Marvel watch order as a dependency graph. The interactive map needs JavaScript; below is every title it covers, newest first, with what each one asks you to watch beforehand.
Black Panther III (2028)
film · Sacred Timeline · unreleased
Dated, nothing else confirmed.
Ghost Rider (2028)
film · Sacred Timeline · unreleased
Dated, nothing else confirmed.
X-Men (2028)
film · Sacred Timeline · unreleased
The MCU's own X-Men film. Dated, nothing else confirmed.
Avengers: Secret Wars (2027)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six · unreleased
The saga's endpoint.
Watch first: Avengers: Doomsday (2026).
Daredevil: Born Again (Season 3) (2027)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six · unreleased
Third season, announced through to 2027.
Watch first: Daredevil: Born Again (Season 2) (2026).
Avengers: Doomsday (2026)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six · unreleased
The convergence of the Multiverse Saga: MCU and Fox casts in one film.
Watch first: Loki (Season 2) (2023), Deadpool & Wolverine (2024), Captain America: Brave New World (2025), Thunderbolts* (2025), The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025).
VisionQuest (2026)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six · unreleased
White Vision chasing his own memories, with Ultron back. Closes the trilogy WandaVision and Agatha started.
Watch first: Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), WandaVision (2021), Agatha All Along (2024).
Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six
Peter starting over after No Way Home, and the first time an X-Men character walks into the main MCU.
Watch first: Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Daredevil: Born Again (2025), Thunderbolts* (2025).
The Punisher: One Last Kill (2026)
special · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six
A Frank Castle special off the back of Born Again. Short, and mostly self-contained.
Watch first: The Punisher (Season 2) (2019), Daredevil: Born Again (2025).
Daredevil: Born Again (Season 2) (2026)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six
Pulls Jessica Jones and Luke Cage into the MCU proper, with the rest of the Netflix bench finally arriving.
Watch first: Daredevil: Born Again (2025).
Wonder Man (2026)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six
Hollywood satire about a superpowered actor. Its co-lead is Trevor Slattery, so the Mandarin gag pays off a third time.
Watch first: Iron Man 3 (2013), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021).
Marvel Zombies (2025)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six
Picks up five years after one specific What If…? episode. Watch that episode or nothing here parses.
Watch first: What If…? (Season 1) (2021).
Eyes of Wakanda (2025)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Six
Animated anthology across centuries of Wakandan history. The first Phase Six release, and a standalone one.
Watch first: Black Panther (2018).
The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025)
film · First Steps Earth · Phase Six
A clean-slate FF on their own retro-futurist Earth. No homework required.
Ironheart (2025)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Riri after Wakanda Forever, tech meeting magic.
Watch first: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022).
Thunderbolts* (2025)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Val's antihero squad, pulling one thread each from four different projects.
Watch first: Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021), Black Widow (2021), Hawkeye (2021).
Daredevil: Born Again (2025)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Continues the Netflix run's characters inside the MCU.
Watch first: Daredevil (Season 3) (2018), Hawkeye (2021), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022), Echo (2024).
Captain America: Brave New World (2025)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Sam's first solo outing; collects Incredible Hulk and Eternals leftovers.
Watch first: The Incredible Hulk (2008), The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021), Eternals (2021), Secret Invasion (2023).
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2025)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Animated Peter Parker origin. Deliberately set in its own timeline, not the Sacred one, so nothing here is a prerequisite for anything else.
Kraven the Hunter (2024)
film · Sony's Spider-Man Universe
The last of the run: a Spider-Man villain origin with no Spider-Man to hunt.
Venom: The Last Dance (2024)
film · Sony's Spider-Man Universe
Eddie back home after No Way Home, with Knull rattling the cage behind him.
Watch first: Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).
What If…? (Season 3) (2024)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
The animated run's finale, reaching forward into Phase Four and Five as well as back.
Watch first: What If…? (Season 2) (2023).
Agatha All Along (2024)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Direct WandaVision sequel; introduces Billy properly.
Watch first: WandaVision (2021), Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022).
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
The bridge film: TVA mechanics plus twenty years of Fox continuity as punchlines.
Watch first: Fantastic Four (2005), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), Logan (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Loki (Season 1) (2021).
Echo (2024)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Maya's story after Hawkeye, with Kingpin and Daredevil in tow.
Watch first: Hawkeye (2021).
