How to watch the DC movies in order (chronological and release date)

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Want to know how to watch the DC movies in order? You’ve landed in the right place. Since 2013’sMan of Steel, the DC Extended Universe (orDCEUfor short) has been telling the stories of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and numerous other superheroes from the famous DC stable.

But while theMarvelCinematic Universe has become the gold standard for creating vast, overlapping narratives, the so-called Distinguished Competition has sometimes seemed muddled in comparison. In fact, the two best received DC releases of the last decade –The BatmanandJoker– exist in entirely different continuities to the likes ofWonder Woman,AquamanandThe Flash.

Now, asAquaman and the Lost Kingdom(currently in theaters) wraps up the current incarnation of the DCEU – andThe Suicide Squaddirector James Gunn gets set to unleash his new-lookDCUcontinuity (more on that later) – we cut through the confusing chronology to tell you how to watch the existing DC movies in order. We also explain where to watch them – if you’re in the US,Maxshould be your first port of call – and rank each release to identify thebest superhero moviesin this particular universe  As a famous guy in a cape once said: “Up, up and away!”

How to watch the DC movies in release date order

Best for:newcomers to the DCEU

Want to know how to watch the DC movies in order by their release dates? You’ll need this list to help you out.

You’ll start with 2013’sMan of Steel, i.e. the first film in the Zack Snyder’s run of DCEU movies, and end with the most recent theatrical release,Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which debuted in theaters in December 2023. This will be the final release in the current incarnation of the DCEU, before new DC Studios CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran reboot the franchise with Gunn’sSuperman: Legacy– you can read more about their new-look DCU below.

A couple of things to note before you dive in: firstly, there are two versions of theJustice Leaguemovie. One is the theatrical cut (released in 2017), which Joss Whedon helmed after original director Zack Snyder stepped away following the death of his daughter.Zack Snyder’s Justice League, meanwhile, is Snyder’s four-hour cut, which debuted on (the then) HBO Max in March 2021.

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Secondly, we’ve includedPeacemaker, the first DCEU TV series, in the list below. As it’s a follow-up to 2021’sThe Suicide Squad, it’s an integral part of this list of the DC movies in order.

Finally, there are some DC movies missing from the below list. We’ll explain why we haven’t added them in the paragraphs that follow.

Man of Steelwas 100% a Superman story, but a carefully deployed Wayne Enterprises logo revealed that Clark Kent lived in the same world as Batman.

Zack Snyder, who directedMan of Steel, subsequently pitted the two biggest icons of DC Comics against each other inBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which bit off more than it could chew by trying to launch aMarvel-style shared universe in one swoop. Wonder Woman had an extended cameo – and there were brief sightings of Aquaman, Flash and Cyborg – but it was a far cry from DC’s answer toThe Avengers.

DC also brought its criminal element into the limelight that year inSuicide Squad, before Wonder Woman got the belated chance to headline her own movie in 2017.

Wonder Womanis arguably the most important movie in the history of the DCEU, with its sense of fun and optimism proving that DC could play Marvel at their own game. They also beat Marvel to the crucial milestone of getting a female-led superhero movie on the big screen, withWonder Womanlanding more than 18 months ahead ofCaptain Marvel. The DCEU was back on track.

Or so it seemed. The hotly anticipatedJustice Leaguebrought Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg together to fight the extra-terrestrial threat of Steppenwolf – and misfired. Four years later, Snyder was unexpectedly given the chance to revisit his version ofJustice League, and he delivered a longer, more coherent take on the superhero team-up.

SinceJustice League’s original cinema release, standalone movies have come back to the fore in the DCEU.AquamanandShazam!both took the franchise in fun new directions –Aquamanwith its spectacular underwater world, andShazam!with its unashamedly kooky,Big-style wish fulfillment.

Elsewhere,Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinnfinally gave Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn – by some distance the best thing inSuicide Squad– a more worthy vehicle for her talents in early 2020. Wonder Woman then proved herself to be the only high-profile big-screen superhero brave enough to take on Covid-19, asWonder Woman 1984belatedly made it into cinemas in December 2020.

