DCEU: All 16 DC Extended Universe films ranked from worst to best (including Aquaman 2)

12. Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice

A cinematic spectacle that was decades in the making, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice brought the two biggest heroes of DC Comics (and, in all honesty, the world) together on the big screen for the very first time.

Now, with pressure like that heading into its release, the 2016 superhero smackdown was destined to either shatter expectations or fail spectacularly – there was no in-between. Only, somehow, there was: It didn’t explode onto screens with the compelling narrative that we hoped for, but it didn’t fizzle out in epic fashion either. And yet it made an impression on people… the only problem was that nobody was quite sure what to think of it.

Visually, Batman v Superman is everything that it should be: Stunning, loud and larger-than-life, and Zack Snyder deserves an immense amount of credit for bringing the visuals of Frank Miller’s game-changing The Dark Knight Returns to life. Unfortunately, it wasn’t able to replicate a narrative anywhere near as engaging.

Aside from the fact that the Caped Crusader didn’t act like himself, the world’s two most iconic heroes (one of which is the World’s Greatest Detective) allowed themselves to be manipulated by a Lex Luthor too far removed from his comic book origins. And the whole thing resulted in a long-winded and grim spectacle that overlooked its own admittedly strong substance in its attempts to force the titular fight.

Thus, in spite of those epic visuals, and impressive performances from Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill and Gal Gadot, the film missed the point of these characters with a contrived story that left audiences confused (and melancholic) more than anything else. That aside, it was still incredible to see the two icons clash on the silver screen for the first time ever – and the extended cut is in a completely different league than the theatrical release.