Is ‘Batman v Superman’ One Of The Worst Superhero Movies? 8 Other Disappointing Titles

“Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” was one of the most anticipated superhero movies of the year, but the reception for the DC film has not been very good. Since it’s release, negative reviews have been pouring in for the epic clash between Superman (Henry Cavill) and Batman (Ben Affleck).

The movie currently holds a 29 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes and Jen Yamtao of the Daily Beast said “When you walk away from the terminally unfocused ‘Batman v Superman’ with no desire to see another Batman or Superman story ever again, someone up the chain has made a terrible mistake.” Despite negative reviews, the movie holds a 7.5 rating on IMDb and some comic book fans have walked out of the theater happy with what they saw.

Although the film has mixed reviews, it was able to bring in $424 million globally during its first five days of release, according to BBC News. In the U.S., the film took in $170.1 million at the box office, which is a record for a March release.

While the movie might not be one of the worst comic films ever made, there have been plenty of disappointing superhero films that have both let down fans and caused critics to rip the films apart. Here are eight of the worst superhero movies ever made:

1. “Green Lantern” (2011)

Before he redeemed himself with “Deadpool,” Ryan Reynolds starred as Hal Jordan in “The Green Lantern.” The film was criticized for it’s screenplay and CGI, which entirely made up Reynolds' costume. The film was supposed to kickoff a new franchise, but after negative reviews and poor box office returns, future sequels were canceled. While the film may not have been successful, Reynolds did meet his future wife Blake Lively while shooting the movie.

2. “Elektra” (2005)

Despite a mostly strong debut in “Daredevil,” the character just wasn’t the same in her own solo movie. Jennifer Garner starred in the film that at the time, had the lowest gross of a film featuring a Marvel character. The movie was too serious and didn’t tell a very good story. The character has since been revived in Netflix’s “Daredevil” Season 2.

3. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” (2009)

Although he’s one of the best characters in the “X-Men” films, the standalone Wolverine movies drop the ball more often than not. The worst of them is 2009’s “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.” James Mullinger of GQ described the plot as “bland” and full of holes. The film has also been criticized for it’s portrayal of Deadpool (Reynolds), who appeared towards the end of the film as a version of the character with his mouth sewn shut.

4. “Hulk” (2003)

The first “Hulk” movie missed the mark despite having a strong cast with Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly, Sam Elliott and Josh Lucas. Bana was pretty good as Bruce Banner, but the film was too long and many felt it didn’t have enough action sequences. The franchise would later be revived in 2008 with “The Incredible Hulk” starring Edward Norton. The character has since become one of the most beloved characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe thanks to Mark Ruffalo’s portrayal as the character in “The Avengers” movies.

5. “Spider-Man 3” (2007)

The first two “Spider-Man” movies were fun and solid movies, but the franchise sort of lost it’s way in the third installment. The plot was overloaded with characters and underused Venom (Topher Grace), who is one of the better Spider-Man villains from the comics. There’s also a scene featuring an “emo” Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) which basically sums up why “Spider-Man 3” was a let down. You can see the scene below:

6. “Fantastic Four” (2015)

“Fantastic Four” was supposed to reboot the franchise, but it may have instead buried it forever. The film received an overwhelming amount of negative reviews and it currently has a 4.3 rating on IMDb and a 9 percent freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Director Josh Trank tweeted in August that he had a great version of the film made, but blamed 20th Century Fox for the version that was released.

7. “Catwoman” (2004)

Halle Berry had a good performance, but she wasn’t able to carry the poor movie around her. Roger Ebert referred to the movie as one of his most hated films and critiqued the filmmakers for its bad plot, not giving Berry a strong character and focusing too much on her sex appeal.

8. “Ghost Rider” (2007)

Nicholas Cage has had his share of classic movies and duds in his career. “Ghost Rider” falls in the category of not his best. The film currently has a 26 percent freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes and the site describes the movie as “a sour mix of morose, glum histrionics amidst jokey puns and hammy dialogue.” The franchise would go on to have a sequel in 2012 called “Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance,” which many say was even worse than the original.