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30 Worst Superhero Movies, Ranked

If you keep up with new releases, you may have noticed the ridiculous number of superhero movies that have released lately. There’s at least one (usually more) that comes out every year, and they’re generally pretty dang good. One movie, Blank Panther, even earned an Oscar nomination. Part of us wonders if we love superhero movies just because of the premise. Are they really good, or are we just happy to see our favorite heroes brought to life?

Well, we have an answer to that. Not all superhero movies did well in the past. Heck, some recent superhero movies have bombed pretty bad—looking at you, DC. That doesn’t mean it's just one studio that's had a hard time creating good films. You may have forgotten (or buried) some of the worst offenders that have released over the last few decades.

Films like The Avengers blew audiences away, but not every superhero movie can be a winner. Some of them are downright horrible, and some even killed careers! That’s horrifying to think, but it’s true. Heck, in the case of Spider-Man 3, the whole hero was canceled until Sony rebooted with The Amazing Spiderman.

Of course, Spider-Man 3 isn’t the only offender. There are 29 other films that we’ve put on this list that were just…god awful. If you’ve seen them once, you know what we're talking about.

What do you think of the choices on the list? Did we leave out an offender you think should be on the list?

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Spider-Man 3 (2007)

There were so many things wrong with Spider-Man 3. The first mistake was two villains—Sandman and Venom. People had been waiting on Venom, so why focus on Sandman? Then there was the emo hair and the dance…oh, god the dance.

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Daredevil (2003)

Daredevil (2003)

Daredevil was one of the first gritty superhero films that released. The issue with this film was that it was trying too hard to be cool. Affleck wasn’t absolutely horrible, but the script destroyed any chance of good dialogue between characters. You can't get blood from a stone.

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The Phantom (1996)

The Phantom (1996)

The Phantom was one of the first superheroes that ever existed, and that's painfully apparent in the film. In the ‘30s, when radio reigned supreme, the hero was a good idea, but in the ‘90s? Not so much. It was extremely slow, and the fight scenes looked so choreographed that we wondered if we'd stumbled into a Cirque du Soleil performance.

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X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)

Origins could have been a really great film, but it spat in the face of the original characters. In the comics, the characters are really well written, so why change it? Even if you can look past that, the plot is lacking, and it left several questions are left unanswered. The only thing this movie had going for it was Hugh Jackman.

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The Punisher (2004)

The Punisher (2004)

The Punisher is a tough character to approach considering how dark the comic can be. That being said, the movie did a lousy job creating a watchable film. It pieced together scenes and ideas from other similar titles, which made us feel like we were watching a rerun. At the end of the day, it was boring and cliché.

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Barb Wire (1996)

Barb Wire (1996)

The first problem with this film: Pamela Anderson. She was popular at the time, but she sucks at acting. Instead of a superhero movie, it was a way to shove Pam Anderson in our face in a way that made us wonder if Playboy produced the movie.

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Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

Batman V Superman had a lot of things wrong with it. We could go over every single one, but we don’t have time. The biggest problem with the film was that it tried to cram too much into a single film. It wasn’t going to work out. It was about a fight between Batman and Superman, introducing Wonder Woman, and setting up the Justice League.

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Suicide Squad (2016)

Suicide Squad (2016)

Suicide Squad is what happens when you have multiple directors, editing companies, and so many different versions that the film is destroyed. There were very few people that were happy with the end result, and audiences could feel the choppiness before setting foot in the theater. The trailer had scenes that never appeared in the film!

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Ghost Rider (2007)

Ghost Rider (2007)

Ghost Rider is a complete joke, and not in a good way. Where do we begin? The CGI was absolute trash (even for its time), the story is a joke, and the acting is even worse than both of these things put together. Nic Cage should never have played Ghost Rider. Ever. 

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Fantastic Four (2005)

Fantastic Four (2005)

The cast of Fantastic Four was weird enough, but that isn't where it went wrong. We want to blame the actors, but the director was a huge part of this failure. Any time Jessica Alba would emote, he would tell her to take it down a notch. We can only assume he did the same to the others, and it made the film so flat that it was unwatchable.

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Green Lantern (2011)

Green Lantern (2011)

Ryan Reynolds regrets appearing in Green Lantern. The script had major issues, and that’s something that should have been addressed before it made it to filming. The film attempted to mock clichés while adding in so many others in all seriousness that we weren’t sure when the comedy started and when it ended.

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Condorman (1981)

Condorman (1981)

Condorman was one of the cheesiest films that released in the 80s, and that says a lot. As a childhood film, it was okay, but as a superhero movie? It was a total bomb. The characters are dry and uninteresting, making us root for the villains, but they’re even as generic as humanly possible.

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Blade Trinity (2004)

Blade Trinity (2004)

The first two Blade movies were really great, but Blade Trinity was an attempt to take the series down a different road. It didn’t pan out. You end up hoping for Blade to die, mostly because you don’t care about him anymore. In all fairness, Ryan Reynolds did a great job and stole the show. Why can't we have a film about his character? 

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Superman III (1983)

Superman III (1983)

Ah, Superman III. It was a total mess and fans didn't see it coming. What we hated most about this film was how much comedy it attempted to add. There was no reason to do this. It came across as a slapstick parody, and the jokes never landed. Audiences didn't laugh.

