The Marvel Cinematic Universe had significant disappointments and big successes in its busy year of 2025. While many fans have their eyes on the MCU's slate for 2026, including Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday, 2025 was another busy year for the Marvel Studios franchise. With three movies and multiple Disney Plus series, it ended up being a rather mixed bag.
The MCU was still struggling with its sagging reputation and the ongoing commentary on "superhero fatigue". While some of the projects only furthered those criticisms, 2025 was also a year in which the MCU reminded audiences how good it can be.
Along with exciting new characters and returning fan-favorites, now is the perfect time to look back at all of the 2025 MCU projects, ranked.
Captain America: Brave New World
When Steve Rogers handed Sam Wilson the shield at the end of Avengers: Endgame, it was an exciting new chapter for the hero, which was further cemented in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Captain America: Brave New World is a culmination of that journey, and it completely lets down the new Captain America in every way.
The movie reeks of reshoots and tampering with the lack of confidence in the story feeling impossible to ignore. Even Harrison Ford turning into the Red Hulk is a letdown, as it all feels like several different movies mashed together in a panic.
Hopefully, Sam gets another chance to shine but this disaster likely hurt his chances of leading the MCU in the future.
Marvel Zombies
A fun idea that originated in the comics became one of the most entertaining What If...? episodes, which eventually led to Marvel Zombies being fleshed out into its own wild animated story. It's not a hard concept to get on board with, as the Marvel universe is overtaken by a zombie plague, transforming many of its greatest heroes into flesh-eating monsters.
The series is actually a great opportunity to allow some underrated and underused characters, like Shang-Chi and Kamala Khan, the chance to lead the MCU. The addition of Blade is also hugely entertaining. However, the gory visuals have to do a lot of the heavy lifting as the story feels too thin to spread out over an entire series.
Ironheart
One of the newest heroes in the Marvel comic books, Riri Williams, quickly became a fan-favorite, leading to her speedy introduction in the MCU. Dominique Thorne delivered a charming debut in the role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but she got the chance to step into the spotlight completely in her own Disney Plus series Ironheart.
Unfortunately, having the successor to Iron Man start her story in a Disney+ show was just not what Riri deserved. Thorne continued to be excellent in the role, and there were some really compelling elements to her story. However, combining her tech-savvy hero with magical threats never really meshed well. On the upside, we finally got to see the long-anticipated MCU introduction of Mephisto.
Eyes of Wakanda
The second animated MCU show of the year gives fans a welcome return to Wakanda. Eyes of Wakanda explores the mythology of this hidden nation, going into the history of Wakanda's warriors. With just four episodes, the series almost feels like brief anthology stories tied together at the end.
The short run of the series does take away from its impact, as it doesn't feel like it can have much of an impact. However, Wakanda is such a rich corner of the MCU, and there are some very interesting revelations and explorations here, as well as some stunning animation. It also delivers a much more effective version of Iron Fist.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps
After several failed attempts, Marvel's First Family finally gets the big-screen treatment they deserve. The Fantastic Four: First Steps wisely lets the team of heroes grow in their own universe, disconnected from the rest of the MCU. They are the world's superhero team that feels like a real family, which becomes an essential part of the movie.
Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach are perfectly cast as the iconic heroes, each getting to flesh out interesting and fun characters. The villains are also great, with the tragic Silver Surfer and the imposing Galactus allowing for some of the most visually stunning characters Marvel has created in some time. It is a splashy retro adventure that makes these characters immediately feel like staples in the MCU.
Daredevil: Born Again
The return of Daredevil was a thrilling surprise for many fans, but there were still a lot of questions about how the gritty and dark series might fare when switching over to Disney+. Those fears were quickly abated as Daredevil: Born Again succeeded in capturing what fans loved about the initial series while also taking the story deeper into the MCU.
The show is filled with complex characters and interesting relationships, with the battle between Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk still at the center of it all. It also nails the hard-hitting extended fight sequences that were so popular in the first series.
Just as fans always wanted, Born Again feels like a darker and more grounded corner of the MCU where these complex characters can come to play.
Thunderbolts*
Thunderbolts* was a prime example that the MCU does not need big-name characters to make a great comic book movie. This one would have seemed like the underdog Marvel project going into 2025, but it emerged as their best movie in years and a reminder of how great the studio can be.
The story of anti-heroes assembling into the most unlikely of teams is filled with fun characters who finally get a chance to shine in this universe. Stellar performances from the likes of Florence Pugh, Wyatt Russell, and Lewis Pullman also suggest these are the characters who could take a central role in the MCU going forward.
Thunderbolts* is a cinematic and fun adventure that is also not afraid to explore deeper themes, making it the best superhero movie of the year.