Madame Web (2024)
film · Sony's Spider-Man Universe
A 2003-set precognition thriller. Connects to nothing you need.
What If…? (Season 2) (2023)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Nine more multiverse riffs, released daily over Christmas week. Same spoiler warning as season one.
Watch first: What If…? (Season 1) (2021).
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
film · Miles' Brooklyn
The Spider-Society, the canon-event argument, and a cliffhanger with no landing yet.
Watch first: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018).
The Marvels (2023)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
A three-way team-up that assumes you watched two different Disney+ shows.
Watch first: Captain Marvel (2019), WandaVision (2021), Ms. Marvel (2022), Secret Invasion (2023).
Loki (Season 2) (2023)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Resolves the TVA and formally creates the branching multiverse.
Watch first: Loki (Season 1) (2021), Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023).
Secret Invasion (2023)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Skrull conspiracy that pays off Captain Marvel and feeds Brave New World.
Watch first: Captain Marvel (2019), Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019).
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Rocket's backstory and the team's ending. The trilogy's real finale.
Watch first: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Avengers: Endgame (2019), The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (2022).
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Five
Kang the Conqueror, properly. Requires Loki S1 to land.
Watch first: Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Loki (Season 1) (2021).
Morbius (2022)
film · Sony's Spider-Man Universe
A vampire origin whose post-credits scene tried to borrow a Vulture and got the wrong universe.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (2022)
special · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Short, silly, and sets the Guardians' status quo going into Vol. 3.
Watch first: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Succession after T'Challa; introduces Namor and Riri Williams.
Watch first: Black Panther (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021).
Werewolf by Night (2022)
special · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
A 50-minute monster special. No prerequisites at all.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Legal sitcom that quietly resolves Abomination and reintroduces Daredevil.
Watch first: The Incredible Hulk (2008), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021).
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Jane returns as Mighty Thor; picks up Thor's post-Endgame drift.
Watch first: Thor: The Dark World (2013), Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Ms. Marvel (2022)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Kamala's origin. Its finale hands directly to The Marvels.
Watch first: Captain Marvel (2019).
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Unwatchable-in-a-vacuum: needs WandaVision, No Way Home and Loki all at once.
Watch first: Doctor Strange (2016), WandaVision (2021), Loki (Season 1) (2021), What If…? (Season 1) (2021), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).
Moon Knight (2022)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Standalone Egyptian-god horror. Watch whenever.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Cracks the multiverse open. Rewards two decades of non-MCU Spider-Man films.
Watch first: Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man 3 (2007), The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014), Doctor Strange (2016), Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021).
Hawkeye (2021)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Kate Bishop, Echo, and the return of Kingpin to the MCU proper.
Watch first: Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Black Widow (2021).
Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021)
film · Sony's Spider-Man Universe
Ninety minutes of Cletus Kasady, then a stinger that drops Eddie into the MCU.
Watch first: Venom (2018).
Eternals (2021)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
A self-contained deep-history film. Almost no prerequisites, few consequences yet.
Watch first: Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Mostly standalone, but it finally explains the real Ten Rings and Mandarin.
Watch first: The Incredible Hulk (2008), Iron Man 3 (2013), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
What If…? (Season 1) (2021)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Animated multiverse riffs, and every episode spoils the film it remixes.
Watch first: Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Doctor Strange (2016), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Black Widow (2021)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Set between Civil War and Infinity War; introduces Yelena and Red Guardian.
Watch first: Iron Man 2 (2010), The Avengers (2012), Captain America: Civil War (2016).
Loki (Season 1) (2021)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
The TVA, the Sacred Timeline, and the man who becomes Kang. The multiverse starts here.
Watch first: The Avengers (2012), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
How Sam becomes Captain America. Required before Brave New World.
Watch first: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Black Panther (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
WandaVision (2021)
series · Sacred Timeline · Phase Four
Wanda's grief becomes the Scarlet Witch. Direct prologue to Multiverse of Madness.
Watch first: Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Captain Marvel (2019), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
The New Mutants (2020)
film · Fox X-Men
A horror side-story with no real ties. The last Fox Marvel release.
Watch first: X-Men: Apocalypse (2016).
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 7) (2020)
series · Marvel Television
Time travel through S.H.I.E.L.D.'s own history, and out.
Watch first: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 6) (2019).
Jessica Jones (Season 3) (2019)
series · Sacred Timeline
The last of the Netflix run. Trish and Jessica end up opposed.
