10 Worst Super Hero Movies Of All Time

9. Superman III

Rotten Tomatoes score: 26%

Domestic box office: $60 million

There’s something about third installments of super hero franchises that have historically been troublesome. Both the Spider-Man and X-Men brands lost their way with movie No. 3, and Batman Forever was the beginning of the decline for the Dark Knight as well. Maybe they should have learned from Superman III, which followed up the awesome Superman II with something decidedly less entertaining.

I’ll fully admit that it’s difficult to come up with compelling challenges for Superman even under the best of circumstances, and with the budgetary and technological constraints of the 80s, maybe trying for Metallo or the Parasite would have been an impossible task. But tell me you honestly couldn’t think of a better challenge for the Man of Tomorrow than a giant weather-controlling computer.

Not only was the villain goofy, but so was the use of Richard Pryor. The legendary comedian was probably just past the height of his powers, but to stick him in the slapstick, forced humor of this film was something akin to a crime against comedy itself. I feel like I need to do some penance by listening to some of his best stand-up routines after every viewing of this film.

The other thing we learned from Superman III is that once super hero franchises start going downhill, it’s hard to stop the momentum. Hold that thought for later in this list.

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