With the release of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, the DC Extended Universe has come to an end. In honor of the DCEU and its passionate fanbase, here are all 16 feature films in the franchise ranked from worst to best.
16) The Flash
2023’s The Flash offers DC’s cinematic continuity a soft reset, with Barry Allen setting out to change history and save his mother from being murdered when he was a boy. This leads him to team up with himself from a vastly rewritten reality, with an older Batman and Supergirl instead of Superman. And when General Zod and his Kryptonian army come to invade Earth, Barry has to rely on this new world’s heroes to help him restore the reality he came from.
Right from its opening set piece, as Barry rescues people from a crumbling hospital, The Flash’s greatest flaws are all on full display. From shoddy visual effects to forced, unfunny humor, The Flash is an absolute slog that is only elevated by the presence of Michael Keaton and Sasha Calle as Batman and Supergirl, respectively. However, even these additions come far too late in the game and with little to do as The Flash falls flat on its face at record speed.
15) Suicide Squad
2016’s Suicide Squad is set in the immediate aftermath of Superman’s death, with the federal government commissioning a black ops team of presumably reformed villains to defend the country. After a magical supervillain known as the Enchantress razes an entire Midwestern city and threatens to conquer the world, the Suicide Squad is dispatched to stop her. However, among the recruits is Harley Quinn, with Harley’s beau, The Joker, serving as the ultimate wild card in the mix.
Ever since its release, Suicide Squad has been faced with numerous reports of behind-the-scenes tampering beyond filmmaker David Ayer’s control. For his part, Ayer has insisted his true director’s cut has yet to see the light of day, while the only publicly available version of the movie is a disjointed, overly dark mess. Full of unnecessary needle drops, uneven pacing, and uninspired action, Suicide Squad is among the DCEU’s worst entries.
14) Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
2016 saw two iconic superhero-on-superhero clashes, with Captain America: Civil War and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. The latter serves as a sequel to 2013’s Man of Steel, with the world divided on how they see Superman in the wake of the destructive battle between him and General Zod in Metropolis three years prior. Lex Luthor manipulates a distrustful Batman into confronting Superman while creating his own genetically engineered superweapon.
A battle between Batman and Superman on the big screen should be an effusively entertaining spectacle as the two biggest heroes in DC’s vast library duke it out. Instead, Batman v. Superman has the somber and overly self-important tone of a funeral while setting up the intended cinematic universe to follow. In a movie where the Man of Steel and Dark Knight are the marquee characters, it’s actually Wonder Woman who steals the show, dominating every scene she appears in.
13) Black Adam
Dwayne Johnson had been attached to playing the DC antihero Black Adam in some capacity since 2008. Well, over a decade later, this led to Johnson starring and producing a solo Black Adam movie in 2022, with the antihero unleashed in modern times after millennia of imprisonment. As the Justice Society moves in to contain Adam, the ancient despot’s home country of Kahndaq is threatened by an insidious demon.
Black Adam feels both like a superhero movie from around the time of its initial conception, complete with bad CG and awkward needle drops, to a vanity project for Johnson. The eponymous antihero spends most of the movie sulking and trying to look like a badass, with the other characters largely relegated in service to that objective. Moving with an overconfident swagger to match its protagonist, both Black Adam and its prospects of continued relevance fizzled out fast.
12) Wonder Woman 1984
While 2017’s Wonder Woman was one of the standouts of the DCEU, its 2020 sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, fared considerably worse with audiences and critics upon its release. Taking place in Washington, D.C., in its titular year, an artifact is uncovered that gives those who hold it their deepest wishes, albeit at an unexpected price. As the villainous Maxwell Lord and Cheetah use the relic for themselves, Diana Prince finds herself suddenly reunited with Steve Trevor at the expense of her dwindling powers.
On the one hand, Wonder Woman 1984 offers some interesting insight as a character study of Diana, eschewing the war-torn action the preceding film was known for. But what action the movie does have is poorly delivered, lacking the thrills, and with unpolished CG. Broadly, Wonder Woman 1984 works, but the choices it makes to accomplish its story, including the nature of Steve’s return, hurt the overall film.
11) Shazam! Fury of the Gods
2019’s Shazam! was a welcome change of pace for superhero movies at the time, offering a lighter tone, family-friendly focus, and a self-aware sense of humor in how it approached the genre. The 2023 sequel Shazam! Fury of the Gods upped the ante for the Shazam Family as they took on a trio of ancient sorceresses to claim the powers of the gods. This new threat surfaces as Billy Batson faces a crisis in his de facto leadership of his magical siblings.
