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If you’re an MCU fan, you know the drill: you gotta watch all the Marvel Movies ranked in order before you check out the upcoming Marvel movies, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. It’s a necessary step if you want to keep up with the ever-expanding universe of superheroes. Otherwise, it’s like jumping into the deep end without any folates.
Don’t worry, you won’t need a Ph.D. in Marvel to get it. Just start watching the Marvel movies in release order. Like from the beginning with Iron Man, work your way up to The Avengers, and then you’ll be ready for Quantumania. That way, when you watch the movie, you’ll know exactly how you got there. Plus, it’ll be a heck of a lot more enjoyable!
Are you ready to see every Marvel film to date? It’s no small task considering the MCU has 31 movies. So don’t worry, you’re insured by us! For an MCU marathon, we’ve created an easy-to-follow schedule.
Your marathon of Marvel Movies can begin now! But how to watch the Marvel movies in release order? Well, you will have to tune into Disney+ for that.
It is first in Marvel Movies ranked in order. So are you guys ready to take a trip down memory lane? Let’s start with Captain America: The First Avenger – it’s not the best Marvel movie, but it’s certainly the oldest, taking place in 1942 during World War 2. Watch Cap take on HYDRA masquerading as Nazis, his love for Peggy Carter, and his fateful freeze in ice before he jumps to the present day and teams up with the Avengers. Yep, this is where it all began!
Related: Where To Watch All Captain America Movies In Order
Ah, the 90s. Captain Marvel cruised back to this decade for the origin story, and it was a blast! We were given a heavy dose of nostalgia with all the references to Blockbuster, payphones, and Nine Inch Nails. Plus, it was the first Marvel movie to de-age an actor using CGI, so we got to see a young Nick Fury join the fray! All in all, a great movie for one of the most powerful superheroes in the franchise.
Iron Man – the movie that started it all for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Tony Stark, the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist, was kidnapped in 2010, and his captors forced him to create a powerful suit of armor. It is one of the best movies so far in our list of Marvel Movies ranked in order.
But Tony wasn’t just gonna let them get away with it – he and his trusty sidekicks Pepper Potts and Col. James “Rhodey” Rhodes took down his kidnapper, Obadiah Stane, and saved Stark Industries in the process. What a wild ride!
Related: Mads Lewis says her dream is to play Iron Man’s daughter
It may be the first movie in Marvel Movies ranked in order to release date but in the MCU world, it is in 4th position. Just when you thought Tony was out of the woods, he finds himself in hot water once again!
Less than a year after his first Iron Man debut, his life is once again in danger as Ivan Vanko‘s son attempts to kill him using Tony’s invention. To make matters worse, Tony discovers that the palladium core that powers his suit and keeps him alive is poisoning him.
Talk about a major bummer! But with a little help from Nick Fury and Black Widow, Tony eventually overcomes his obstacles, cures himself, and takes down Vanko. Phew, what a roller coaster of a year!
Bruce Banner is on a mission to find a cure for his condition that turns him into the Hulk when he’s feeling a bit angry. It’s 2011, and General Ross is determined to take him down by sending soldier Blonsky and a Special Forces team after him.
Unfortunately, Blonsky and his team are no match for the Hulk, so Blonsky agrees to be injected with a similar serum to the one that made Banner the Hulk. But it makes him insane, and he turns into Abomination, going on a deadly rampage.
But Banner still manages to convince Ross to let him take on Blonsky and save the day. It’s a bit of a debate as to whether this movie counts as part of the MCU or not – Disney/Marvel say no, but they did put Tony Stark‘s post-credits cameo in there, so it’s pretty clear they wanted it to be part of the MCU when they made it.
Related: Real Reason Edward Norton Did Only One Hulk Movie For Marvel
Wow, 2011 was a heck of a year for the MCU! Thor, God of Thunder, was sent packing to Earth by his dad Odin, and to make matters worse, he was no longer worthy enough to lift his beloved hammer. On Earth, he meets Jane Foster, a scientist, and learns how to live as a mere mortal.
