kevin Feige didn't know would truly work. The rest, of course, is cinematic history, as Jon Favreau and the others took a gamble on Robert Downey Jr. and came up a winner. He instantly defined a role for the ages, and the loose, improv-style (while still acknowledging the efforts of writers Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby, Art Marcum and Matt Holloway) for the story gave the film a fresh energy in a world where superhero films were starting to dominate the box office. The small scale and low stakes seem charming, but Iron Man is no less effective for that. From its cave opening to Tony taking out terrorists, it's a solid foundation upon which a universe could stand.
Read Empire’s Iron Man review.
15) Eternals (2021)
Director: Chloé Zhao
Starring: Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek Pinault, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Kit Harington
Marvel's biggest swing yet saw Oscar-winner Chloé Zhao take up the mantle of director on a film about 10 ancient superheroes that hardly anybody had ever heard of. Eternals has more on its mind than simply good versus evil – asking questions about faith, humanity and dogma. At what point does love trump long-held beliefs? What does it look like to walk away from a fight? A strong, diverse cast allows for some of Marvel's best examples of inclusive representation yet – a deaf super-speedster in Lauren Ridloff's Makkari, and a properly fleshed out gay character in Brian Tyree Henry's Phastos – and Zhao's cinematic sensibilities are evident throughout, with tactile on-location surroundings bathed in golden hour sunlight balancing out the required boatload of green-screen and CGI. Its slow pace and lack of the usual MCU brand of banter led to a mixed response from critics and audiences alike, but the movie’s enjoyed a deserved reappraisal since landing on Disney+.
Read Empire’s Eternals review.
14) Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
Director: James Gunn
Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel
We said farewell to the cosmos’ most motley crew in Gunn’s colourful, scrappy, highly-emotional trilogy-closer, which saw Peter Quill, Gamora and the gang unite in their shared despair and dysfunction in order to save Rocket when he’s taken hostage by Chukwudi Iwuji’s perfection-seeking baddie, the High Evolutionary. Will Poulter gave a scene-stealing performance as golden-skinned manchild Adam Warlock, but it was the core cast of Guardians – and Gunn’s clear love for these characters – that made Vol. 3 one of Marvel’s most moving big-screen outings. And that final Dog Days Are Over needle drop? Chills.
Read Empire’s Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 review.
13) Doctor Strange (2016)
Director: Scott Derrickson
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Tilda Swinton, Mads Mikkelsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor
Adding the Master of the Mystic Arts to the MCU opened a lot of doors (in more than one sense). If Doctor Strange himself fares better in his later Avengers appearances, Benedict Cumberbatch here makes for a solid Stephen Strange, the smug surgeon who loses the fine control in his hands but gains a whole new set of skills. He remains watchable despite being an insufferable arsehole for much of the runtime, surrounded by more likeable performances from Tilda Swinton as the wise Ancient One, and Benedict Wong as Wong. Director Scott Derrickson, usually known for horror movies, doubles down on delivering mind-bending imagery, ensuring that the psychedelic side of Steve Ditko's creation remains thoroughly intact.
Read Empire’s Doctor Strange review.
12) Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015)
Director: Joss Whedon
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, James Spader
Joss Whedon's second team-up movie doesn't have the clean efficiency of his first effort, but it's perhaps better than many give it credit for. Age Of Ultron opens with a classic clash that gives everyone a moment in the sun, delivers a superhero party scene for the ages, and provides plenty of character moments throughout the bombast. Plus, it all winds up with a full city smack-down that lays seeds for the future of the universe (hello, Sokovia Accords), and James Spader is a ton of fun as the titular calculating calculator on legs who quips with the best of them, even if Ultron himself is prone to the ultimate villain misdeed: monologuing.
Read Empire’s Avengers: Age Of Ultron review.
11) Black Panther (2018)
Director: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Letitia Wright, Andy Serkis, Martin Freeman
T'Challa's long-awaited solo film goes far beyond basic levels of black representation in the superhero genre. Every element of Black Panther – from the lavish costumes, to the stunning set design, to the Kendrick Lamar-assisted soundtrack, to the themes explored by the screenplay – is authentically entrenched in African heritage and the African-American experience. It's also a vibrant and gripping Bond-esque action-thriller with car chases, gadgets, and punchy brawls to boot. And that cast! Chadwick Boseman is somehow simultaneously super cool and commandingly regal in the lead; Michael B. Jordan gives us one of the best, most complicated baddies in the MCU as the villainous Erik Killmonger;and Danai Gurira's Okoye (the wig throw!) and Letitia Wright's Shuri ("What are those!") instantly ingratiate themselves as two of Marvel’s most badass women. No wonder it became a box office-smashing pop cultural sensation.
