There are Marvel movies outside the Marvel Cinematic Universe, given that various Marvel comic characters have been owned by different companies over the years, with such rights allowing the creation of film adaptations.Sony is one company that found successquite early on through such adaptations, with earlySpider-Manmovies in the 2000s (alongside 20th Century Fox’sX-Menseries from around the same time) helping create the ongoing boom in superhero movies.
A few Sony superhero movies cross over into the MCU, but some predate the MCU. Further,there’s also been a “Sony-Verse,”which is kind of its own thing, and has been running – not very successfully – since the late 2010s. Inconsistency is the name of the game when talking about these films, in short.Some Sony superhero movies rank among the worst of all time, while others are up there with the very best. All are ranked below, starting with the clunkiest and ending with the greatest.
19’Morbius' (2022)
Director: Daniel Espinosa
The film so nicethey released it twice (sort of),Morbiusfeels like it’s been a punching bag for as far back as anyone can remember, which is admittedly only 2022, but the lousiness of this one feels eternal. It tried hard to be cool and edgy, but no one really had the energy for it.It was a movie in the wrong place at the wrong time, and seriously weakened an already shaky attempt to create a Sony-centered cinematic universe.
The film itself is about a biochemist who tries to cure himself of a disease, but things inevitably go wrong, and he gets a superhero origin story in place of a cure.It’s boring, visually unpleasant, forgettable (at best), and only really worth something approaching valuable for the handful of memes it inspired.Morbiuswas always treated as a joke, and it’s not hard to see why.
18’Madame Web' (2024)
Director: S.J. Clarkson
The equally derided younger sister ofMorbius,Madame Webwasanother misfire of a superhero moviein just about every way. It was another uninspired origin story about a character who has ties to Spider-Man in the comics, but feels only loosely related to the famed web-slinger on-screen, with the plot here instead introducing new characters – some heroic, and at least one villainous – with spider-like powers.
Much of it boils down to a not-very-compelling hero having to babysit/protect three young women who one day might get into more exciting adventures, but probably not, givenMadame Web’s general lack of success. It’sa prologue that now feels isolated and extra empty; a film very few people seemed passionate about making, and the lack of effort shone through in a distressingly consistent manner overMadame Web’s sluggish 116-minute runtime.
Madame Web
Watch on Netflix
17’Venom: The Last Dance' (2024)
Director: Kelly Marcel
One more misery-fest before things start taking a slight turn upward in quality,Venom: The Last DanceconcludedaTom Hardy-starring trilogythat sometimes had its moments in the first two movies, but ended on a complete dud. The Last Dance has some defenders (or at least has more thanMorbiusandMadame Web), but it’s just as bad, in many ways. There is a lack of passion to it that’s hard to deny, and it makes for a disheartening viewing experience.
Humor takes a backseat, as does camp, and even the titular character himself, replaced by various scientists, military personnel, and members of an annoying family who all compete – and sometimes overpower – Eddie Brock/Venom for screen time.Venom: The Last Danceisa movie without a proper main villain, and is packed with lame action, a boring – and barely there – story, and forced sentiment that’s eye-rolling to the point of migraine-inducing.The Last Dance? It better be!
Venom: The Last Dance
Watch in theaters
16’Ghost Rider' (2007)
Director: Mark Steven Johnson
At leastGhost RiderhasNicolas Cage. Much as the main characters inCasablancacan smile through tears andagree that they’ll “always have Paris,”so too can you tell yourself, while struggling throughGhost Rider, “We’ll always have Cage.” It’s not quite one ofthe actor’s worst-ever movies, but it’s far fromone of his best, even though he’s about as good as he could be here, with what little he has to work with.
And it’s a shame there’s not much toGhost Rider, because the character is certainly novel enough, and there was a certain demented logic to getting Nicolas Cage in the lead role. It’s a messy blend of dark fantasy, action, and mild horror; a movie you might sometimes almost feel entertained by, butthen you’ll forget most of what actually happened shortly thereafter. At least things got a tiny bit better four years later, with…
Ghost Rider
15’Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance' (2011)
Directors: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeancecannot be called a massive improvement overGhost Rider, but there is almost something there this time. One gets the sense there was some effort by way of doubling down on what sort of came close to working in the first movie, but the gonzo directorial duo ofMark NeveldineandBrian Taylorwere probably held back considerably. Crank: High Voltage this ain’t.
