Superman II, Batman Returns, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, The Suicide Squad, we know these movies, we loved these movies (except for one), and just as important we remember these movies. But there are nearly as many DC movie sequels that are so relentlessly bland that they don’t even deserve a spot in one’s memory. They don’t even have the decency to be so-bad-it’s-good like Batman & Robin or Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Don’t get us wrong, though, they are indeed bad. But as soon as the credits roll, they’re going to be mercifully erased from your memory.
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Here are five DC sequels that had nothing of substance to contribute to their overarching franchise, much less superhero cinema as a whole. You can give them a shot, but don’t expect a lasting experience.
5) Supergirl
Technically, Supergirl is a sequel to the first three Superman movies. After all, Clark Kent is mentioned by his cousin, even if we never actually see Christopher Reeve’s face.
Unfortunately, Supergirl is way more Superman III or Superman IV: The Quest for Peace than the first two films. The first moment we see the set design of Argo City we know we’re in for a cheeseball of a movie. The one upside here is Helen Slater’s lead performance. There’s a reason we saw her pop up later in Smallville and the Supergirl TV series.
Stream Supergirl on HBO Max.
4) Shazam! Fury of the Gods
The first Shazam! was a pleasant diversion because it found a nice balance between action, comedy, and even a little bit of horror. Even better, it crafted a beautiful foster family dynamic which roped the audience in from the moment it was established.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods, however, is mostly just a comedy, and it’s not a funny one. Then there are the two main things that hamper it. First, the Daughters of Atlas are bland villains, and not particularly intimidating compared to the first movie’s Dr. Sivana and his Seven Deadly Sins. But the bigger issue is Zachary Levi’s performance. Asher Angel did what he was supposed to do: he made Billy Batson more mature. But this isn’t reflected in Levi’s performance, which goes entirely in the wrong direction. He’s more childish here than he was the first day he got his powers.
Stream Shazam! Fury of the Gods on HBO Max.
3) Wonder Woman 1984
The first Wonder Woman was something of a landmark for superhero cinema. It wasn’t the first of its subgenre to be led by a woman, but it was the first one led by a woman to really take off (partly because, unlike Supergirl and Catwoman, it was actually good).
Then along came Wonder Woman 1984, which is probably the closest any of the movies on this list come to being so bad it’s good. But it doesn’t even reach that bar, because it’s too long with too many dry stretches. We’re also supposed to take Pedro Pascal’s Maxwell Lord and Kristen Wiig’s Barbara Minerva seriously, but we can’t. Lord is drowning in debt and being an absent father for his son while Minerva is harassed and belittled at every turn, but at the same time one turns into a genie and the other gets fur. 1984 never settles on a tone, so we ultimately don’t remember any of the tones it goes for.
Stream Wonder Woman 1984 on HBO Max.
2) The Return of Swamp Thing
Released the same year as Tim Burton’s Batman, The Return of Swamp Thing is a relatively unheard-of superhero movie sequel following a relatively unheard-of superhero movie. And really, it’s more of a remake than anything else.
Return is basically Wes Craven’s (yes, that Wes Craven) original movie with a bunch of comedy added in. Not to mention, while she tries, Heather Locklear was no Adrienne Barbeau in the acting department.
Stream The Return of Swamp Thing on Prime Video.
1) Joker: Folie à Deux
It hasn’t even been a year and a half since the release of Joker: Folie à Deux and people are already forgetting its existence left and right. To be fair to them, they didn’t see it to begin with. Nor should they have, because it’s two hours and twenty minutes of pretentiousness and zero exciting events.
The film basically just oscillates between oddly awkward musical sequences and hackneyed courtroom drama. There’s never much to grab onto. Not to mention, it ends on one of the most unsatisfying notes in superhero movie history.
Stream Joker: Folie à Deux on Prime Video.
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