The 2025 summer movie season was filled with financial or critical winners such as Final Destination Bloodlines, Lilo & Stitch, How to Train Your Dragon, F1, Jurassic World Rebirth, and Superman. And, of course, there were also critical or commercial losers, such as Hurry Up Tomorrow, M3GAN 2.0, Elio, and, unfortunately, Ballerina and Thunderbolts*. The 2016 summer movie season was no different, it was a mixed bag. Gambles don’t always pay off. But these next movies were worth making. Even if some didn’t quite perform as the studio hoped, the end result was still a product that, at the very least, is a lot of fun.
Videos by ComicBook.com
To be clear, we’re not ranking these by how much money they made, but rather in terms of overall quality. If something towards the top of the list didn’t make money in theaters, so be it, because it’s still one of the best of the 2016 summer movie season. Anyway, if a movie is great, it’s going to find its audience in this streaming age, so who’s to say whether it’s become profitable over time.
10) The Legend of Tarzan
It’s not a masterpiece, but The Legend of Tarzan is a ton of fun. It also features some great chemistry between Margot Robbie and Alexander Skarsgård, the latter of whom hasn’t gotten lead roles in big studio tentpole movies since this.
The Legend of Tarzan also deserves credit for touching on real world historical events and retaining a grounded approach to its classic IP source material. Toss in a believably intimidating antagonist performance by Christoph Waltz and this Tarzan is underrated.
Stream The Legend of Tarzan on VIX.
9) The Conjuring 2
While not quite as fresh and terrifying as the original film, The Conjuring 2 nonetheless remains one of the best entries of the nine-movie universe. And just like with the first film, the key to its success is its simultaneous focus on a struggling family and the safety provided by Ed and Lorraine Warren.
There is one way in which it exceeds the quality of the first film, and that’s in its introduction of the best non-Annabelle villain: Valek. We don’t get to see much of Valek, but they hit a homerun by bringing Drag Me to Hell‘s Bonnie Aarons on board.
Stream The Conjuring 2 on HBO Max.
8) Star Trek Beyond
Star Trek Beyond isn’t as epic and bombastic as the two previous movies, but that’s the point. It’s supposed to feel like an episode of the classic TV series, and it works.
It’s also buoyed by excellent work from Sofia Boutella, whose Jaylah is one of the best characters introduced in a Trek film. Then of course there’s Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, and Zoe Saldaña, all of whom continue to excel in their roles. Not to mention, this was a fine way to say goodbye to the late, great Anton Yelchin.
Stream Star Trek Beyond on Paramount+.
7) Don’t Breathe
From Don’t Breathe to Sausage Party (and one other movie we’ll get to in a bit) Summer 2016 saw Sony release several modestly budgeted genre films to great success. As for Don’t Breathe in particular, it raked in nearly 16 times its $9.9 million price tag.
And it’s easy to see how that came to be, because this is one intense movie that was born to be seen on a big screen in a dark theater. It establishes the real-world tension early on and never ceases ratcheting it up.
Stream Don’t Breathe on Hulu.
6) Finding Dory
It didn’t live up to the sky-high bar set by its classic predecessor, but Finding Dory was nonetheless a worthy addition to Finding Nemo‘s legacy. And, unlike Monsters University, it managed to bring in just as much heart and emotionality as the film that came before it.
They also really nailed it when it came to bringing in vocal talent for its new characters. Idris Elba and Dominic West as Fluke and Rudder the sea lions, Kaitlin Olson as Destiny the whale shark, and Modern Family stars Ed O’Neill and Ty Burrell as, respectively, Hank the octopus and Bailey the beluga whale, are all particularly excellent.
Stream Finding Dory on Disney+.
5) The Shallows
Shark movies are hard to get right. Jaws always showed the perfect version of one, so to try and be close to it is an exercise in futility. If you go too far away, you often get silly stuff like Sharknado (though Deep Blue Sea proved that could work as long as there’s some money behind it).
But the best shark movie of the past 25 years is certainly The Shallows, which primarily works because it’s an intense survival film more than it is a shark attack flick. Like the shark film, single locale thrillers are hard to pull off, but The Shallows faces both challenges and walks away victorious.
Stream The Shallows on Hulu.
4) Kubo and the Two Strings
Visually stunning and heartfelt, Kubo and the Two Strings is one of many winners from LAIKA, the stop-motion studio behind Coraline and ParaNorman. And, just like those films, it’s visually stunning.
But Kubo also benefits by having relatable themes that appeal to adults just as much if not even more than kids. There’s some deep stuff here, and it’s admirable how those at LAIKA managed to create something that would keep adults captivated by its narrative while the kids are captivated by its lush visuals (not that they’re mutually exclusive, there’s a better than good chance most of the younger audience members were moved by the story, too).
Stream Kubo and the Two Strings on Netflix.
3) Captain America: Civil War
Captain America: Civil War was already one of the better MCU movies, and perhaps the most important of them all, but it’s only gotten better over time. It took most of its characters to believable new emotional places, its action is almost as enthralling as what is seen the in Avengers movies, and both Steve Rogers and Robert Downey Jr. deliver some of their best work as their iconic characters.
Then, of course, there’s the fact that this was the MCU adventure to introduce not only Black Panther, but Spider-Man as well. It can feel a little overstuffed at times, but Civil War was another indicator that the Russo brothers knew exactly what it took to make an MCU film great.
Stream Captain America: Civil War on Disney+.
2) Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
The Lonely Island’s Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping was pretty far from a blockbuster on the big screen, but it’s a blockbuster in our hearts. Like MacGruber and Hot Rod, it’s something that could only have originated from the minds of one or more of the Lonely Island gang and, without a doubt, it’s their most personal film to date.
It was essentially marketed as a Justin Bieber parody, which could have been its downfall. Even in 2016 making fun of Bieber became a little old hat (he even poked fun at himself in Zoolander 2, released several months before Popstar). And it is a Bieber parody to an extent, but it’s really a riff on the vapid nature of the music industry as a whole. It’s a look at how success can bring about loneliness and, in the arms of friends, one can feel a type of warmth that tens of millions of dollars can never bring. And, as far as movie soundtracks go, there are few as filled with bangers as Popstar‘s. “Mona Lisa,” “Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song),” Incredible Thoughts,” “I’m So Humble,” they’re all terrific.
1) The Nice Guys
The best movie of the 2016 summer movie season should have kicked off a franchise and it’s unfortunate it didn’t, because Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling’s chemistry couldn’t be any better. The Nice Guys is overall the best film Shane Black has ever directed, even smarter than Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and even more exciting than Iron Man 3 (for those who like that movie, anyway).
Even before you get roped in by the clever nature of Black’s script and the dynamic between the lead stars, The Nice Guys hooks you with its amazingly detailed recreation of ’70s L.A. Toss in a few laughs that hold up on repeat viewings (including one of the funniest brief dinner scenes of all time) and breakout performances by Angourie Rice and Margaret Qualley and The Nice Guys was easily this particular summer movie season’s best offering.
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of Tor Books/Macmillan -
Image Courtesy of Crunchyroll -
Image Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures -
2001: A Space Odyssey
