Over the years, superhero trilogies have become a mainstay in cinema for years to come. Initially kicking off all the way back in the late '90s with the Blade Trilogy and in the early 2000s with Sam Raimi's revolutionary original Spider-Man trilogy, and now with the Marvel Cinematic Universe booming, it's fair to say we have a lot of trilogies to delve into.
Arguably the most important installment in a trilogy is the very first one, it kicks things off and gets audiences eager to see what happens to the characters next. However, many trilogies have fallen into the trap of starting things off with a bang and then ending on a disappointing note and an underwhelming climax.
10 RoboCop's underlying themes of corruption & capitalism were abandoned for Hollywood action & violence
The classic 1987 sci-fi action thriller RoboCop made history with its incredible opening movie mixing sci-fi action with dark humor and graphic violence. The film was led by Peter Weller as a terminally-injured cop-turned half-cyborg RoboCop, who spends his time cleaning up the streets of the city of Detroit.
Unfortunately, the next films of the trilogy didn't live up to the first and disappointed most fans. The underlying themes of corruption and capitalism were abandoned for Hollywood action and violence leading to an underwhelming ending to the trilogy.
9 Glass failed to live up to both previous films & suffered from too many plot twists & a messy plot
M. Night Shyamalan became one of the world's best up-and-coming directors in the late '90s after his incredible film The Sixth Sense. He then carried it on with his next superhero flick Unbreakable, starring Bruce Willis and his signature plot twist endings. Almost 20 years later, he followed it up with his film Split, this time focusing on James McAvoy's Kevin who struggles with a dissociative identity disorder.
Split was once again a great superhero film, but when Shyamalan tried to combine both worlds in 2019's Glass, it failed to live up to both previous films and suffered from too many plot twists and a messy plot.
8 the final film of the Blade trilogy is well known for being an awful movie
While maybe not as well known or popular as modern-day MCU films, the Blade Trilogy helped Marvel lay down the foundations of the superhero genre with its humans vs. vampires trilogy. Starring Wesley Snipes as the lead, and with a supporting cast including Jessica Biel and Ryan Reynolds, the Blade films were a great hit among comic book fans, and while they weren't perfect, they were still highly enjoyable.
However, the final film of the trilogy is well known for being an awful movie and gained even more publicity for the wrong reasons as star Wesley Snipes' and director David Goyer's major disagreements led to Snipes actually refusing to take part in certain scenes.
7 The last installment of the Original X-Men Trilogy was a huge disappointment
2000's X-Men kicked off the modern-day superhero genre with its ambitious movie featuring a group of outcast mutants facing off against their evil cohorts. With actors like Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, and Hugh Jackman leading the line, the first installment of the trilogy had everything any fan could have asked for, from its funny one-liners and superhero action scenes to the dramatic tension between the heroes, they were off to a great start.
And it kept on getting better with an awesome sequel X2: X-Men United, who can forget that iconic love triangle? But, in typical comic book movie fashion, the last installment was once again a huge disappointment, especially after they sidelined the Dark Phoenix storyline for an odd plot about a "cure" for mutants.
6 Superman III didn't have the same impact as the previous two & some fans thought it was a bit too comedic
Before Henry Cavill and DC's recent Superman adventures, Christopher Reeve ran the show with his Superman movies back in the late '70s and '80s. The ensemble cast, including The Godfather's Marlon Brando and Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, led by Reeves created one of the biggest blockbusters ever seen in the 1978 classic.
The second film was also a cult classic as Superman returned to face off against General Zod, but then as the studio tried again for a box office hit, Superman III didn't have the same impact as the previous two and some fans thought it was a bit too comedic.
5 The X-Men Prequel Trilogy left fans with a bitter taste in their mouths
After the classic X-Men trilogy came to an end, the creators of the mutants decided to travel back in time and see what the heroes were like when they were younger. Recasting the likes of Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen with a younger cast of James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender was a massive risk for the franchise, but it definitely initially paid off.
X-Men First Class helped revitalize the franchise and made the X-Men popular once again. Popularity grew even further with the time-traveling Days Of Future Past, which many fans saw as one of the best X-Men movies of all-time, but unfortunately, a flat third film featuring the villain Apocalypse left fans with a bitter taste in their mouths.
4 creative differences led to a messy ending for Spidey
Before Tom Holland and Andrew Garfield's later versions of the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, Tobey Maguire led the Marvel franchise in Sam Raimi's iconic trilogy. While today it is still up for debate on whether Maguire is the best ever portrayal of the web-slinger, the films still gave fans a taste of what superhero films could be.
With some of the best villains ever seen on-screen in Green Goblin, played by Willem Dafoe, and Doc Oc, played by Alfred Molina, the films stand out as great superhero movies even today. Things got complicated, however, when Raimi and the studio had different ideas of the direction of the final installment, which, unfortunately, led to a messy ending for Spidey.
3 sadly, Iron Man 3 didn't live up to the heights of the first film
Kicking off the MCU in emphatic fashion, Robert Downey Jr. and John Favreau have become movie icons ever since Iron Man hit theaters in 2008. The genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist Tony Stark was the perfect modern-day hero to lead the line when it came to Marvel movies, and it's fair to say he's become a cinematic legend over the MCU's 23 movies since.
Following up an almost perfect origin story is a difficult task and Marvel didn't do a horrible job, but the subsequent films were way more forgettable than the first. They explored Tony Stark's mental state incredibly well, and who can forget that awesome finale of Iron Man 3, but sadly didn't live up to the heights of the first film.
2 The Matrix revolutions made the series feel dragged out & lost its edge
Complex sci-fi and amazing action sequences are always fan-favorites in cinema, but no one would have expected The Matrix to be as revolutionary a film as it turned out to be in 1999. After choosing the red pill and finally discovering the truth about his world, computer hacker Neo embarks on a mission to lead a revolution against the Machine Army.
The first film is one of the best films of all time, let alone one of the best sci-fi classics, and the second installment was also extremely enjoyable, especially with its awesome action scenes, but by the third film, the series felt dragged out and lost its edge.
1 The Dark Knight Rises felt like a small step backward for Christopher Nolan
Chrsipther Nolan is one of the best directors and writers of modern cinema. From his space epic Interstellar to his war drama Dunkirk, he's barely put a foot wrong in his film career so far. Kicking of the DC universe with Christian Bale's Batman in Batman Begins saw him reinventing the genre with a dark and realistic take on the vigilante.
Following up the incredible The Dark Knight, arguably the best superhero film of all time was always going to be a near-impossible task, and to be fair to Nolan, The Dark Knight Rises was still a great film, but due to his insanely high standards and expectations from the previous two films, it felt like a small step backward for the director.
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