Suicide Squadsequel/rebootThe Suicide Squad(written and directed byGuardians of the Galaxy’s James Gunn, who’s since taken on a role overseeing DC Studios) arrived in August 2021. A few months later, spin-off TV showPeacemakerfocussed on the titular antihero, with John Cena reprising his role fromThe Suicide Squad. Both proved rather more appealing than the original 2016 supervillain team-up.

They’ve since been joined in the DC line-up by Dwayne Johnson’s superhero (okay, super-anti-hero) debut inBlack Adam, the recentShazam!sequel (read ourShazam! Fury of the Godsreviewto find out what we thought), a first solo outing for the Scarlet Speedster inThe Flash,andBlue Beetle, a mostly self-contained story about a college student who gains superpowers when he gets hold of a magical scarab. The most recent (and final) release in the DCEU continuity wasAquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which swam into theaters in December 2023.

And no, we haven’t forgotten about 2022’s Caped Crusader reboot (read our fullreview of The Batmanto find out why we loved it) and theMartin Scorsese-esqueJoker. We’ve left them out because they exist in their own continuity away from the main DCEU timeline.

How to watch the DC movies in chronological order

Best for:viewers looking for a new way to stream the DC movies

Interested in watching the DC movies based on how they fit into the franchise chronology? This part of our guide explains how to do so. Below, we’ve outlined the best way to stream them in terms of their position in the DC timeline. So, you’ll see Wonder Woman’s first solo film at the top of the list – it’s largely set in World War I – withAquaman and the Lost Kingdomat the end. That’s because the most recent movie in the franchise occurs in the present day of the DCEU.

Admittedly, most DC films are set in the modern era, and evenWonder Womanfeatures some framing scenes set in the present . In that sense, there isn’t much difference between watching them in chronological or release date order. This method spices things up, though. So, if you’re looking for a new way to enjoy every DCEU movie so far, this is the order for you.

Predominantly set during World War I – with some sequences taking place centuries in the past –Wonder Womanis where the earliest bits of the saga’s action take place. Diana Prince also headlines the second installment in DCEU chronology, returning around seven decades after events of the first movie – looking like she hasn’t aged a day – inWonder Woman 1984.

Next up isMan of Steel, whose wholesale destruction of Metropolis sets the scene for Bruce Wayne’s vengeful quest to take down Krypton’s most famous son inBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. From here, things get fuzzier – though Supes’ death inBatman v Supermanis a useful reference point.

In the present-day bookends ofWonder Woman, Diana receives a photo of her old World War I unit from Bruce Wayne – someone she met for the first time inDawn of Justice. Wayne also crops up at the end ofSuicide Squad, meeting with Amanda Waller to discuss recruiting metahumans like Flash and Aquaman to help keep a Superman-less world safe. It’s clear, then, thatWonder Woman’s present day scenes and the events ofSuicide Squadslot somewhere betweenDawn of JusticeandJustice Leaguein the DCEU chronology.

In the loose context of the DCEU’s extremely malleable continuity it’s Joss Whedon’s version ofJustice Leaguethat’s consideredcanon, even though some elements of Snyder’s movie have survived into future installments of the franchise. For example, Kiersey Clemons reprises her Snyder Cut role as Iris West inThe Flash,even though she never appears on screen in Whedon’s version ofJustice League.

Aquamanis set at some point afterJustice League, because Mera (played by Amber Heard) references the events of the earlier film. The firstShazam!followsAquaman, too, as Billy Batson and best friend Freddy Freeman are aware of the events of the underwater movie.

It’s less obvious how theSuicide Squadmovies and various spin-offs fit in.Birds of Preycould take place at any point following the originalSuicide Squad,because– while we know that the Joker rescued Harley Quinn from the US government when her assignment with Task Force X was done – the exact timeframe is unclear.

WhetherBirds of Preytakes place before or afterJustice Leagueis unclear, but we knowThe Suicide Squadtakes place in the wake of Ms Quinn’s misadventures inBirds of Prey. ThePeacemakerTV show is clearly set several months after the events ofThe Suicide Squad, as the small-screen spin-off references the titular Christopher Smith/Peacemaker recovering from injuries sustained on his mission to Corto Maltese.

