All DC Extended Universe Films in Order
Over the past eight years, Warner Bros. Pictures worked to build DC Extended Universe.
After a string of wildly successful Batman films from director Christopher Nolan, the founding of a new shared universe begins with Man of Steel in 2013. Since then, ten films have been introduced to add to the overall story and build towards a major epilogue that may or may not happen.
Sometimes it seems that Warner Bros. abandoned the idea of the DCEU, but with the success of Justice League by Zack Snyder released on HBO Max earlier this year, fans are hoping for more.
The events of these films do not occur in the order of their release. For those planning to take a look at the franchise so far, here’s the best order to follow as the story unfolds.
In what order do I watch DC Movies?
Wonder Woman
The first movie in the timeline is 2017 Wonder Woman. Introducing the princess of the Amazons to a wide audience for the first time, Wonder Woman follows Diana as she fights alongside Man in the war to end all wars. The majority of the film takes place in 1918, with the exception of some modern-day settings. This is the perfect starting point for your DC movie marathon.
Wonder Woman 1984
Some scenes in this film take place in the past before the events of the first Wonder Woman movie, but for the most part, the sequel is set in 1984 (as the name suggests). Living among mortals in the 80s, Diana is working behind the scenes to collect ancient artifacts and help people stay anonymous. The most recent film shot in the DCEU, Wonder Woman 1984 is a much-needed fix for superhero movies when everything else is still stalled.
Man of Steel
Man of Steel is the movie that kicked off the DCEU and is arguably the best reimagining of the hero in the cap on the big screen. The film introduces Superman’s origin story including the destruction of Krypton and his life with Clark Kent on earth. Dealing with the threat from his past, Man of Steel introduces the key components and ideas that shape the trajectory of the DCEU.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Batman v Superman introduces the character of Bruce Wayne/Batman (Ben Affleck) into the DCEU. The film initially positioned itself as an action-thriller action movie that pits tech millionaire Batman against Krypton’s son, Superman, but it quickly becomes clear that they will have to work together to deal with the threat. Great threat created by Lex Luther and Doomsday. This movie serves as the bridge where all the previous films meet, bringing Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman into action together for the first time.
Suicide Squad
While the film takes place inside the DCEU and deals with the events of Batman v Superman, Suicide Squad’S’s story is mostly disconnected from other movies. The film’s main cast includes first-time big screen villains including Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Deadshot (Will Smith) and many other members of Suicide Squad from the comics. Suicide Squad’s conspiracies that follow this group of unlikely partners that U.S. Intelligence considers expendable. The team is then sent on a top secret mission that is forced to fight a mighty enemy.
Alliance justice
The stage cut of Alliance justice is the first film to bring together DC’s hero group from the comics. The team in the film includes Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash (Ezra Miller), Cyborg (Ray Fisher) and Aquaman (Jason Momoa). In the film, Leauge is forced to deal with the threat from Steppenwolf and the hordes of enemies sent by Darkseid during his conquest to assemble the mother box – powerful pieces.
Justice League by Zack Snyder
After the mediocre reception came Justice League’s cut theaters, years later, the director originally assigned to the project completed his own version of the film. The Zack Snyder-directed Snyder cut is a four-hour spectacle, adding new scenes that explain the rationale for the major choices in the film as well as adding brand new plot points and characters to start with. act. Technically, this movie isn’t “canon” but it could be the reason we’re seeing new movies being included in the DCEU.
Aquaman
After his introduction in Alliance justice, fans get their first independent engagement with Aquaman in 2018. In this movie, we pick a few months after the events of Aquaman. Alliance justice and watched Aquaman return to Atlantis to deal with the threat to his people. The film also features several flashbacks that give viewers a glimpse of the Atlantean hero’s origin story.
Shazam!
Over the past few decades, DC has been known for its dark and serious tones in its films, however Shazam! completely ditched that formula and was warmly received by fans and critics alike. This movie takes place after the events of Alliance justice, but does not rely on previously established lore to build its characters. The film is simply an introduction and origin story of the hero Shazam and his family.
Birds of prey
Birds of prey take place at the same time as Shazam!, in time after the events of Alliance justice. The next movie mostly direct from Suicide Squad, choosing Harley Quinn as the leader, assembles her own team of anti-heroes to confront the crime boss Black Mask. The mish-mash team has a lot of chemistry, and there are plenty of style choices from the Cathy Yan directory, making this an interesting addition to the DCEU.
The future of DCEU
While it looks like there will be no more DCEU, there are a few movies planned that could continue to build on this established universe. The most obvious of these is Black Adam the film is slated for release in 2022 and stars Rock in the lead role. This drama will add to the overall story of Shazam! but it’s currently unclear where this movie will take place on the timeline.
We also know that The Flash is in production and will star actor Ezra Miller, who appeared as a character in Alliance justice. Right now, slated release for this movie is November 2022 and will adapt Bright spot plot from comics. Aquaman and Shazam! both have confirmed a sequel and will continue their respective stories in the DCEU.
There have been rumors that a third Wonder Woman Film is in development. There’s also speculation that we could see a standalone Cyborg movie, a Green Lantern Corps movie, and a Jared Leto Joker movie all tied to the DCEU.