Watch first: Jessica Jones (Season 2) (2018).
The Punisher (Season 2) (2019)
series · Sacred Timeline
Russo with his memory gone, and Frank finally becoming the skull.
Watch first: The Punisher (Season 1) (2017).
Runaways (Season 3) (2019)
series · Marvel Television
Morgan le Fay, and Cloak & Dagger drop in.
Watch first: Runaways (Season 2) (2018), Cloak & Dagger (Season 2) (2019).
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
The Infinity Saga's epilogue: grief for Tony, and the multiverse lie.
Watch first: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Cloak & Dagger (Season 2) (2019)
series · Marvel Television
Trafficking, Mayhem, and a crossover with Runaways.
Watch first: Cloak & Dagger (Season 1) (2018).
Dark Phoenix (2019)
film · Fox X-Men
The prequel cast's take on the Phoenix Saga, and the end of the Fox X-Men line.
Watch first: X-Men: Apocalypse (2016).
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 6) (2019)
series · Marvel Television
Coulson's face on somebody else, and the Shrike.
Watch first: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 5) (2017).
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
The payoff film. Assumes you've seen essentially all 21 before it.
Watch first: Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), Captain Marvel (2019).
Captain Marvel (2019)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
A 1995 prequel that explains Fury's eye, the pager, and the Skrulls.
Watch first: Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Avengers: Infinity War (2018).
Venom (2018)
film · Sony's Spider-Man Universe
A symbiote buddy comedy in a universe with no Spider-Man in it.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
film · Miles' Brooklyn
Miles Morales, and the film that made the multiverse legible to everyone else.
Daredevil (Season 3) (2018)
series · Sacred Timeline
Fisk out of prison and Bullseye made. The season Born Again is a direct continuation of.
Watch first: Daredevil (Season 2) (2016), The Defenders (2017).
Iron Fist (Season 2) (2018)
series · Sacred Timeline
Shorter, tighter, and Davos. Colleen takes the fist.
Watch first: Iron Fist (Season 1) (2017), The Defenders (2017).
Runaways (Season 2) (2018)
series · Marvel Television
On the run for real, in a hostel under the Hollywood sign.
Watch first: Runaways (Season 1) (2017).
Luke Cage (Season 2) (2018)
series · Sacred Timeline
Bushmaster, and Mariah all the way off the leash.
Watch first: Luke Cage (Season 1) (2016), The Defenders (2017).
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
Runs concurrent with Infinity War; its stinger is the Endgame hook.
Watch first: Ant-Man (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018).
Cloak & Dagger (Season 1) (2018)
series · Marvel Television
New Orleans, two kids with linked powers, and a very good pilot.
Jessica Jones (Season 2) (2018)
series · Sacred Timeline
Where the powers came from, and what it costs Trish to want them.
Watch first: Jessica Jones (Season 1) (2015), The Defenders (2017).
Deadpool 2 (2018)
film · Fox X-Men
Cable, X-Force, and the time-travel gag that Deadpool & Wolverine builds on.
Watch first: Deadpool (2016).
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
Ten years of setup collected by Thanos. Nearly every prior film feeds it.
Watch first: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Doctor Strange (2016), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Black Panther (2018).
Black Panther (2018)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
Wakanda, vibranium and Killmonger: the setting for Infinity War's third act.
Watch first: Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016).
The Punisher (Season 1) (2017)
series · Sacred Timeline
Frank after Daredevil season two, and the conspiracy behind his family's death.
Watch first: Daredevil (Season 2) (2016).
The Defenders (2017)
series · Sacred Timeline
Eight episodes to put the four of them in one room. Assumes all four shows.
Watch first: Jessica Jones (Season 1) (2015), Daredevil (Season 2) (2016), Luke Cage (Season 1) (2016), Iron Fist (Season 1) (2017).
Iron Fist (Season 1) (2017)
series · Sacred Timeline
Danny Rand comes back from K'un-Lun. The weakest of the four, and still where Colleen Wing comes from.
Runaways (Season 1) (2017)
series · Marvel Television
Six teenagers work out that their parents are the villains.
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
Asgard dies, Hulk's two years off-world are explained, Valkyrie and Korg arrive.
Watch first: Thor (2011), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Doctor Strange (2016).
Inhumans (2017)
series · Marvel Television
Attilan, a coup, and Hawaii. Anson Mount's Black Bolt got a better run at it in Multiverse of Madness.
