Trilogies are pretty much the standard format for a superhero franchise at this point, which means that most superhero franchises aim for three movies for every character. It’s been a hard life for superhero trilogies, however, as most follow the standard of: a great first film, an either mediocre or astounding second film, and a horrific third. Not every trilogy is the same, but the fact that this worrying pattern is so common means thatit can be hard to find a consistently good and rewatchable superhero trilogy at times.
Still,there’s a good handful of very enjoyable trilogies. Whether they’re DC, Marvel, or a third party, superhero fans can sit down and enjoy a wide array of trilogies over a weekend. Regardless of whether a trilogy is consistent in quality the whole way through or not, most are still very rewatchable, as a lot of the time, even bad superhero movies are rewatchable (because of how funny they can be).
10The Unbreakable Trilogy
‘Unbreakable’ (2000), ‘Split’ (2016), and ‘Glass’ (2019)
Nobody expected a full trilogy after the release ofUnbreakablein 2000. It felt like it was a standalone movie and ended in a way where it, in theory, could continue, but no one expected a follow-up. They got one 16 years later withSplit, taking everyone by surprise.It serves asone of the longest breaks between movies in a superhero franchise.
Unbreakablewas very successful, withTimeeven considering it one of the bestsuperhero films of all time. The same can be said forSplit, as it was another critical and financial win. After a second banger, directorM. Night Shyamalanquickly developed the third movie,Glass. Despite being another financial victory, the trilogy capper was unfortunately considered rough-around-the-edges at best and outright mediocre at worst.
Unbreakable
9The Wolverine Trilogy
‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ (2009), ‘The Wolverine’ (2013), and ‘Logan’ (2017)
In a surprising twist of events,the Wolverine trilogy flipsthat classic trilogy format. With a terrible (yet hilarious) movie as its first,X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a mediocre yet enjoyable second,The Wolverine, and a groundbreaking finale inLogan. What makes this trilogy so rewatchable is that, even when it has its lows, the movies are still a fun watch.
X-Men Origins: Wolverineis horrendous but an absolute blast to rewatch. It’s so goofy and unabashedly ridiculous that one can’t help but chuckle at the flick.The Wolverineis a pretty alright movie, but the finale film,Logan, is not only a masterpiece, but Jackman’s best performance as the six-clawed hero. The ending makes this trilogy so much better, but its more uneven quality gives ita sort of quaint quality that makes it easier to enjoy.
8The Iron Man Trilogy
‘Iron Man’ (2008), ‘Iron Man 2’ (2010), and ‘Iron Man 3’ (2013)
The trilogy thatstarted the entire MCU,Iron Manis an interesting one when it comes to rewatching. It may feature the star of the MCU itself and may have a ton of meaning, butit’s not as easy to rewatch as others. This isn’t to say it’s bad, but it’s less enjoyable than other superhero trilogies because of how uneven it is.
The first movie is great,Iron Man 2really struggles to be an enjoyable watch (although it still has some amazing scenes in it), andIron Man 3is fun but not exceptional or very memorable for the most part. It doesn’t help that both 2 and 3 have very divisive narrative choices that remain controversial today. Anyone looking to sit down and rewatch these movies will definitely have a good time, but not as much as the next ones.
7The Blade Trilogy
‘Blade’ (1998), ‘Blade II’ (2002), and ‘Blade Trinity’ (2004)
TheBladetrilogy is one of the original Marvel and superhero trilogies, in general and gets a lot of love from fans and general audiences everywhere. Of course, it greatly helps that it starsWesley Snipesas the badass superhero/vampire hunter himself. He’s already considered a legendary actor,andBladeis another exampleof why people see him that way.
TheBladetrilogy isone of the first examples that superhero movies can get brutal, too. The bloody and gory adventures of Blade are super memorable, and the films are filled to the brim with style and awesome action. Despite a ridiculous third movie, Snipes continued to bring the enthusiasm (until the very end—can he be blamed?) and charisma that made the series enjoyable.
6The X-Men Trilogy
‘X-Men’ (2000), X2: X-Men United (2003), and ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’ (2006)
Another founding father of the modern era of the superhero genre is the trilogy that began withX-Menall the way back in 2000. Not only did it become one of the first movies in the superhero space to deal withheavy and real social and political issues, but it also introduced audiences to the iconicHugh Jackmanas Wolverine.
