10 Superhero Movies With The Best CGI

The superhero movies of the MCU, the DCU, and other franchises occasionally make perfect use of CGI visuals. Ever since the movies of the MCU helped catapult the genre to the peak of the box office, the superhero genre has rarely been considered anything other than a cinematic powerhouse. However, there were times that superhero movies were looked down on by many, being dismissed for multiple reasons, including their supposed overuse of CGI.

While there have been many occasions – both before and after the beginning of the MCU’s movie timeline – that CGI visuals have let superhero movies down, there has also been many movies in which the technology is used to great effect. When used properly, good CGI can help to make a superhero movie much more immersive and entertaining, leading to an overall better experience for the viewer. With that in mind, here are 10 superhero movies with the best CGI.

10

Wonder Woman (2017)

Director: Patty Jenkins

Close

Although the movies of the DCEU did not typically earn a great reputation for quality, there were some entries into the short-lived franchise that were genuinely impressive. 2017’s Wonder Woman was among them, serving as an origin story for the iconic DC hero while also furthering the DCEU’s wider narrative in the process. The movie also made use of some great CGI to bring its World War I-set story to life.

A character with abilities like Wonder Woman’s requires substantial CGI to look good on the big screen. Thankfully, the 2017 movie delivered, and as such was able to adapt the hero convincingly using impressive visuals. This also allowed the movie to provide a number of memorable action set pieces, including its much-loved No Man’s Land scene and an explosive and emotional finale, all brought to life using polished and high-end CGI.

9

The Avengers (2012)

Director: Joss Whedon

Close

The impressive scale of the MCU has made its success something of a foregone conclusion, but this wasn’t always the case. This can be traced back to 2012’s The Avengers, which paid off several solo movies by uniting the franchise’s heroes on-screen for the first time. With the likes of Hulk, Thor and Iron Man all requiring extensive CGI to capture their comic-accurate appearances and abilities, The Avengers could have been disastrous had its visuals disappointed in any way.

Ultimately, the movie was a huge success, thanks in no small part to its exceptional use of CGI. Its visual effects blended almost effortlessly with its live-action characters, allowing the audience to become fully immersed in the epic introduction of the titular team. This in turn helped cement the cinematic potential of the MCU for the years to follow, with The Avengers’ CGI continuing to stand out as especially impressive.

8

The Dark Knight (2008)

Director: Christopher Nolan

Close

When it comes to naming the best superhero franchise of all time, Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy is almost always included in the conversation. 2008’s The Dark Knight is universally considered the best of the trilogy, with Heath Ledger’s Joker thoroughly stealing the show. Although Nolan opted to use as little CGI as possible in the movie, certain aspects required the technology to be used in order to adequately adapt the comic book source material.

The likes of Two-Face’s burned face and some of the destruction on display in The Dark Knight’s story needed CGI to be brought to life. Despite the limitations of the technology in 2008, it blends seamlessly with the movie’s practical effects, enhancing the movie without being hugely noticeable. Though the CGI in The Dark Knight was minimal, it was used to the best possible effect to help the movie become one of the genre’s best.

7

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

Director: Marc Webb

Close

Across Spider-Man’s movie timeline, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is often thought of as one of the hero’s worst cinematic outings. Though the movie had its shortcomings, including an overstuffed script and a few narrative issues, it has since come to be better appreciated among fans. However, one of the many aspects that has always been impressive is The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s use of CGI.

With both the Green Goblin and Electro serving as major antagonists in the movie, CGI was vital to its ability to convincingly bring its villains to life. For the most part, its CGI is incredible, helping to make it an epic and visually interesting superhero spectacle, especially in its biggest fight scenes. For example, the use of CGI to depict Spider-Man’s Spider-sense and Electro’s electric abilities was exceptional, and hugely deserving of praise in spite of the movie’s other shortcomings.

6

Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)

Director: Shawn Levy

Close

As Deadpool & Wolverine marked the long-awaited MCU debut of both of its eponymous characters, the movie was long tipped as a potential high point for the franchise’s Multiverse Saga. Establishing two characters with rapid healing factors in the franchise came with the conceptual promise of brutal violence, and Deadpool & Wolverine did not disappoint. Additionally, the movie’s Multiverse story added a level of visual complexity that warranted considerable CGI.

Though Deadpool & Wolverine’s story was a difficult one to pull off in a visual sense, excellent CGI made it work. With Cassandra Nova as its main antagonist and appearances from the likes of the Human Torch, Gambit, and the Deadpool Corps, visual effects were crucial in adequately executing Deadpool & Wolverine. The extensive CGI required was absolutely brilliant throughout, marking one of the MCU’s finest uses of the visual effects technology.

5

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Director: Bryan Singer

Close

It’s no secret that Fox’s X-Men movie franchise is not known for consistent quality. Though the movies that make up the complex cinematic continuity were surprisingly inconsistent, there were times which saw the franchise truly shine in a visual sense. In that regard, 2014’s X-Men: Days of Future Past marked a high point, as it employed some of the best visuals in the history of the entire X-Men movie franchise.

Days of Future Past’s time-traveling narrative started in an alternate apocalyptic future in which the last mutants were being hunted by high-tech Sentinels. After the impressive visual display of the mutants’ final stand, Wolverine’s journey into the past provided more opportunities for striking set pieces, including the likes of Quicksilver’s slo-mo action scene and Magneto lifting an entire stadium into the sky. The CGI used throughout the movie was incredible, and helped to bring the epic story to life on the big screen.

