The 23 Most Disappointing Comic Book Movies Ever Made
Some of our favorite movies are comic book movies, but when they go wrong -- they go real, real wrong. As a result, we get clunkers like "Batman & Robin," Halle Berry's unfortunate "Catwoman," and that terrible "Fantastic Four" film from 2015. Here are the worst comic book movies we've ever seen.
'The Dark Knight Rises' (2012)
So many problems with the final Nolan-Bale Batman film, including the "bzuh?" death of the lead villain, the stupid all-the-cops-are-stuck-in-the-sewer plot, and the eternal mystery of how Joseph Gordon Levitt just knew that Bruce Wayne was Batman. (Nevermind that Bruce left him with a batcave full of suits not tailored to the new wearer, and no instructions on how to run anything.)
'Thor: The Dark World' (2013)
We still love you, Thor, but your second movie? Not so much. A weak villain (played by Christopher Eccleston) is one of the reasons this is such a shrug of a sequel.
'Kick-Ass 2' (2013)
The magic was gone in this sequel to the terrific first film about a self-made teen superhero, especially the part where Hit Girl is now dealing with school bullies. And boy, did we miss Nicolas Cage as Big Daddy.
'Iron Man 2' (2010)
What could have been a sequel on the level of "The Dark Knight" or, at the very least, "Superman II," turned out to be a largely script-less affair that lurched from scene to scene in between really polished (for the most part) special effects. And we're still getting every choice surrounding Mickey Rourke's meh villain, Whiplash.
'X-Men Origins: Wolverine' (2009)
It's taken at least two movies to fix this poorly thought-out origin story. Now, we finally have Deadpool (in all his snarky, foul-mouthed glory) and "Logan" let Hugh Jackman finally retire the character with grace.
'Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets' (2017)
Sure, it had some eye-popping visuals, but also badly mismatched leads we didn't care about at all. Best rewatch Luc Besson's "The Fifth Element" instead of this box-office bomb.
'Justice League' (2017)
Fans liked it more than critics (what else is new?), but this splashy superhero team-up -- which was supposed to be DC's "The Avengers" -- severely underwhelmed. It felt more like product positioning than a movie and that's never good. And we still LOL at Henry Cavill's distractingly CG-ed upper lip.
'Batman Forever' (1995)
It's not as bad as "Batman & Robin," we'll give you that. And Val Kilmer makes a decent Bruce Wayne. And Jim Carrey as the Riddler? That works. But it's a far cry from the Burton and Nolan Batmans, isn't it? Also, the movie posits that Batman would need help remembering why he became Batman. Noooope.
'Judge Dredd' (1995)
Back when comic book movies were still kind of a joke, Sly Stallone's take on the futuristic judge had us laughing for the wrong reasons. At least "Dredd" did it right.
'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice' (2016)
The good news: Ben Affleck didn't suck as Batman. Just, the script and the villain and the fight scenes and pretty much everything else did in this misfire. But admit it, you love that Martha moment!
'Man of Steel' (2013)
With the news that director Zack Snyder next wants to adapt Any Rand's "The Fountainhead," that whole thing where his Superman bizarrely doesn't want to actually save people makes a whole lot more sense.
'Suicide Squad' (2016)
All that teasing about what Jared Leto's Joker was going to be like and then ... he was barely in the movie. And the villain was the annoying Enchantress? At least Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn killed it.
'Daredevil' (2003)
Hey, Ben Affleck, you've got a great chin and jawline, but maybe superhero movies just aren't for you. And with the Oscar winner seemingly eager to ditch Batman's cape ASAP, it sure looks like he agrees.
'Elektra' (2005)
Back when Jennifer Garner was an ass-kicking spy on "Alias," casting her as a superhero was a great idea. She looked the part, all right, but this movie was just... bad. Even worse, Garner was in nothing but "meh" romcoms and mom roles after this flop. She is finally returning to action in "Pepperment," though. Hurrah!
'Blade: Trinity' (2004)
Yes, we are so there for Ryan Reynolds' abs (and Jessica Biel's) in this sequel. But Wesley Snipes is phoning it in. And sorry, Dominic Purcell: You're an even less convincing Dracula than Gerard Butler in "Dracula 2000."
'X-Men: The Last Stand' (2006)
Now that we know how much of a jerk Brett Ratner was on set, it just confirms that trusting him with the X-Men was a terrible move. We liked some of the new mutants (like Ben Foster's Angel), but after the amazing first two films, this one doesn't begin to measure up.
'Green Lantern' (2011)
Ryan Reynolds in a weird CGI-green suit? In almost entirely CG film? As a superhero no one really cares about? At least this led to Reynolds and Blake Lively's real-life romance. And his box-office redemption as Deadpool.
'Hulk' (2003)
What Ang Lee brought to the Hulk: His own acting (as the model for the Big Green Guy), a hulked-out poodle, and a finale where the hero and his father sit down and talk it out. In other words, we were bored silly when we weren't scratching our heads. And there's no excuse for this crappy CG.
'Batman and Robin' (1997)
George Clooney often jokes that he killed the Batman franchise. He's not wrong. But, mostly, we blame Joel Schumacher (who came up with the nippled Batsuit in "Forever") for this monstrosity.
'Catwoman' (2004)
We knew this was going to suck when we first saw the "no, really, is that a joke?" design for Halle Berry's catsuit. But it's arguably not even the worst thing about this garbage fire of a movie.
'Spider-Man 3' (2007)
Yes, there were too many villains in this lame threequel. But all we can remember is that DANCE SCENE. And the Emo Spider-Man gif that keeps on giving.
'Superman IV: The Quest for Peace' (1987)
We prefer to remember the perfection of the first Christopher Reeve Superman films. We went from believing a man could fly to not believing just how cheap the special effects were. Or that he's now stuck battling someone called "Nuclear Man."
'Fantastic Four' (2015)
What was worse: The pre-release buzz or how director Josh Trank tanked his career with a Twitter rant against the studio? Or the movie itself, which made the so-so 2005 version look pretty darn good in retrospect?