TheSuicide Squadoffshoot of the DCEU timeline is surprisingly helpful in placingBlack AdamandShazam! Fury of the Godsin the chronology. Cameos for Emilia Harcourt (a US government agent played by Jennifer Holland and introduced inPeacemaker) in both movies places them afterPeacemaker. Superman’s surprise appearance inBlack Adamalso confirms the Dwayne Johnson-starring film takes place after the man of steel’s resurrection inJustice League.

The Flashis seemingly set in the present day, afterBlack AdamandShazam! Fury of the Gods.That said, the movie’s journeys into multiverse territory – notably an alternative timeline where Michael Keaton’s Batman (from the two Tim Burton movies) is the dominant Caped Crusader – do make its place in the chronology a little harder to define.

Blue BeetleandAquaman and the Lost Kingdomeffectively exist as standalones, with minimal references to other characters and events within the DCEU. It’s safe to assume, however, that they’re the final movies in the chronology – especially asAquaman 2states that several years have passed since the first movie. Long enough, in fact, for Arthur Curry to spend some time on the Atlantean throne and have a son.

As forJokerandThe Batman, they exist outside the shared continuity of the DC movies, and will continue to do so in the upcoming new era of the DC Universe led by new joint-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran – more on that below…

Future DC movies and TV shows

Following the release ofAquaman and the Lost Kingdomin December 2022, DC’s screen output is set to go through some major changes.James Gunn and Peter Safran were appointed as co-heads of DC Studios in October 2022and, in January 2023,Gunn announced the films and TV showsthat’ll kick-off the duo’s revised cinematic universe. This first phase of releases will be known asDCU Chapter One: Gods and Monsters.

Movie sequels toJokerandThe Batman–Joker: Folie à DeuxandThe Batman Part II– are also on the way in 2024 and 2025, respectively. Like their predecessors, they’ll exist in separate continuities to the main DC Universe, and will be branded as “DC Elseworlds” projects – a knowing wink to the DC Comics imprint of the same name.

The Caped Crusader is also getting two TV spin-offs onMax: the first is a Penguin TV series, which focusses onThe Batmanincarnation of legendary Bat-villain Oswald Cobblepot, as played by Colin Farrell; the other isArkham, a horror-tinged offering set in Gotham’s famous asylum. (It now seems thatArkhamwill exist in a different universe toThe Batman, as Gunn has revealed onThreadsthat, “Matt [Reeves, director ofThe Batman] is producingArkhamas a DCU series.")

You can find a quick summary of what’s in store in the new-look DCU below:

DCU movies

DCU TV shows

Elseworlds projects

The DCEU movies ranked: from best to worst

Looking for a guide on the best and worst DC movies? We’ve ranked every DCEU project based on their IMDb scores. That way, you know which ones are worth your time if you’re only looking to stream a few of them.

(For comparison,The Batmanscores 7.8, whileJokerpicks up 8.4, meaning it’s more popular thanallthe movies in the main DC continuity.)

Where to stream the DC movies and TV shows

If you want to watch the DC movies in order from the US, every release up toBlue Beetleis available to stream on Max. Many of the films are also available onNetflix.

For viewers in UK and Australia, you’ll have to look around several of thebest streaming servicesto work your way through all of the films.

Below we’ve outlined where you can watch all 17 DCEU movies to date – though whether you view them in order is entirely up to you.

For more DC movies coverage, find out which ones made it onto ourbest Max movieslist. Alternatively, see ifPeacemakerhas joined ourbest Max showsguide.

As TechRadar’s senior entertainment reporter, Tom covers all of the latest movies, TV shows, and streaming service news that you need to know about. You’ll regularly find him writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and many other topics of interest.

An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Tom also writes reviews, analytical articles, opinion pieces, and interview-led features on the biggest franchises, actors, directors and other industry leaders. You may see his quotes pop up in the odd official Marvel Studios video, too, such as thisMoon Knight TV spot.

Away from work, Tom can be found checking out the latest video games, immersing himself in his favorite sporting pastime of football, reading the many unread books on his shelf, staying fit at the gym, and petting every dog he comes across.

Got a scoop, interesting story, or an intriguing angle on the latest news in entertainment? Feel free to drop him a line.

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