Fury of the Gods is one of the bigger consequences of the pandemic’s impact on Hollywood, eliminating any momentum behind the burning desire for a Shazam sequel, given the four-year gap. The charm that made the 2019 movie a surprise success just isn’t quite there with its sequel, with Zachary Levi’s performance as the adult hero failing to match the tone and vulnerability of his younger counterpart, Asher Angel. Fury of the Gods never feels greater than the sum of its parts, bringing the cinematic adventures of the Earth’s Mightiest Mortal to a muted end for the foreseeable future.
10) Birds of Prey
Originally titled Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn, the 2020 film picks up after Harley’s escape from the Suicide Squad and subsequent break-up with The Joker. Struggling to find purpose after liberating herself from her abusive ex, Harley finds herself at the head of a makeshift team of superheroes that move to defend a teen from the villainous Black Mask. With her newfound friends, Harley gains a solid sense of self-worth as they dismantle Black Mask’s empire with their chaotic flair for crime-fighting.
Birds of Prey is a fun flick when it focuses on Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn and Jurnee Smollett’s Black Canary, though it does lose some of its momentum about halfway through the movie before refocusing for an entertaining finale. The first DCEU movie to be rated R, Birds of Prey never quite justifies its more mature rating, with the heightened violence unnecessarily unpleasant. Uneven but still largely enjoyable, Birds of Prey exemplifies a cinematic universe in transition, still searching for direction and tone.
9) Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
While Shazam! had to endure a four-year wait for a sequel, Aquaman had a five-year wait before its own follow-up, 2023’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. As Arthur Curry struggles to rule Atlantis and raise a family, an upgraded Black Manta prepares to unleash an undead army to overwhelm the world. Breaking his half-brother Orm out of prison, Arthur moves to intercept his maddened nemesis and save the planet.
For as tumultuous a production history as The Lost Kingdom has, with numerous rewrites and reshoots, including two different Batman cameos being shot and ultimately removed from the movie, there are quite a few enjoyable moments. The goofy charm of the 2018 first film is present, and Black Manta remains among the most magnetic supervillains in the entire DCEU. However, the humor falls flat more often than not, while the underwater CG feels less polished this time around, ending the DCEU on a mixed note, but thankfully not its nadir point.
8) Justice League
The 2017 theatrical version of Justice League, with extensive rewrites and reshoots led by filmmaker Joss Whedon, is more notorious for its production history than the actual film itself. From original filmmaker Zack Snyder leaving the project to reports of Whedon’s behavior during the reshoots, the story behind the making of Justice League has taken on a life of its own, with its own vocal fanbase. The movie has the DCEU’s heroes resurrect Superman in time to deal with the New God, Steppenwolf, who plans to pave the way for a larger invasion of Earth.
To be sure, the theatrical version of Justice League is the inferior iteration of the movie, with awkwardly handled humor, a rushed plot, and the distracting CG to remove Superman actor Henry Cavill’s mustache. What makes the theatrical Justice League rewatchable and a cut above the lower entries on this list are a number of solid character moments, often involving Superman, not present in the director’s cut. As it stands, the theatrical Justice League is a curious artifact from one of pop culture’s most contentious behind-the-scenes sagas, not worthy of the online vitriol it stirred up.
7) Zack Snyder’s Justice League
After years of speculation and rampant fan campaigns, Zack Snyder finally got permission to return to Justice League and complete his vision for the ambitious project. The much-ballyhooed Zack Snyder’s Justice League saw the light of day in 2021, originally as a Max streaming exclusive, nearly four years after the release of the theatrical version. The broad strokes of the story remain the same, with the Justice League assembling and resurrecting Superman to stop Steppenwolf from facilitating his master Darkseid to arrive on Earth.
With a more coherent narrative and consistent tone, Zack Snyder’s Justice League is the DCEU at its most epic and a significant improvement over the theatrical version of the movie. The four-hour runtime is a lot to swallow, but it does keep the story moving at a decent pace. More divisive is the movie’s epilogue, setting up future plans that will never come to pass, no matter how hard even the most toxic fans campaign for it.
6) Man of Steel
DC’s plans to create its own shared cinematic universe began in earnest with 2013’s Man of Steel, introducing Henry Cavill as the fledgling Superman. While learning how to handle his powers, Clark Kent discovers his Kryptonian heritage just in time to deal with General Zod and his freed insurgents from the Phantom Zone. Struggling to earn the trust of the public, Superman makes his stand against Zod when the Kryptonians plan to completely eradicate humanity.