Read Empire’s Black Panther review.
10) Iron Man 3 (2013)
Director: Shane Black
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Ty Simpkins
With the third Iron Man movie, writer-director Shane Black and co-writer Drew Pearce let Robert Downey Jr. loose as Tony Stark, adapting a complicated comics mythology into something that feels fresh, real, and as irreverently funny as you'd expect from the man behind Lethal Weapon and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Tony's post-Avengers PTSD is handled with gravitas, but it also doesn't dampen the fun factor, particularly his team-up with cute kid Harley Keener (Ty Simpkins). Gwyneth Paltrow gets more to do as Pepper, Guy Pearce makes for an engaging villain, the suit-swapping final act is a big improvement on the rock ‘em sock ‘em style robo finales of the previous Iron Man films, and that's all before we've mentioned the man, the legend, the weirdo that is Trevor Slattery (Ben Kingsley). Some hate him, but we're firmly on Team Trevor. Also, it’s a Christmas film — so there’s that, too!
Read Empire’s Iron Man 3 review.
9) Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Director: Taika Waititi
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, Cate Blanchett, Tom Hiddleston
Even Chris Hemsworth admitted he was starting to tire of the way Thor was handled, and the ever-irreverent Taika Waititi was the perfect candidate to give it a shot in the arm (alongside writers Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle and Christopher L. Yost). Destroying so many of the established elements of the Thor mythology – often literally – Ragnarok proves that epic adventure doesn't have to be po-faced and that even someone with the Son of Odin's tragic background can be truly entertaining. Its cosmic jaunt to the colourful planet of Sakaar is an inspired choice, offering an explosive turn from Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, the Hulk arena-smackdown everyone was waiting for, Jeff Goldblum going maximum-Goldblum as the Grandmaster, and the director himself popping up as rocky wannabe-revolutionary Korg. Big, silly fun.
Read Empire’s Thor: Ragnarok review.
8) Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Director: Jon Watts
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Tony Revolori, Michael Keaton, Laura Harrier
After the Amazing Spider-Man reboot proved to be less-than-amazing, a miraculous Marvel-Sony deal gave us one of the most enjoyable Spider-Man movies ever, with Kevin Feige's fingerprints all over it. Fresh from a killer introduction in Civil War, Tom Holland is a believably teenage Peter Parker, selling the web-slinger's quippy humour and gawky charm with ease. Director Jon Watts brings a rebellious spirit, tons of laughs, and pulls off a brilliant twist – and in focusing on Parker's local block in Queens, it's the film that most understands the hero's role as a friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man. Downey Jr. brings star power as Parker's mentor, Marisa Tomei is a winning Aunt May, and Michael Keaton gives his best genre performance since his Caped Crusader days. Just, er, don't mention the whole '8 Years Later' thing, eh?
Read Empire’s Spider-Man: Homecoming review.
7) Avengers Assemble (2012)
Director: Joss Whedon
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner
Much bigger team-ups have followed Joss Whedon's initial effort, but none of them would exist without this. The writer-director fills his six heroes' mouths with snappy, memorable, instantly GIF-able dialogue, bolsters Tom Hiddleston's Loki with a dastardly evil plan, and doesn't skimp on the action, bringing to the screen moments that fans had long dreamed about but only seen on comics pages. Iron Man vs. Thor? Cap working alongside the Hulk? Hawkeye proving useful at last, even if he spends a chunk of the film under mind control? (Sorry Clint). If Team Marvel ever worried that it couldn't be done, they never showed it, and the joins only rarely peek through. A milestone that still holds up, several sequels later.
Read Empire’s Avengers Assemble review.
6) Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Director: Jon Watts
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, Willem Dafoe, Michael Keaton, Jamie Foxx, Rhys Ifans, Alfred Molina
Just when we thought Avengers: Endgame’s ‘Portals’ scene could never be equalled, along came a Spider-Man: No Way Home. Director Jon Watts retains the tonal confidence of Homecoming and Far From Home in a none-more-ambitious Spider-Man movie – one that not only gives Holland's Peter Parker huge amounts of character development, but teams him up with fellow former screen Spideys, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, for some of the most giddily entertaining moments in the MCU. Beyond the joy of seeing Willem Dafoe (excellent in particular) and Alfred Molina return as Green Goblin and Doc Ock, there's so much heart and pathos and depth to the on-screen union of the three Peters, sharing their experiences of loss, love, and life in a way that gets to the heart of Marvel's most iconic hero. Plus, Zendaya and Jacob Batalon are still golden as MJ and Ned, it doesn't lose sight of the teenage kicks of the previous two films, and the emotional wounds cut deep. Set your Spider-Tingle to maximum.