Meanwhile, over on Asgard, Thor‘s brother Loki, the God of Mischief, finds out he’s adopted and, naturally, he doesn’t take it too well. After proving himself worthy, Thor reclaims his hammer and returns to Asgard determined to stop Loki from causing any more trouble. But in the end, it looks like Loki‘s story ends in tragedy.
Whoa, what a rollercoaster! Loki has returned and is attempting to take over Earth, a year after we believed we had seen the last of him. Here come the Avengers, who won’t allow that to happen.
Captain America, who was recently unfrozen, Iron Man, who is learning to get along with others, the Hulk, who is reticent, and Thor, who has traveled from Asgard to stop his brother, are all present. And how can we forget Hawkeye and Black Widow?
The Avengers can defeat Loki after much destruction and bring him back to Asgard for a reprimand. Rarely do you see the villain receive his just rewards!
Thor is back on Earth and finally gets to catch up with Jane, but quickly learns she’s not in the best shape. She’s absorbed a deadly substance called the Aether and is understandably a bit mad that Thor didn’t give her a heads-up when he was in town.
Thor and Jane need Loki to help them out – because what’s a superhero story without a little sibling rivalry? – and together, they manage to trick Malekith into drawing the Aether out of Jane.
But, of course, the trick comes at a price and Loki is “killed” in the confrontation. Luckily, Thor and Jane manage to stop Malekith from wreaking havoc on Earth with the Aether. Talk about a close call!
As Tony is trying to figure out how to protect the planet and everyone he loves, the world is being rocked by bombings all over the place. After a lot of investigation and detective work, Tony discovers that scientist Aldrich Killian is the mastermind behind the bombings – and he has kidnapped the President!
Tony and Rhodey team up to save the day, destroying all the Iron Man suits in the process. Tony apologizes to Pepper and promises to take a break from all the superheroes. I guess it’s time for a well-deserved vacation!
Captain America is still attempting to adjust to modern life after the events of Avengers Assemble. That is until an assassin by the name of the Winter Soldier appears and causes S.H.I.E.L.D. problems.
Nevertheless, it soon becomes clear that this enigmatic man is Cap‘s old friend Bucky from 1942, who has been brainwashed and imprisoned by the evil HYDRA agents. Even worse, HYDRA has taken control of S.H.I.E.L.D. Fortunately, Cap is not fighting against evil alone.
He is accompanied by Black Widow and his brand-new pal Sam Wilson, a.k.a. Falcon. Together, they defeat HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D. Bucky, however, is forced to flee due to circumstances beyond his control.
As Star-Lord attempted to sell a potent Infinity Stone he had stolen in 2014, he was attacked and his life became significantly more intriguing. Because of their shared pursuit of the item, Gamora, Rocket, Groot, and a few bounty hunters were all imprisoned together.
After escaping from jail, they decided to sell the stone so that Ronan, the villain who intended to use it to destroy Xandar, wouldn’t have access to it. Regrettably, their strategy didn’t quite work out as they had hoped, and they found themselves in a fierce conflict with Ronan.
The Guardians of the Galaxy triumphed after a somewhat embarrassing dance-off in the end. If you exclude Iron Man‘s extremely brief space mission in Avengers Assemble that was the first time the MCU was launched into space.
Just when the Guardians thought they had kicked some major butt taking down Ronan, the universe threw them a curveball. Star Lord’s long-lost father, Ego, appears out of nowhere and decides it would be a great idea to teach his son some new skills. It is one of the best movies so far in our list of all the Marvel Movies ranked.
Little did they know, Ego was far from a loving dad and he had some sinister plans in store. Luckily, they made a new friend in Mantis and managed to thwart Ego‘s evil ambitions. Now we’re all looking forward to seeing what they get up to in Volume 3!
2015 was a tough one for the Avengers. After coming together to take down so many other villains, this time they had to deal with one of their makings. Yep, you guessed it: Tony Stark. In his never-ending quest to protect mankind, he built an A.I. robot called Ultron who, surprise surprise, wasn’t too keen on saving humanity.
So, the Avengers had to join up with some new friends – Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch – to try and stop him. Unfortunately, they had to pay a hefty price, with the destruction of Sokovia. Talk about a tragic ending!