Man of Steel assembles a truly great cast, including Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Clark’s adoptive parents and a sneeringly over-the-top Michael Shannon as Zod. Unfortunately, like much of the DCEU, Man of Steel is an overly somber affair that takes itself far too seriously in its execution. Many of the DCEU’s flaws can be seen in Man of Steel, but the film itself is elevated by its main cast, with Cavill bringing an especially determined focus in his portrayal of Superman.
5) Shazam!
Less than a year after Aquaman reminded audiences that DC movies can and should be fun, the long-gestating Shazam! premiered in 2019. Wayward teenager Billy Batson is adopted into a large family of orphans as he searches for his long-lost mother through Philadelphia. After a magical wizard named Shazam grants him the ability to turn into a super-powered, adult version of himself, Billy and his family face a mad scientist unleashing the Seven Deadly Sins on the world.
What the original Shazam! has that its sequel lacks is emotional depth, particularly with Billy’s heartbreaking attempt to reunite with his mother and his found family’s uncompromising love for him on full display. This tempers the more ridiculous moments of the film, though the discrepancy between how Asher Angel and Zachary Levi each play Billy is still glaring. The ultimate wish fulfillment superhero, Shazam! is a kid’s movie that doesn’t feel like it’s playing down to its target audience but is a truly all-age friendly flick.
4) Wonder Woman
The DCEU’s breakout superhero wasn’t Superman or Batman but rather Wonder Woman, with Gal Gadot’s brief turn in Batman v. Superman leading to her own solo prequel in 2017. Set at the height of World War I, Wonder Woman has Diana Prince leave her island home of Themyscira to stop a rogue god from manipulating the conflict. Along the way, she falls in love with her human companion, Steve Trevor, as Diana introduces the world to its first superhero.
Gadot quickly proves her star-making turn in Batman v. Superman was no one-time fluke, commanding the screen whenever Diana is present. Matching her is Chris Pine at his most effortlessly charming as Steve Trevor, serving as a fantastic foil for Gadot’s hero. It isn’t until the movie’s climactic battle that Wonder Woman falls into the DCEU’s worst habits, with overly dark cinematography and uninspired CG action.
3) Aquaman
Though the overall self-serious tone of DCEU movies had been alleviating somewhat in the projects preceding it, it really wasn’t until 2018’s Aquaman that the movies began embracing the inherent silliness of the source material. Picking up from Justice League, Arthur Curry decides to explore his Atlantean heritage and return to the underwater kingdom his mother fled from. Once at Atlantis, Arthur finds himself opposing Orm, the half-brother he never knew, as Orm launches a plan to unite the seven seas under his dictatorial rule.
Compared to the dark, dour films that preceded it, Aquaman is an overdue shot in the arm, neon-lit and with a sense of humor worn proudly on its sleeve. Black Manta and Orm are the two best antagonists in the entire history of the DCEU, as charismatic as they are formidable. Audiences responded in kind, making Aquaman the biggest surprise hit in the DCEU, proving that grim and gritty aren’t the essential ingredients for a successful DC Comics adaptation.
2) Blue Beetle
One of the last and most overlooked DCEU movies was one of its best, with 2023’s Blue Beetle bringing the Mexican American hero to the silver screen. Recent college graduate Jaime Reyes returns home and bonds with an extraterrestrial scarab that forms a powerful exosuit around him. However, a malicious corporation targets Jaime and his family for the scarab to exploit for themselves, placing them on an adventure that will change them forever.
What Blue Beetle brings to the DCEU is a solid mix of high-flying fun and a genuinely poignant emotional core – fueled by the cinematic universe’s greatest family dynamic. Every member of Jaime’s family gels well together and gets their moment to shine in the film, showcasing why they are so important to Jaime in his superhero destiny. Criminally underrated and proof that there’s still plenty of creative life in the genre, Blue Beetle is the DCEU firing on all cylinders.
1) The Suicide Squad
If there’s any solid indicator that DC’s cinematic future is in good hands, it’s 2021’s The Suicide Squad, helmed by current DC Studios Co-CEO James Gunn. A soft reboot/loose sequel to 2016’s Suicide Squad, the 2021 movie places the latest iteration of the team on a high-stakes mission in Latin America. As the squad converges on their target, they learn that they have to eliminate all traces of a towering telepathic alien known as Starro the Conqueror.
The Suicide Squad is the most darkly funny superhero movie this side of the original Deadpool, with Gunn’s signature humor unfettered thanks to the movie’s R-rating. Gunn is a master of knowing when to lean into absurdist comedy and stylized action before hitting the audience with an emotional gut-punch. Getting the most out of his ensemble cast, including some of the most obscure DC characters ever to be adapted, Gunn’s The Suicide Squad is the DCEU at its very best.