4

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Director: Taika Waititi

Close

Though it has since come to be somewhat overlooked within the franchise, Thor: Ragnarok was once considered one of the MCU’s best movies. The third solo movie featuring Marvel’s God of Thunder, Ragnarok expanded upon not just Thor’s story but the entire MCU, introducing new characters and locations as well as putting the Hulk back in the spotlight. The movie’s story warranted a massive amount of CGI, as its dual settings of Sakaar and Asgard both required significant special effects to bring to life.

Ragnarok’s use of CGI was surprisingly breathtaking. Despite its reputation for being one of the MCU’s more comedic efforts, the dedication to nailing its CGI is staggering. Characters like Hulk and Korg were surprisingly emotive despite being rendered entirely in CGI, and Ragnarok’s large-scale set pieces came off brilliantly with the careful use of computerized visual effects.

3

Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)

Director: Zack Snyder

Close

Despite being a critical moment in the timeline of the DCEU, 2017’s Justice League was thoroughly underwhelming. The theatrical cut of the movie was disappointing in many ways, including in its visuals. However, the long-awaited release of the Snyder cut of the movie – simply titled Zack Snyder’s Justice League – saw many of these issues remedied, including the crucial use of CGI to enhance the movie’s visual presentation.

The CGI on display in Zack Snyder’s Justice League was a stark improvement upon that of the theatrical cut. The textures were finer, and additional CGI characters such as the Martian Manhunter played a far greater role. Across its expansive runtime, Zack Snyder’s Justice League proved just how much the careful use of CGI can benefit a superhero movie, massively enhancing the experience for its audience with its improved visuals alongside its more in-depth narrative.

2

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)

Director: James Gunn

Close

The MCU’s use of CGI has been groundbreaking throughout the franchise’s history, but 2023’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 brought it to another level. The third movie in James Gunn’s MCU trilogy explored the origins of Rocket Raccoon as well as furthering the story of the rest of the team, making it a grand-scale sci-fi story that played a major role in the wider MCU. As such, getting the CGI just right was crucial for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’s success.

The movie’s CGI was utterly exceptional, as evidenced by some of its most emotional moments. The exploration of Rocket’s origins was massively impactful, with its CGI characters delivering the movie’s most emotional moments. By delicately employing CGI to make its animal characters as emotive and realistic as possible, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was able to bring some of the MCU’s most devastating moments to life.

1

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Directors: Joe & Anthony Russo

Close

As Avengers: Endgame was undeniably one of the biggest cinematic events in modern movies, the epic payoff to the MCU’s Infinity Saga required a massive amount of CGI visuals. Bringing the movie to life convincingly was a key element in ensuring its success, especially as it came at a crucial moment for the MCU. As a result, Endgame’s CGI visuals were some of the best in movie history.

From the important roles played by CGI characters such as Thanos and the Hulk, to the digital deaging of actors during the movie’s time travel scenes, CGI was hugely important in Endgame. The visual results speak for themselves, helping to cement the movie as a piece of cinematic excellence. With the movie’s CGI visuals proving sophisticated enough to blend organically with its live-action characters, Avengers: Endgame remains one of the best examples of the technology in the superhero movies of the MCU and the DCU.

MCU Franchise Poster

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Created by

Kevin Feige

First Film

Iron Man

Upcoming Films

Deadpool & Wolverine, Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts*, Blade (2025), The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Avengers: Doomsday (2026), Avengers: Secret Wars

First TV Show

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

See at Amazon

See at Target

See at Walmart

DC FanDome Poster

DC Universe

Created by

Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson

First Film

Man of Steel

First TV Show

Peacemaker

Cast

Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Ray Fisher, Jason Momoa, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Laurence Fishburne, Jeremy Irons, Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Cara Delevingne, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Zachary Levi, Dwayne Johnson, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Djimon Hounsou, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett, Rosie Perez, Ella Jay Basco, Ali Wong, Ewan McGregor, Idris Elba, John Cena, Michael Keaton, George Clooney, Xolo Mariduena

Expand

See at Amazon

See at Best Buy

See at Walmart

Upcoming MCU Movies

  • Thunderbolts (2025) Official Poster

    Thunderbolts*

    Release Date

    May 2, 2025

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse

  • 01593277_poster_w780.jpg

    The Fantastic Four: First Steps

    Release Date

    July 25, 2025

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse

  • Avengeres Doomsday logo placeholder poster

    Avengers: Doomsday

    Release Date

    May 1, 2026

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse

  • Spider-Man Brand New Day Logo Poster

    Spider-Man: Brand New Day

    Release Date

    July 31, 2026

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse

  • Avengers: Secret Wars

    Release Date

    May 7, 2027

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse

Upcoming DC Movie Releases

  • Superman (2025) Official Poster

    Superman

    Release Date

    July 11, 2025

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse

  • Supergirl Woman of Tomorrow Poster

    Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow

    Release Date

    June 26, 2026

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse

  • The Batman Part II Logo Placeholder

    The Batman Part II

    Release Date

    October 1, 2027

    Powered by

    Expand
    Collapse