Scott Lang, a repentant criminal, had his own goal while the Avengers were busy saving the world from Ultron: he broke into Hank Pym‘s house and stole his Ant-Man outfit. He had no idea that Hank had set him up to prove his mettle, and when Scott was captured, he was allowed to take over as Ant-Man. It is one of the best movies so far in our list of Marvel Movies ranked in order.
The problem? To prevent the evil Darren Cross, Hank’s former protege, from developing his own shrinking suit, he had to team up with Hank and his daughter Hope. Scott learned how to shrink after receiving extensive training, and he ended up saving the day. What is the story’s lesson? Superheroes can even be ex-offenders.
After the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron, the U.N. asked the Avengers to sign the Sokovia Accords and put a stop to all superhero-ing until they were told otherwise. But of course, the Avengers were split right down the middle on this issue – with Iron Man and Captain America on different sides.
And then to make matters worse, King T’Chaka was killed, leading to an international incident and further divides among the Avengers. However, Captain America and Bucky managed to track down the real murderer – Zemo – who revealed a devastating truth; it was Bucky who killed Iron Man‘s parents.
With this, Cap and Tony‘s friendship was officially over, and it seemed like the Avengers were split for good.
Natasha had thought she was free from the Red Room, that sinister organization that had tortured and trained her to be a Black Widow. But when she went on the run for breaking the Sokovia Accords, she discovered that the Red Room was still up and running, with plans to make more Black Widows around the world.
Luckily, Natasha and her newfound ‘family’ had an ace up their sleeve – an antidote to the mind control used on the Black Widows. Armed with this, Natasha went on the hunt for the head of the Red Room, Dreykov, who had cruelly turned his daughter into a soldier for his sick cause. It ended phase 3 of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
So, Pete‘s back in his old neighborhood and he stumbles upon a shady operation – Adrian Toomes is selling weapons made from alien tech! He takes it upon himself to put a stop to it but ends up needing rescuing from Iron Man. To make matters worse, Tony takes the suit he made for Pete, thinking he’s become too reckless. It is one of the best movies so far in our list of Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Pete then decides to try and get back to his normal life and plans to ask his crush, Liz, to the prom. But then he finds out her dad is none other than Adrian Toomes. Awkward much?
Just when it looks like Pete might finally get to enjoy his prom, he finds out Toomes is planning to steal a plane full of alien weapons.
After his father’s untimely demise in Captain America: Civil War, T’Challa is back in Wakanda to reclaim his place as king, only to find out that some of the kingdom’s artifacts have been pilfered. Attempting to capture the thief, black market arms dealer Ulysses Klaue, C.I.A. agent Everett K. Ross gets a little too close and gets seriously injured. It is one of the best movies so far in our list of all the Marvel Movies ranked in order.
It turns out Klaue was double-crossed by his co-conspirator Erik Stevens/Killmonger, who kills Klaue and brings his body to Wakanda, revealing himself to be T’Challa’s cousin. Killmonger then challenges T’Challa to a ritual combat for the throne and manages to take over.
He plots to arm his followers around the world with Wakandan weapons, leaving T’Challa with no choice but to assemble his allies and take back the throne.
Talk about a fall from grace! Dr. Stephen Strange had it all – a brilliant career as a surgeon and a knack for arrogance to boot. But then, an unfortunate car accident leaves his hands wrecked, and suddenly his scalpel-wielding days are over.
In his desperate search for a cure, Strange embarks on a journey around the world and eventually meets The Ancient One. Desperate for a new purpose in life, he agrees to train in the mystic arts. It changes the dimension of Marvel Movies ranked in order to conquer new ers.
Little did he know, however, that this would lead to an epic battle against Kaecilius, a former pupil looking to contact the all-powerful Dormammu of the Dark Dimension. Tragically, Kaecilius kills The Ancient One in his quest for power.
But before all hope is lost, Strange manages to come up with a plan – a time loop prison for Dormammu – and forces him to leave Earth forever.
It’s been two years since Thor last visited Asgard, and what a surprise he got! His brother Loki, thought to be dead, was alive and well – and even impersonating their old man, Odin! When they finally found Odin, they realized it was too late – he was already dying.