Read Empire’s Spider-Man: No Way Home review.
5) Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014)
Director: James Gunn
Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan
With central characters including a monosyllabic tree and a sentient raccoon, and introducing an all-new intergalactic corner of the MCU, Guardians Of The Galaxy was a risk even by Marvel Studios' standards. But passing the reins to filmmaker James Gunn proved a masterstroke, resulting in a colourful and quippy summer blockbuster that's both freaky and – literally, thanks to its stellar Awesome Mix soundtrack – funky. Gorgeous visuals, rat-a-tat bickering dialogue, and a surprising emotional depth (the opening sequence is a real heartbreaker) make Vol. 1 an absolute cosmic jam. And now that it’s all over, we can look back at this as the start of one of the best movie trilogies of the 21st century. What can we say? It had us hooked on a feeling right from the start.
Read Empire’s Guardians Of The Galaxy review.
4) Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Starring: Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Rudd, Tom Holland
If the astonishing airport fight feels slightly less special now in the wake of Infinity War and Endgame, the third Cap movie nevertheless hits hard with a depth of emotion and rich, grounded storytelling. In cracking open the rift between Steve Rogers and Tony Stark – a dispute both ideological, and later deeply personal – Civil War truly gets under the skin of the MCU's two greatest heroes while enriching the world around them, fleshing out the past and shaping new futures for the franchise. Then there's the ice-cold calculation of Daniel Brühl's villain Zemo, the undying loyalty of Steve to Bucky, the pitch-perfect introductions of Spider-Man and Black Panther, and more of the ridiculously sharp combat that made The Winter Soldier so refreshing. And who are we kidding, the airport fight still rules.
Read Empire’s Captain America: Civil War review.
3) Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Directors: Joe Russo, Anthony Russo
Starring: Chris Evans, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Robert Redford, Sebastian Stan, Frank Grillo
If The First Avenger reveals exactly who Steve Rogers was in the '40s, The Winter Soldier asks who he is in the present day – out of wartime, when political nuance is trickier and enemies aren't marked by obvious fascistic uniforms – and doesn't give easy answers. Its action is grounded and punchy – literally, thanks to some snappy and surprisingly visceral hand-to-hand combat choreography – and in reviving Cap's old war buddy Bucky Barnes as a mind-wiped assassin, it thrillingly evolves one of the MCU's most enduring, complex friendships. Throw in Robert Redford and a brilliant Nick Fury car chase, and this is a modern action-thriller classic – Marvel pic or not.
Read Empire’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier review.
2) Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Josh Brolin
How do you resolve the biggest movie cliffhanger since Empire Strikes Back, and offer a sense of closure in a series largely defined by its continuous nature? The answer is Endgame – part time-travel adventure, part victory lap, part epic showdown that sees the remaining Avengers go all-out to revive their dusted pals and defeat Thanos once and for all. Packed with surprising moments (Portals!), a considerable sense of consequence (we love you 3000, Tony!), and jaw-dropping, decade-in-the-making payoffs (Cap wielding Mjolnir!), it pulls off an incredibly satisfying climax that does right by its central heroes. Yes, it’s a three-hour long, two-billion dollar blockbusting box office juggernaut of near incomparable scale and spectacle, stuffed with enough stars to form its own small galaxy. But it’s also a film about people trying to find a way forwards — and a way back — after monumental loss. And if that final shot of one young man cherishing a dance he promised the woman he loves a long, long time ago doesn’t just melt your heart, then we don’t honestly know what will.
Read Empire’s Avengers: Endgame review.
1) Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Josh Brolin, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Don Cheadle, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Zoe Saldaña, Peter Dinklage
Dread it, run from it, Infinity War arrives at number one all the same – a blockbuster that unites every corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and pays off the franchise's greatest villain: the mad titan Thanos. From its opening Asgardian assault, _Infinity War_is incredibly assured, propelled forward with a narrative confidence that's thunderously exciting, funny, and dramatic from moment to moment. Despite its monolithic heft, the film is fleet-footed, puncturing the portent with hilarious dialogue and giddy character interactions while never undermining the stakes. It's a high wire act that remains genuinely dazzling, and when that ending comes around – a generation-defining cultural moment of a cliffhanger – it still cuts just as deep, even knowing what comes next. As a Mad Titan once said, “The hardest choices require the strongest wills.” And when it comes to choosing the film that encapsulates everything the MCU is, that speaks to this cinematic universe’s cultural impact and cinematic ambition and the constellation of stars — behind and in front of the camera — who made it all possible, well… actually, it just had to be Infinity War. It was inevitable.
Read Empire’s Avengers: Infinity War review.