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Spawn (1997)

Spawn (1997)

Spawn could have been good if it had a better writer, director, cast, and a bigger budget. The character is fantastic in the comics. This is an example of a film that should have been rated "R," but the producers wanted it to be geared toward kids. John Leguizamo stole the show, but he didn’t do enough to make up for everything else.  

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Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2012)

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2012)

Ghost Rider wasn’t even good, so why did it get a sequel? Somehow, Spirit of Vengeance showed up its predecessor by creating a plot that was even worse than the last. The performances are utterly predictable (especially to anyone that had seen the first one), and the camerawork is annoyingly shaky. Shaky cam is never a good idea.

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The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

The League of Extraordinary Gentleman was so terrible that it caused Sean Connery to retire. If that wasn't enough, this film also destroyed the director’s career. Where to begin? The plot was bad, and the film never really had a solid villain. It also jumps around a ton, which makes it difficult to follow.

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Judge Dredd (1995)

Judge Dredd (1995)

The original Judge Dredd was a hot mess. Fans and critics hated that it wasn’t faithful to the comic, but that was only where the hate began. The acting was pretty horrible. It was one of Stallone’s lowest-rated films, probably because he wasn’t boxing someone in the face, and everyone realized he can't act. Thankfully, we got the Dredd we deserved in 2012.

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Howard the Duck (1986)

Howard the Duck (1986)

Howard the Duck did so bad in America that it was marketed as a completely different movie overseas. What made it so bad? The titular character. Howard was incredibly creepy and scared kids. The rebranding effort didn’t work, and it also failed overseas.

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The Spirit (2008)

The Spirit (2008)

Frank Miller has written some of the best graphic novels of all time. The Spirit was his directorial debut, but it was horrible. The storytelling he loved in the comics didn’t translate well in the film. It looks beautiful, but it couldn’t execute the plot well enough to make it a success.

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The Crow: City of Angels (1996)

The Crow: City of Angels (1996)

Boasting Iggy Pop in your cast is a sign that your movie is bad. Considering the original’s notoriety, this one had a lot to live up to. Unfortunately, the director of the sequel wanted to do something extremely different from the first. Miramax then stepped in and edited the crap out of it. We all know how that ends.

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Jonah Hex (2010)

Jonah Hex (2010)

Jonah Hex was plagued with behind-the-scenes problems that easily translated to the film. The cast was solid, but they weren’t given the freedom to do their job. If you couple that with a story that’s weak, you don't get a great film. Plus, subplots were dropped just as quickly as they’re added no matter how good they were.

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Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)

Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)

After Superman III, fans didn’t think the series could fall any lower. Well, they were in for a wild ride. Superman IV killed Superman as a live-action film for almost 20 years. The movie didn’t have the same energy as the original, and the plot was ridiculous. The final nail in the coffin was the horrible special effects. 

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Steel (1997)

Steel (1997)

In the ‘90s, someone said that Shaq could act, so they put him in films. Steel was one of those monstrosities. Shaq’s acting was so bad that it earned him a Razzie nomination. It could have been overlooked if the film wasn’t so slow that fans left the theater begging for some kind of action.

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Batman & Robin (1997)

Batman & Robin (1997)

Batman & Robin—what hasn’t been said about this movie? The thing we hate most about it was the incredibly cheesy dialogue. We wanted Mr. Freeze’s mouth to freeze shut. Then, there was the unforgivable product placement. Oh, and we can’t forget the nips on the bat suit. Why were they necessary?

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Elektra (2005)

Elektra (2005)

Despite Jennifer Garner’s hard work, Elektra wasn’t meant to be. From the get-go, it was treated as a shameless cash grab, which is a huge joke considering Daredevil wasn’t a success. Now, Garner even admits that she didn’t want to be in the film but was forced to due to contractual obligations. 

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Supergirl (1984)

Supergirl (1984)

Supergirl is one of the worst superhero films ever made. The script made zero sense, which may be why the director and actors felt the need to jazz it up with silly jokes and campy acting. All of their attempts came off as bad acting, which is surprising since Faye Dunaway was one of the best actors of her time.

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Fantastic Four (2015)

Fantastic Four (2015)

Everyone hated the newer Fantastic Four film. We're starting to think that this series isn’t meant to be? The problems with this movie stem from the fact that it was a mess behind-the-scenes. The director butted heads with 20th Century Fox, which caused reshoot after reshoot. In the end, we were left with one of the worst superhero films in cinema history.

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Catwoman (2004)

Catwoman (2004)

How many cat puns and references can we stuff into a film? More than necessary? Perfect. Catwoman was nominated in seven categories at the Razzies, and it won four. We can see why. On top of the cat references, it was extremely sexist. The main villain’s plan is to distribute evil makeup because she was mad that she had started to look old. 

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Captain America (1990)

Captain America (1990)

Chris Evans is Captain America, but before he grabbed the shield, Matt Salinger portrayed Cap. This Captain America was extremely low budget. The budget ran out before the movie finished, and the studio pieced together a film that could be released. Spoiler alert: it shouldn’t have left the vault.

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