But that wasn’t all – turns out they had an older sister, Hela, whom their dad had been keeping locked away with his magic. With his last breath, Odin vanished and Hela came out to take over Asgard – and she meant business, vowing to take on the rest of the universe.
It’s a good thing Thor and Loki got away in time, ending up on Sakaar and reuniting with the Hulk (who’d been M.I.A. since Age of Ultron). There, they met Valkyrie and formed a plan: to defeat Hela and save Asgard from Ragnarok/the apocalypse.
And so, with the help of some new allies and a lot of courage, Thor and company succeeded – and even got most of the people of Asgard out on a spaceship! It is one of the best movies so far in our list of Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Ant-Man‘s got a lot on his plate – not only is he stuck doing house arrest but now he’s got Hope and Hank asking him to help rescue Janet from the Quantum Realm. Little did they know they were walking into a double-trouble situation – not only were they up against Ghost and her plans to steal Hank‘s lab, but they were also up against the mysterious forces at work in the Quantum Realm. It appears in phase 4 of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Luckily Ant-Man and the Wasp make the ultimate team, and they manage to save Janet and make it out alive… or so they thought! It turns out everyone except for Ant-Man disintegrates, leaving him stuck in the Quantum Realm. Talk about a sticky situation!
Thanos is on a mission to get his hands on all six Infinity Stones, and he’s already got the Power Stone. So he decimates the Asgardian ship, sending Loki to his final resting place – for real this time. Right after that, Thanos sends his adopted kids off to Earth to try and find the Mind and Time Stones, while he goes and searches for the Reality and Soul Stones. Avengers: Infinity War is one of the best movies so far in our list of Marvel Movies ranked in order.
The Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and pretty much every superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) all try their darndest to stop ol’ Thanos from completing his Infinity Stone collection.
But, one by one, he manages to get them all, and the movie culminates in him snapping his fingers and wiping out half of the universe. It has the wildest climax in Marvel Movies ranked in order!
Five years later, it’s been a long road trying to get back on track after Thanos‘ snap left so much devastation in its wake. But then Ant-Man comes back from the Quantum Realm with an amazing plan: time travel. It was our first and best movie when Marvel Movies ranked best to worst. It appears in phase 3 of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Tony and Smart Hulk get to work, and they and the remaining heroes go back in time to find the Infinity Stones before Thanos can get his hands on them. Unfortunately, Black Widow makes the ultimate sacrifice and doesn’t make the trip back. But their mission is a success! With the stones in their possession, they bring everyone back – except Thanos.
So the Avengers have to team up once again to take on the Mad Titan. And in the end, Iron Man does the unthinkable, clicking his fingers and sacrificing himself to save the day. RIP Iron Man.
Still, in the depths of his grief, Peter finds himself on a school trip to Europe when chaos ensues as Elementals attack. Enter Nick Fury, bearing a gift from the late Tony Stark: his glasses with access to all of Stark Industries‘ resources. It appears in phase 4 of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Peter teams up with Beck, a mysterious superhero who claims to be from across the multiverse, to take on the Elementals. Peter, believing Beck to be the hero the world needs, gives him Tony‘s glasses – only to find out that Beck is an ex-Stark employee who was after the glasses all along.
After a little detective work and a lot of trouble for Spider-Man, Peter and his friends CAN stop Beck and restore order. It was one of the best Marvel movies after End Game.
Ah geez, poor Shaun/Shang-Chi! He thought he was just chilling in San Francisco, but then he gets attacked by his dad’s criminal organization, the Ten Rings. And it just gets worse from there. He goes to find his sister, Xialing, but the Ten Rings also show up and take them both to their dad. It appears in phase 4 of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, their dad reveals he’s going to find their dead mother in some place called Ta Lo. Once in Ta Lo, their aunt tells them their dad is being manipulated by some Dweller-in-Darkness monster into setting him free.
So the two of them have to work together to try and stop him. Unfortunately, the Dweller-in-Darkness manages to escape, but with the help of a dragon, they manage to defeat him and save the day. Hooray! What a wild adventure!
