The Most Disappointing Superhero Movies in History

Since the film industry began in the early part of the 20th century, Hollywood has been producing superhero movies. The first film was the silent "The Mark of Zorro," starring Douglas Fairbanks in the title role. This genre of films has been incredibly prolific in the industry – in the U.S. alone it brought in 3.19 billion U.S. dollars in 2019 – and has introduced viewers to a wealth of different characters and their alter egos – from Clark Kent (Superman) and Diana Prince (Wonder Woman) to Steve Rogers (Captain America) and James Howlett (Wolverine).

If there’s any movie genre that most people can get behind, it’s superhero films. These are stories of characters who typically overcome personal issues or hard pasts and who are now amazing heroes who fight for what's right in the world, whether helping people or combatting crime by sending the bad guys to jail or worse. Superheroes have been around for as long as we can remember and there are numerous to admire. (Just like Clark Kent tried to disguise his true persona, Six Degrees of Separation icon Kevin Bacon attempted to shed his legendary status by going incognito at an L.A. mall. Unlike Kent, Bacon wasn't fond of the results.)

Batman, who first appeared in 1939 in Detective Comics 27., is smart as a whip and has the cool gadgets to prove it; Superman, who first appeared in Action Comics 1. in 1938, can take on any foe with ease; and other classics like Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Thor. They all have great movies that entertain viewers from start to finish. But we're not talking about these great, rather, we're looking at the worst superhero movies of all time in no particular order.

Superhero films were once highly anticipated but in recent years, there's been an over-saturation of these films on the market. It's inevitable that with this inundation there are bound to be a bunch of flops. This list has many movies that performed poorly at the box office, which resulted in them not being well-known, movies like "Max Steel" and "Jonah Hex." There are also well-known franchises that have disappointing movies listed here, including Batman, Superman, the Fantastic Four, and even the Power Rangers.

To create this list of the most disappointing superhero movies in history, 24/7 Tempo scoured cinema's past to find the movies that both critics and audiences despised. To find these movies, we used sources like Rotten Tomatoes, the Internet Movie Database, and Comic Vine, among others. (When you're done checking out these mighty heroes, read up on the most legendary tough guys in movies.)

• IMDB Rating: 4.6/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 0%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 48%

This is the lowest-rated superhero film on Rotten Tomatoes, with a zero percent approval rating by critics. The movie is about a teenager who fights crime with an alien companion, and its lack of imagination bored audiences. It brought nothing new to the genre, which might be why it flopped at the box office, bringing in just over $2 million on its first weekend and going down from there.

RogerEbert.com gave the movie a half-star out of 5, and any sequel plans were scrapped.

• IMDB Rating: 4.4/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 4%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 33%

Meant to be a comedic film about young superheroes, this film's acting and set design look outdated, the script is lackluster, and the story is hard to follow. Many people had high hopes for this film since it had the comedic stylings of Tim Allen and Chevy Chase, but it all fell flat. Critics and audiences just thought the film was boring, and that's the last thing you want for a kid's movie.

• IMDB Rating: 3.4/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 8%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 18%

"Catwoman" was supposed to be a big movie at the time, and people were excited until it was released. Critics appreciated Halle Berry's acting, but everything else was poor, including the story and special effects. This was a case of a movie being passed down from person to person, so it became a hodgepodge of ideas, and none of them were good. Even the original writer said it was bad, so you know it can't be good.

• IMDB Rating: 4.3/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 9%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 18%

There have been several "Fantastic Four" movies over the years, but this one is by far the worst. The director, Josh Trank, was attempting to make something new out of the franchise and wanted a more realistic superhero movie. While the idea was noble, the end product was dark and depressing.

What's worse is that the movie studio decided to change the ending at the last minute, and the ending we got was cartoonish and rushed. This was supposed to be the first movie in a series, but it did so poorly that those plans went out the window.

• IMDB Rating: 3.8%
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 12%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 16%

Director Joel Schumacher had already been criticized for directing "Batman Forever," because he was moving away from the more adult subject matter and making his Batman movies for kids. He went too far with this movie, with Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze and Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy, and made it too cartoonish. True fans didn't like the direction he took, and even kids were bored with what they saw.

• IMDB Rating: 3.7/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 12%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 57%

This 2024 film is a Spider-Man spin-off that shares the origin story of the superhero Madame Web. In it, she's trying to save three girls from future disasters. The movie is already considered horrible because of the shooting style that made the film confusing and distracting and also features poor CGI effects and writing that make it unbelievable. It didn't help that the main character, Cassandra Webb, was very unlikeable, and if the main character isn't appealing, the movie is doomed.

• IMDB Rating: 5.1/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 15%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 71%

Audiences that saw the vampire superhero movie "Morbius" thought the film was okay but not the best, but critics skewered it, saying that the story wasn't original and that it didn't make sense. They thought the acting was poor, especially for lead Jared Leto. There was also criticism of the editing and that the movie seemed incomplete. Like "Madame Webb," this movie was an attempt to extend the Spider-Man universe, but also, like that movie, "Morbius" failed to strike the right cord.

• IMDB Rating: 3.6/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 16%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 40%

Power Rangers was a popular live-action adventure series but when it came to the big screen, it didn't translate. This movie had all of the qualities that would make a Power Rangers movie good, from the zords to the outfits, but with a wavering story that involved sailing on a ship for half the time, it just didn't hold people's interest for long. Many fans also thought the film was very juvenile, and so it wasn't taken seriously.

• IMDB Rating: 5.5/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 25%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 45%

The "Green Lantern" movie had a lot of promise. It had big-time star Ryan Reynolds, a massive budget, and a beloved superhero who hadn't had a lot of screen time as of yet. However, many people believe that the budget was wasted because the script was thin, the movie was boring, and the special effects seemed more like CGI.