Instead,Spirit of Vengeancegetsa little bit darkerand wackier in tone, somehow both at once, with Johnny Blaze/Ghost Rider getting mixed up in a family conflict of sorts between the devil and his son.If things had been pushed even furtherby way of absurdity and/or bloodshed, maybe this could’ve been a real winner, but at least the franticness and sometimes striking camerawork give it a bit more of a pulse than the firstGhost Ridermovie.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
14’Punisher: War Zone' (2008)
Director: Lexi Alexander
Before the character appeared in someNetflix shows in the 2010s, there were twoPunishermovies made in the 2000s (plus one in 1989, but that’s not connected to Sony). Of those two 2000s movies, neither are great, but both have some fans for differing reasons. The second,Punisher: War Zone, works modestly as a mindless action movie about a vigilante waging war on various criminals, but not much else.
Itrecast the main role, withRay Stevensonproving to be a solid enough Frank Castle/Punisher,but2008 was a busy year for superheroesand comic book movies, so this one didn’t really make an impact at the time. Some might be a little more charitable toward it nowadays, but it’s still fairly shallow and perhaps too blunt to truly stand out, or be more than something kind of niche by comic book movie standards.
Punisher: War Zone
13’The Punisher' (2004)
Director: Jonathan Hensleigh
Not quitebottom-tier as far as Marvel movies go, but still not great,The Punisheraims to introduce the titular character for a new century, after that aforementioned 1989 movie, but didn’t really start a series. IfWar Zonecan be counted as a sequel, it still feels fairly loose, givenThomas Janeplays the lead role here, and Stevenson was his replacement inWar Zone.
Narratively,The Punisheris also quite barebones, setting up Frank Castle’s tragic past and giving him a clearcut mission for revenge that sees himtaking on the title of The Punisher, and being generally as brutal and no-nonsense as such a name would imply.To its credit, this was dark and gritty a good few years before that became something of a trend for comic book movies, but it’s otherwise something that’s kind of just there. It might not be horrendous, but it’s still more than a little forgettable.
The Punisher
12’The Amazing Spider-Man 2' (2014)
Director: Marc Webb
It says something about Sony’s reliance on Spider-Man as a character that even the worst movie that puts said hero front and center –The Amazing Spider-Man 2– is still better than all those other Sony superhero flicks. “Better” doesn’t necessarily mean good, though, because this 2014 sequel (the second to starAndrew Garfieldand Peter Parker/Spider-Man) is completely all over the place stylistically, tonally, and narratively. For every scene that works, there’s at least one that doesn’t.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2juggles too many villains, throws in some stuff about Peter’s family’s past, and haphazardly tries to set up future movies that didn’t come to fruition.It doesn’t balance being goofy, fun, and emotionally intense very well, but if you approachThe Amazing Spider-Man 2with the most open of minds, you may find yourself somewhat appreciative of all it tries to do at once. They really went for something here,and even if it’s entirely scattershot, at least it’s scattershot in a sometimes interesting way.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
11’Venom' (2018)
Director: Ruben Fleischer
After the Andrew Garfield series stalled post-The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and a new Spider-Man established himself as one who belonged to bothSony and the MCU (sort of), efforts seemed to turn towards Venom being the glue to hold the Sony-Verse together. As such, 2018’sVenomkind of kicked that period of Sony movies off, and there’s some logic to such a choice. Of the Spider-Man-related characters Sony owned, Eddie Brock/Venom is probably the most popular and adaptable.
This first solo outing for the character is adecent origin story for the wacky antihero, following Brock as his crumbling life gets even more chaotic when an alien symbiote takes up residence inside his body.Venomtakes way too long to get to the fun stuff, but there is fun to be found once it finally takes off. Hardy, to his credit, is responsible for a lot of that fun, and though parts ofVenomare plodding and easy to forget,Hardy playing/voicing two kooky characters arguing with each other is some solid and dopey entertainment.
10’Venom: Let There Be Carnage' (2021)
Director: Andy Serkis
There is a relentless sense of not caring and getting stupid throughoutVenom: Let There Be Carnagethat makes it surprisingly not bad. You have to be willing to put up with a ton of camp and stupidity, butLet There Be Carnagerelishes increasing the number of dopier and more enjoyable moments that proved bright spots of the first Venom. Here,there’s a good villain (the titular Carnage), an ability for the film to hit the ground running (as a sequel), and a brief runtime that ensures the whole thing never outstays its welcome.
In this film,Spider-Man still isn’t a noteworthy partof thisSony-Verse(besides a post-credits scene, sort of), butVenom: Let There Be Carnagefinally feels like a movie that doesn’t really need Peter Parker. It is the best Sony superhero movie that doesn’t involve the studio’s beloved web-slinger. Call that damning with faint praise if you want, but it’s better than nothing.
