For many comic book fans, 2025 was a highly anticipated year in terms of superhero adaptations. On the film side, all four projects represented a significant milestone for their respective studios. Captain America: Brave New World was the first Captain America movie in nearly nine years, starring a new actor as the Sentinel of Liberty. *Thunderbolts saw many of Marvel Studios' misfit or less popular characters band together for a major motion picture.
Superman was the first feature film in the nascent DCU, and lastly, The Fantastic Four: First Steps marked the return of Marvel's first family in a decade, following a string of films that disappointed critically—and in the case of 2015's Fantastic Four, financially, as well. Most of this year's comic book projects enjoyed a healthy public reception, and that got me thinking:
Which Is ComicBookMovie's Best Superhero Movie From 2025?
We want to hear from our readers. Out of the four major superhero movies released this year, which one do you think was the best? As a reminder, here are the four projects in question:
- Captain America: Brave New World
- *Thunderbolts
- Superman
- The Fantastic Four: First Steps
I'll get the ball rolling. While I loved almost all of them to some degree, the crown has to go to The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The movie is just a perfect representation of Marvel's First Family, encapsulating what I, and many others, had wanted to see from the superhero team for years—decades, even. A close second is *Thunderbolts, but The Fantastic Four remains the reigning champion of my ranking.
Something curious happened with this year's comic book movies. Realistically speaking, none of them lived up to their financial potential. Some fared worse than others, such as Captain America: Brave New World and *Thunderbolts. But even the highest-earners—The Fantastic Four and Superman—did not reach the heights that comic book movies became expected to reach comfortably just a few years ago.
However, despite their financial hardships, the majority of 2025's comic book films performed wonderfully critically, which is a hard streak to achieve. *Thunderbolts earned an 88% Rotten Tomatoes score, Fantastic Four: First Steps received an 86%, and Superman got an 83%. Even Brave New World, which scored a pretty-bad 46%, is still talked about somewhat fondly. Recent years have seen comic book movies struggle public perception-wise, so it's refreshing to see them get a long-overdue critical victory lap.
Now it's your turn—drop your favorite comic book film of 2025 in the comments, and tell us why it's your pick.