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
Peter's solo debut, mentored by Tony, with Civil War fallout as backdrop.
Watch first: The Avengers (2012), Captain America: Civil War (2016).
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 5) (2017)
series · Marvel Television
The team in a broken future, trying to stop it having happened.
Watch first: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 4) (2016).
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
Quill's parentage, Nebula and Gamora's truce, Mantis joins.
Watch first: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014).
Logan (2017)
film · Fox X-Men
2029. A eulogy for Jackman's Wolverine and Stewart's Xavier; needs the emotional history, not the plot.
Watch first: X-Men (2000), The Wolverine (2013), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014).
Doctor Strange (2016)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
Magic, the multiverse's first mention, and the Time Stone.
Luke Cage (Season 1) (2016)
series · Sacred Timeline
Harlem, a bulletproof man in a hoodie, and Cottonmouth.
Watch first: Jessica Jones (Season 1) (2015).
X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)
film · Fox X-Men
1983. Assembles the young team and gives Logan a Weapon X cameo.
Watch first: X-Men: First Class (2011), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014).
Daredevil (Season 2) (2016)
series · Sacred Timeline
Frank Castle and Elektra arrive, and the show splits cleanly in half around them.
Watch first: Daredevil (Season 1) (2015).
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Three
The team breaks. Introduces T'Challa and this universe's Spider-Man.
Watch first: Iron Man 3 (2013), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Ant-Man (2015).
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 4) (2016)
series · Marvel Television
Ghost Rider, LMDs and the Framework — three shows in one, and the best season of it.
Watch first: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 3) (2015).
Deadpool (2016)
film · Fox X-Men
R-rated and self-aware; only really needs you to know X-Men films exist.
Watch first: X-Men (2000), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009).
Agent Carter (Season 2) (2016)
series · Marvel Television
Los Angeles, zero matter, and Whitney Frost.
Watch first: Agent Carter (Season 1) (2015).
Jessica Jones (Season 1) (2015)
series · Sacred Timeline
Kilgrave, and the best villain any of this produced. A show about coercion that happens to have powers in it.
Fantastic Four (2015) (2015)
film · Fant4stic
The Trank reboot. Connected to nothing before or after it.
Daredevil (Season 1) (2015)
series · Sacred Timeline
Hell's Kitchen after the Battle of New York, and the Kingpin built from the ground up. Born Again starts from here.
Watch first: The Avengers (2012).
Ant-Man (2015)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Two
Introduces the Quantum Realm, which is how Endgame is won.
Watch first: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015).
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 3) (2015)
series · Marvel Television
Inhumans everywhere, and Hive.
Watch first: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 2) (2014).
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Two
Births Vision and the Maximoffs, and seeds the team's split.
Watch first: The Avengers (2012), Iron Man 3 (2013), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014).
Agent Carter (Season 1) (2015)
series · Marvel Television
Peggy in 1946, written off by every man in the room. The best thing this run made.
Watch first: Captain America: The First Avenger (2011).
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
film · The Amazing Spider-Man
Electro, Harry, and the clock tower. The wound this Peter carries into No Way Home.
Watch first: The Amazing Spider-Man (2012).
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 2) (2014)
series · Marvel Television
Rebuilding from nothing, and Daisy finds out what she is.
Watch first: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 1) (2013), Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014).
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Two
Opens the cosmic side and explains what the Infinity Stones actually are.
Watch first: Thor: The Dark World (2013).
X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
film · Fox X-Men
The hinge of the whole Fox run: it welds both casts together and resets the timeline.
Watch first: X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men: First Class (2011), The Wolverine (2013).
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Two
S.H.I.E.L.D. falls. The single most load-bearing film in the MCU's politics.
Watch first: Iron Man 2 (2010), Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), The Avengers (2012).
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 1) (2013)
series · Marvel Television
Coulson, alive, running a plane. Its back half turns on The Winter Soldier pulling S.H.I.E.L.D. down under it.
Watch first: The Avengers (2012).
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Two
Mostly matters for the Aether (Reality Stone) and Loki taking the throne.
Watch first: Thor (2011), The Avengers (2012).
The Wolverine (2013)
film · Fox X-Men
Logan in Japan after The Last Stand; the stinger hands off to Days of Future Past.
Watch first: X-Men: The Last Stand (2006).
Iron Man 3 (2013)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase Two
Tony's PTSD after New York. The Mandarin twist matters much later.
