Every James Gunn Superhero Movie, Ranked

James Gunn is one of the most talked about names in the superhero movie game at the moment. That’s not just because he’s helping head Warner Bros.’s new DC universe, but because he has a proven track record as a writer/director in the genre that proves he understands how to make great superhero movies.

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Alongside reworking the DC Universe, Gunn is also working on his latest superhero title, Superman Legacy. The film is set to star a lot more heroes than just Superman, and fans are excited to see new things Gunn can bring to the superpowered Kryptonian. Whilst moviegoers await Gunn’s latest project, why not take a gander at Gunn’s previous superhero movies, and just how well they stack up against each other?

5 Super

Metascore: 50

• Director: James Gunn
• Release Date: April 1st 2011
• Runtime: 1h 36m

Black comedy is perhaps one of Gunn’s biggest assets, and it’s the sort of comedy that he excels at. One of the best examples of Gunn’s black comic style is perhaps best portrayed in the cult hit Super.

The movie stars Rainn Wilson (of office fame) and Elliott Page as the self-anointed superheroes’ ‘Crimson Bolt’ and his kid sidekick ‘Boltie’. It’s a much more visceral crime-fighting experience with the Crimson Bolt tackling crime with his trusty pipe wrench, stopping a range of crimes from drug dealings to child molesters. It’s a solid comedy and an entertaining movie that features good performances all around. It may not have the grand superhero action or feature Gunn’s best character work, but that doesn’t stop it from being an underappreciated comedy flick. One that’s more than worthy of a watch.

4 Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2

Metascore: 67

• Director: James Gunn
• Release Date:
• Runtime: 2h 16m

After Gunn smashed it out of the park with the Sci-Fi epic that was 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, many fans were excited to see the Guardians return for another adventure, with the film promising brighter colors, more beloved music, and a look into the mystery surrounding Peter Quill’s father, Ego.

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The film that ensued was an entertaining affair, one that saw the Guardians once again shine with their on-screen chemistry and a new baby Groot work alongside a charismatic as-ever Kurt Russell to steal the limelight. The film was packed with great action sequences, especially a climactic fight that saw Star-Lord fight as an over-sized Pac-Man. The sequel brought some new characters to the fold, including Star-Lord’s quirky half-sister Mantis, seemingly focusing on the family dynamics of its characters, though it didn’t quite strike the pay-off, and although there were more jokes, there were even more that didn’t land as intended, including the recurring Taserface tease. Ultimately, Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 felt like it doubled down on everything fans loved about the first film, but bigger isn’t always better, and though it’s a good time, it certainly didn’t hit the same highs as Gunn’s other cinematic hits.

3 Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3

Metascore: 64

• Director: James Gunn
• Release Date: May 5th 2023
• Runtime: 2h 30m

After a long hiatus from Marvel and some work on a movie project for DC (more on that later), Gunn returned to finish the story he started with the Guardians of the Galaxy all those years ago. The third entry in the franchise was another hit for the family of misfits, and the movie delivered one of Gunn’s most emotional stories to date, tackling Rocket’s tragic backstory and seeing each member of the Guardians deal with the fallout of loss and new responsibilities following their past adventures.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol.3 was a refreshing return to form for the Marvel Cinematic Universe following the underwhelming performances of a large portion of the phase four movies. Vol. 3 felt like the right balance between the first and second Guardians movies, giving a good amount of action and laughs, whilst still taking time to dig deeper into the heroes and deliver some of the most emotional moments seen in Gunns’s films to date. That’s not even mentioning the excellent performance of Chukwudi Iwuji as the twisted and outright evil High Evolutionary.

2 The Suicide Squad

Metascore: 72

• Director: James Gunn
• Release Date: August 6th 2021
• Runtime: 2h 12m

Turning away from Marvel, Gunn was entrusted with writing/directing the half-sequel to David Ayer’s 2016 Suicide Squad. There was a lot of hope that Gunn would translate his staple humor and honed craft at creating truly memorable characters with his R-rated follow-up and, to moviegoers’ delight, he absolutely nailed it.

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Starring some of the squad’s least heroic members, the film felt like a fresh reintroduction to the famed Suicide Squad. The film still retained some of the key characters from the initial movie but brought forward several excellent new additions, such as Idris Elba’s rat-fearing Bloodsport, a simple but lovable King Shark, and one of comics best live-action versions, in John Cena’s brilliant douche bag turn as Peacemaker. That’s not even touching on Margot Robbie’s excellent return as Harley Quinn, or Daniela Melchoir’s turn as Ratchatcher 2. The film was packed with great performances, but the film truly shined when the defective group of miscreants bonded and bickered together in a deadly insurgent mission to eliminate an extraterrestrial threat. The Suicide Squad was a stellar superhero movie and showcased that Gunn can replicate his excellent character work outside the Guardians of the Galaxy. If this is a statement of what his new DCU will be, then fans and moviegoers should rest assured that they’re in safe hands.

1 Guardians of the Galaxy

Metascore: 76

• Director: James Gunn
• Release Date: August 1st 2014
• Runtime: 2h 1m

There probably wasn’t much doubt among Gunn’s fans that his debut Marvel film would grab the top spot on this list. After all, his introduction to the rag-tag group of rogues was an excellent Sci-Fi adventure that showcased an important lesson in on-screen chemistry and still stands as one of the highest-rated Marvel Cinematic Universe movies to date.

2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy was a surprise hit when it was released in August, but it was James Gunn’s fully realized characters that helped make the film such an entertaining affair for moviegoers. The soundtrack was infectious, each of the five guardians bounced off of each other to deliver a load of laughs but also showcase just how perfectly matched this unlikely group of outcasts are together. Sure, Ronan didn’t bring much to the plate, but when the Guardians are working together and the action comes just as thick and fast as the comedy, it’s hard not to be swept up in this space adventure-loving charm.

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