It's possible that people didn't give this movie enough of a chance, but it was a box office bomb. There were opportunities to make this movie into a series, but the poor performance ended that.

• IMDB Rating: 5.9/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 26%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 58%

The "Suicide Squad" movie was an exciting idea, with many bad guys coming together to create a defensive task force. It also had big stars like Will Smith and Margot Robbie. However, as much as it had, apparently it wasn't enough. The story didn't make a lot of sense, the main villain was weak, and some of the dialogue was cringeworthy, to say the least. People also thought the directing was choppy and could be better.

• IMDB Rating: 4.4/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 8%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 26%

The success of "Superman" made it a no-brainer to extend the universe, but the result was a film that wasn't anywhere near the sensation that "Superman" was. "Supergirl" was too thin, the special effects were laughable even for the time, and the movie was too long. Plus, the main villain was a wicked witch, which made the whole thing just that much crazier. All together, it was a forgettable affair. They remade "Supergirl" as a TV show in 2015 with slightly better results.

• IMDB Rating: 3.0/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 8%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 19%

Shaq, one of the biggest stars during the 1990s, was not only a monster on the basketball court, he was also in several movies and TV shows, and "Steel" was one of them. While the creators likely had good intentions, this seemed more like a cash grab to bank off of the success of Shaq. The special effects were abysmal, the story was thin, and, as many likely imagine, most of the acting was poor. This is more of a movie that people watch intending to laugh than a respectable superhero film.

• IMDB Rating: 3.7/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 10%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 16%

Even the Man of Steal lands on this list with the fourth film in the franchise. In this instance, Superman fights rival Nuclear Man, which is a clone of Superman and just as powerful. This happens to take place just as the United States and Russia are involved in a nuclear arms race. The cast even seemed to be bored of Superman. The acting appears lazy, and the special effects are somehow worse than they were in the past, even though it had been years since the original Superman film.

• IMDB Rating: 4.7/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 11%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 29%

In another attempt to create a movie series for a comic book character we don't often see, what should have been a fun popcorn blockbuster film took itself too seriously. There also seemed to be a lack of action and smart dialogue, resulting in not much to talk about. What's sad is that this movie was co-written by Frank Miller, who wrote "Sin City" and "300", so there was a lot of wasted potential here.

• IMDB Rating: 4.7/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 12%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 20%

Jonah Hex is a gunslinger who has an uncanny ability to track bad guys, which causes him to go after John Malkovich's Quentin Turnbull. The big problem with the movie is that it's unfocused and tries to go in too many directions. The film is also quite forgettable, meaning most people reading this may not even know the film existed. The only good thing was the short run time of under 90 minutes.

• IMDB Rating: 4.7/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 14%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 25%

On paper, "The Spirit" should have been an incredible success, another film produced by acclaimed artist Frank Miller. He directed the movie and the film is shot in the same style as his other classics. However, audiences didn't grasp this film. Many found the plot completely confusing, others didn't like the characters, and most couldn't stand the dialogue between the cast. This will go down as one of Miller's most forgettable projects.

• IMDB Rating: 4.8/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 14%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 42%

This is the story of a dog who gets powers and the ability to speak. Voiced by Jason Lee, who provides some charm, it wasn't enough to bring a forgettable adaptation of an existing story to life. The movie seemed to recycle tropes that have been seen before but not to the extent that they would be memorable.

• IMDB Rating: 5.8/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 17%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 44%

This was supposed to be the ultimate action movie with big stars playing exciting characters, but it ultimately fell flat. Audiences and critics liked the premise, but the story and plot were poorly executed. The film was a box office bomb, and many of the actors in it didn't have much of a career afterward. Possibly the worst part is that this is considered to be the last film in Sean Connery's illustrious career.

• IMDB Rating: 5.2/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 17%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 36%

This overly violent film may have its fan base, but the general audience wasn't too keen on it. Many critics felt it was more of a horror film than a hero flick, and the story was also thin. One of the worst parts was the computer graphics, which were bad for that time and did not age well. The movie was overly campy, but not in a good way.

• IMDB Rating: 4.3/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 19%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 31%

Even though the first "Ghost Rider" wasn't well-received, studios proceeded to make a sequel. The result was over the top but in more of an annoying than crazy way. The story was weak and the CGI was uneven. What made it worse was that the film was in 3D during the 3D craze. To top it all off, Nicholas Cage, in an over the top with his performance, came off as a little too much. The movie did poorly at the box office and has been forgotten ever since.

• IMDB Rating: 4.8/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 19%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 33%

The first two Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movies were great, and they captivated audiences young and old, but for the third film, they eliminated everything that made them great. This one involves time travel, and the gimmick gets old quickly. Plus, Shredder, their main nemesis, wasn't in the film.

This movie seemed to take a more serious turn, as there were far fewer jokes. Worst of all, the film was far too long. When most people think fondly about the Ninja Turtles movies of the 90s, this one is not one of them and is often forgotten.

• IMDB Rating: 4.5/10
• Rotten Tomato Critical Score: 22%
• Rotten Tomato Audience Score: 23%

The idea behind "Thunder Force" was likely to throw comedic actress Melissa McCarthy into a superhero suit and expect it to automatically succeed. However, that isn't quite the way it went. While they try to be funny, many jokes fall flat, and there's a noticeable lack of action for a superhero film. Even worse, the movie was too vulgar to be a kid's movie but a little too immature for adults. All that resulted in a flop.

If you want to see even more likable characters, check out 15 of the Most Hated TV Characters of the 1980s.