Watch first: Iron Man 2 (2010), The Avengers (2012).
The Avengers (2012)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase One
The convergence point. Every Phase One thread pays off here.
Watch first: Iron Man (2008), The Incredible Hulk (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), Captain America: The First Avenger (2011).
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
film · The Amazing Spider-Man
A second origin five years later. Its real inheritance is Gwen Stacy.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase One
1940s origin. Sets up Steve, Bucky, Peggy, HYDRA and the Tesseract.
Watch first: Iron Man 2 (2010).
X-Men: First Class (2011)
film · Fox X-Men
1962 reboot-ish origin. Young Charles and Erik; works fine as an entry point.
Watch first: X-Men (2000).
Thor (2011)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase One
Introduces Asgard, Loki, and the Tesseract's keeper in the stinger.
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2011)
film · Cage's Ghost Rider
Cage again, in Eastern Europe, with a different devil and a much stranger performance.
Watch first: Ghost Rider (2007) (2007).
Iron Man 2 (2010)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase One
Half sequel, half Avengers trailer: Widow, Rhodey's recast, Fury's pitch.
Watch first: Iron Man (2008).
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
film · Fox X-Men
Logan's adamantium origin, plus the Deadpool the later films joke about.
Watch first: X-Men (2000).
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase One
The orphan of the MCU. Skippable for plot, but it plants Blonsky and Ross.
Watch first: Iron Man (2008).
Punisher: War Zone (2008)
film · Punisher: War Zone
A reboot four years on, not a sequel: new Frank, new everything, and Jigsaw.
Iron Man (2008)
film · Sacred Timeline · Phase One
The one that starts everything. Establishes Stark, S.H.I.E.L.D. and the post-credits habit.
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)
film · Fox Fantastic Four
Direct sequel; the first live-action Silver Surfer and Galactus.
Watch first: Fantastic Four (2005).
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
film · Raimi's Spider-Man
Three villains, one dance sequence. Sandman is the one No Way Home wants back.
Watch first: Spider-Man 2 (2004).
Ghost Rider (2007) (2007)
film · Cage's Ghost Rider
Nicolas Cage takes the deal. Nothing to do with the Ghost Rider Marvel Studios has dated for 2028.
X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
film · Fox X-Men
The Phoenix and the cure. Its damage is what Days of Future Past exists to undo.
Watch first: X2: X-Men United (2003).
Fantastic Four (2005)
film · Fox Fantastic Four
The Tim Story version. Standalone; notable now mostly for Chris Evans as Johnny.
Elektra (2005)
film · Fox street level
Spin-off of the 2003 film. A dead end, included for completeness.
Watch first: Daredevil (2003) (2003).
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
film · Raimi's Spider-Man
Doc Ock, the train, and the best argument the genre has ever made for itself.
Watch first: Spider-Man (2002).
Blade: Trinity (2004)
film · Blade
Dracula, the Nightstalkers, and Ryan Reynolds twelve years before Deadpool.
Watch first: Blade II (2002).
The Punisher (2004) (2004)
film · The Punisher (2004)
Thomas Jane's Frank Castle, and a revenge film rather than a war.
X2: X-Men United (2003)
film · Fox X-Men
Stryker, the mansion raid, and Jean's sacrifice: the setup for Phoenix.
Watch first: X-Men (2000).
Hulk (2003) (2003)
film · Ang Lee's Hulk
Ang Lee's, with the comic-panel edits and the father problem. The Incredible Hulk five years later is a restart, not a sequel.
Daredevil (2003) (2003)
film · Fox street level
Fox's Daredevil, unrelated to the MCU one. Sets up Elektra.
Spider-Man (2002)
film · Raimi's Spider-Man
The one that proved the genre worked. Norman Osborn's glider, and the first great origin.
Blade II (2002)
film · Blade
Guillermo del Toro's. Blade allies with the vampires against something that eats them.
Watch first: Blade (1998).
X-Men (2000)
film · Fox X-Men
The film that started the modern superhero era. Xavier vs. Magneto, Rogue and Logan.
Blade (1998)
film · Blade
The one that proved a Marvel adaptation could be a hit — two years before X-Men, ten before Iron Man.
The Punisher (1989) (1989)
film · The Punisher (1989)
Dolph Lundgren, no skull on the chest, and a straight-to-video release in the States. The first Marvel Punisher on film.