With a grandiose slate of planned movies, DC Films and Warner Bros. have given us a lot to look forward to. Upcoming titles like Black Adam, The Flash, Aquaman 2, etc suggest that the revamped DC Extended Universe is in full swing right now!
Although the canon DCEU didn’t officially kick off until 2013 with Man of Steel, there have been decades of theatrical releases based on DC Comics. And these live-action films have played a vital role in fabricating the esteemed DC Universe we know today.
Thus, whenever one asks which DC movies are worth watching, it would be rude to not include Oscar winning entries like Tim Burton’s Batman (1989) or Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight (2008). And how will you ever get to know about Superman’s very first heroic feat if you don’t see Superman and the Mole-Men (1951)?
Like such, there are numerous other DC movies which are historically unmissable. In this watch order, I have aimed to incorporate every live-action DC movie I’ve come across:
1. Release Order (canon only)
Competition with Marvel Studios’ MCU prompted Warner Bros. to define its own shared universe, now known as the DC Extended Universe. The first DCEU film is Man of Steel, which is a reboot of the Superman film series.
- Man of Steel (2013)
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
- Suicide Squad (2016)
- Wonder Woman (2017)
- Justice League (2017)
- Aquaman (2018)
- Shazam! (2019)
- Birds of Prey (2020)
- Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
- Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)
- The Suicide Squad (2021) (upcoming)
- Black Adam (2022) (upcoming)
- The Flash (2022) (upcoming)
- Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2022) (upcoming)
- Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023) (upcoming)
But like I said, the order is incomplete without adding the OG films. So, below is the complete list of every DC movie ever released:
2. Complete Release Order
It all started with the 1951 American independent black-and-white superhero film released by Lippert Pictures. Since that time, DC has not only prospered, but also spread its roots deep into the superhero genre.
- Superman and the Mole-Men (1951)
- Stamp Day for Superman (1954)
- Batman: The Movie (1966)
- Superman (1978)
- Superman II (1980)
- Swamp Thing (1982)
- Superman III (1983)
- Supergirl (1984)
- Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)
- The Return of Swamp Thing (1989)
- Batman (1989)
- Batman Returns (1992)
- Batman Forever (1995)
- Batman & Robin (1997)
- Steel (1997)
- Catwoman (2004)
- Constantine (2005)
- Batman Begins (2005)
- Superman Returns (2006)
- Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006)
- The Dark Knight (2008)
- Watchmen (2009)
- Jonah Hex (2010)
- Green Lantern (2011)
- The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
- Man of Steel (2013)
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
- Suicide Squad (2016)
- Wonder Woman (2017)
- Justice League (2017)
- Aquaman (2018)
- Shazam (2019)
- Joker (2019)
- Birds of Prey (2020)
- Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
- Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)
- The Suicide Squad (2021) (upcoming)
- Black Adam (2022) (upcoming)
- The Flash (2022) (upcoming)
- Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2022) (upcoming)
- Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023) (upcoming)
- Justice League Part Two (announced)
- Green Lantern Corps (announced)
However, both the release date orders are more suitable to newcomers in DC. If you truly want to get in the gist of things, refer to the chronological order below.
3. Where To Watch
4. Chronological Order (canon only)
Scenes in Wonder Woman are set during World War 1, so the earliest of developments occur here. It serves as an origin story for the Amazonian princess Diana.
- Wonder Woman (2017)
- Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
- Man of Steel (2013)
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
- Suicide Squad (2016)
- Justice League (2017)
- Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)
- Aquaman (2018)
- Shazam! (2019)
- Birds of Prey (2020)
5. Complete Chronological Order
37 classic movies here have been arranged according to their timeline of events. Every DC film is not interconnected, but this is the best possible estimation.
- Wonder Woman (2017)
- Superman and the Mole-Men (1951)
- Stamp Day for Superman (1954)
- Batman: The Movie (1966)
- Superman (1978)
- Superman II (1980)
- Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut (2006)
- Joker (2019)
- Swamp Thing (1982)
- Superman III (1983)
- Supergirl (1984)
- Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
- Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)
- The Return of Swamp Thing (1989)
- Batman (1989)
- Batman Returns (1992)
- Batman Forever (1995)
- Batman & Robin (1997)
- Steel (1997)
- Catwoman (2004)
- Constantine (2005)
- Batman Begins (2005)
- Superman Returns (2006)
- The Dark Knight (2008)
- Watchmen (2009)
- Jonah Hex (2010)
- Green Lantern (2011)
- The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
- Man of Steel (2013)
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
- Suicide Squad (2016)
- Justice League (2017)
- Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)
- Aquaman (2018)
- Shazam! (2019)
- Birds of Prey (2020)
- The Suicide Squad (2021)
6. How Much Time Will It Take To Watch
Considering all the 37 movie installments since 1951, it will take you around 2 days and 14 hours to binge watch it all.
Well, that’s a lot on your plate if you have not even seen a single title (which is hard to imagine). But trust me, once you begin, you won’t stop until you’ve finished it all!
Note: These are approximate values of the runtimes.
7. About DC Movies
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book publishers. It produces material featuring numerous well-known superhero characters, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Aquaman, and Green Arrow. Most of this material takes place in a shared fictional universe, which also features teams such as the Justice League, the Suicide Squad, and the Teen Titans. The company has also published non-DC Universe-related material, including V for Vendetta, and many titles under their alternative imprint Vertigo Comics.
Film adaptations based on DC Comics properties have included serials, live action and animated films, direct-to-video releases, television films and documentary films.
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