Like the source material, the X-Men film series didn’t just deal with real-life issues, but wasfilled with action and unique powersthat had yet to be seen on screen,too. Scenes like the opening ofX2: X-Men United, which featured Nightcrawler (Alan Cumming) breaking into the White House and taking down the Secret Service are still spectacular, setting a high bar for future sequences.
X2: X-Men United
5The “Homecoming” Trilogy
‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ (2017), ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ (2019), and ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ (2021)
After being introduced inCaptain America: Civil War, people were quite excited to see what the future for Spider-Man (Tom Holland) looked like. One year later, in 2017, he’d get his very first solo film,Spider-Man: Homecoming, which brought the character back to high school. Marvel Studios was determined to do things differently, though, and kept him in high school throughout his entire trilogy.
The Home trilogy is definitely the most ambitious Spider-Man film story. It brings him from small-time work against the Vulture (Michael Keaton) in the first project, all the way to Europe inSpider-Man: Far From Home, and has himbattling against the multiverseinSpider-Man: No Way Home. They areso much fun and filled with so much lighthearted energythat it’s hard not to give a rewatch.
4The Captain America Trilogy
‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ (2011), ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ (2014), and ‘Captain America: Civil War’ (2016)
When it comes to the MCU, one of the best trilogies comes through the Star-Spangled Man himself, Captain America (Chris Evans). Kicking off with a great first film, following it up with asecond movie, considered one of the best MCU filmsever, and finishing with what could be considered “Avengers 2.5” makesthis collection of movies so much fun to watch.
Captain America: The First Avengeris a period piece, which makes it unique compared to the rest of the MCU’s film roster. Then, jumping toCaptain America: The Winter Soldier,Joe RussoandAnthony Russocrafted a project that is exemplary in almost every corner. It’s inCaptain America: Civil War, where the trilogy brings the most spectacle, though, which will always be enjoyable. It also gets a ton of points for being the trilogy to introduce Spider-Man to the MCU.
Captain America: The First Avenger
3The Spider-Man Trilogy
‘Spider-Man’ (2002), ‘Spider-Man 2’ (2004), and ‘Spider-Man 3’ (2007)
Alongside the likes of Blade and X-Men,Sam Raimi’sSpider-Mantrilogy isa cornerstone franchise for the superhero genre. It helped set a bar for these movies that continues to hold very strong.Spider-Man 3may remain widely divisive, butit deserves more credit than it gets.Spider-Manis a wonderful origin movie, too, and is an example that most origin movies should look to.
But the project that brings this trilogy above so many others is, of course,Spider-Man 2. It’s known as one of the best superhero movies ever made and builds off of the great things in the first film perfectly. With performances that are stellar and featuring one of the most badass Spider-Man villains in cinema,Spider-Man 2isthe shining example of how and why the Raimi trilogy as a whole is as good as it is.
Spider-Man
2The Dark Knight Trilogy
‘Batman Begins’ (2005), ‘The Dark Knight’ (2008), and ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ (2012)
Christopher Nolan’sDark Knighttrilogy lies in a very similar spot to theSpider-Mantrilogy in the sense that it starts strong, follows up with a masterpiece, and ends with a rough-around-the-edges finale. However, Nolan is commonly regarded as one of the current generation’s best filmmakers, soeven his tougher work is pretty rewatchable.
Batman Beginsis a great Batman film.It tells the origin of Batman very well and is about as close to the source material as the trilogy gets. There’s absolutelyno looking past how legendaryThe Dark Knightisas not just a superhero movie, but a film production as a whole. It did so much for the zeitgeist and features one of the best cinematic performances of all time by the late and legendaryHeath Ledger.
1The Guardians Trilogy
‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ (2014), ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ (2017), and ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ (2023)
James Gunnhas always been able to cook, and most certainly did when it came to his foray into Marvel Studios' cinematic world. He crafted a series of absurdly fun, stylized, and all-aroundexcellent superhero space operas. The release and success ofGuardians of the Galaxyin 2014 blew people away and made some of Marvel’s most underappreciated heroes into household names.
They may be a ton of fun and games, butthese movies are also some of the most emotional in the MCU. The characters are also among the franchise’s most endeatring and well-developed, and the soundtrack is ridiculously good. Few projects can get people as emotionally compelled and invested as theGuardians of the Galaxyflicks. These movies prove that DC is safe in the hands of James Gunn.