Who knew that the Eternals, a race of immortals living on Earth in secret since the beginning of time, had such an important mission? They thought their only job was to protect humanity from the divergents, but it turns out they were just supposed to help humanity evolve enough to give birth to a giant Celestial. It appears in phase 4 of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
This was a problem. If the Celestial were born, it would mean the death of all the humans the Eternals had come to care for over the centuries. So, they made the difficult decision to fight amongst themselves and battle the divergents to ultimately kill the Celestial and save the world – a decision that didn’t win them any points with their boss, Arishem.
Well, life wasn’t doing Peter Parker any favors after Mysterio outed him as Spider-Man and blamed him for the London attacks. People think he’s a murderer, the press won’t leave him alone, and even college applications are out of reach.
So, he does the only sensible thing a young superhero can do: he asks Dr. Strange to cast a spell to make everybody forget he’s Spider-Man. But because it’s Peter Parker, nothing ever goes as planned.
Villains from other multiverses start crashing into Peter‘s reality, and it’s up to him and his friends – both old and new – to save the day. It is one of the most recently released Marvel Movies ranked in order after the completion of phase 3.
Thankfully, they manage to cure the villains instead of killing them, but Dr. Strange still has to cast another spell to make everyone forget Peter ever existed, or else the multiverses would end up destroying each other.
It’s been a wild couple of years for Doctor Strange. After helping save the day in Spider-Man: No Way Home, the Sorcerer Supreme is back in the spotlight with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
But he’s got his hands full this time because Scarlet Witch isn’t content with just trying to resurrect Vision – she’s determined to get to an alternate timeline where her sons exist, no matter whom she has to hurt. It is one of the most recently released Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Enter America Chavez, the new kid on the block with the power to travel between multiple realities. She’s number one on Wanda‘s must-stop list and it’s up to Doctor Strange and Wong to try and protect her while they jump around all sorts of peculiar universes and stop Scarlet Witch before it’s too late. It is one of the best movies so far in our list of Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Wondering what happened to Thor after Endgame? Thor: Love and Thunder have the answer to all of your questions! The God of Thunder now slimmed down and saving worlds with the Guardians of the Galaxy, still felt something was missing.
Until someone started killing gods, that is! Thor headed back to Earth and ran into an old flame (no, not Loki): Jane Foster, who is now the new Thor in town. It is one of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
With Valkyrie and Korg in tow, they took down Gorr the God Butcher, rekindled their love, and Thor made a promise to raise Gorr‘s daughter. Sadly, Jane passed away due to cancer, but Thor found solace in his promise. It is one of the best movies so far in our list of best Marvel movies.
Related: ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ shooting Wrapped up!
We are all a little heartbroken by T-demise Challa’s and the loss of the beloved Black Panther in the highly anticipated Black Panther sequel. Several nations are attempting to take the priceless vibranium from the secret world of Talokan, leaving Queen Ramonda with a difficult task. It appears in phase 4 of the most recent Marvel Movies ranked in order.
Their leader, Namor, threatens to destroy Wakandan if they don’t cooperate. To resist Namor‘s demands, Shuri and Okoye track down Riri Williams, an American scientist who mistakenly divulged Talokan‘s whereabouts.
Tragically, Queen Ramonda loses the fight, but not before Shuri manufactures a synthetic herb in the shape of a heart that gives her Black Panther-like abilities. Before she abdicates the throne to M’Baku, Nakia discloses a startling secret: she and T-Challa had a son together before he passed away. She then decides to forgive Namor and make peace with Talokan.
It is the last movie in our list of Marvel Movies ranked in order. After Avengers: Endgame, Ant-Man was looking forward to some much-needed rest. But when his daughter Cassie, now all grown up, drag him, Hope, and their parents into the Quantum Realm, he’s forced to trade in his chill time for an action-packed adventure. It is one of the best Marvel movies.
Turns out, Janet Van Dyne had been keeping a big secret: the Quantum Realm was ruled by an all-powerful villain, Kang the Conqueror. He threatens to use Cassie as leverage to get Ant-Man to help him escape the Quantum Realm so he can conquer more universes. Of course, this isn’t gonna fly, so the entire family gears up to take on Kang and save the day.
Time travel, quantum mechanics, and all that jazz playing a role in the story? That’s just parred for the course in the world of Ant-Man. You can also rank your favorite Marvel movies yourself in our comments section.
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