Question: Is Deadpool Really Part of the MCU?
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Like Ant-Man (sometimes), the MCU just keeps growing. Just when you think you've gotten a handle on all the Avengers, they come in with replacement Avengers (no offense, Sam Wilson). Then they fold in Spider-Man, who was kind of doing his own thing for a while. Then they absorb a few of the X-Men for good measure. Add in Inhumans, Defenders and Eternals, throw in some time travel and launch a whole bunch of TV series, and the whole thing gets a little unwieldy, to say the least.
Whether you're starting on your MCU journey or are looking for a refresher, here's how to watch all the Marvel MCU movies in order. Thankfully, they're almost all on Disney+ — we're down to only one big exception, for the moment — so the “how to” part is pretty easy. The order? Well, that depends on who you ask. The initial list here is movies only, listed in order of release — which is always the best way to watch things, in my opinion, at least to start. But then at the end, for completest and gluttons for punishment, there are lists that include both the movies and the TV series, in order of release and a rough chronological order. So, who are you starting with: Iron Man or Captain America?
Iron Man (2008)
The movie that kicks off the whole franchise begins with Tony Stark. And it starts with a bang: When weapons manufacturer Tony Stark is captured in enemy territory, he develops his own super-powered super-suit that sets him on the path to heroism, rather than war profiteering.
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Even big Marvel fans tend to forget about or discount this one, because the star, Ed Norton, was replaced by Mark Ruffalo for the rest of the series. But yes, it is part of the MCU! And, after a long time of not being available on Disney+, it's finally there with the rest — at least for now.
Iron Man 2 (2010)
With Tony Stark living out in the open as Iron Man, he attracts some dangerous foes — like rival arms dealer Justin Hammer and Russian nemesis Whiplash. Better bring in reinforcements — hey, this movie has the first appearance of Black Widow!
Thor (2011)
Thor, who lives a godlike existence on Asgard, gets banished to Earth, where he's thrust into a fish-out-of-water love story among the humans. But when an ancient war is reignited and threatens his new home, he must learn how to protect it.
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
The MCU goes period with this movie, which mostly follows Steve Rogers as he helps the Allies during World War II — with the little help of a serum that makes him strong, fast and tough. Alan Menken, who's composed most of your favorite Disney songs, even wrote him a little wartime theme song.
The Avengers (2012)
Avengers, assemble! Once audiences were introduced to Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America, and Thor, the stage was set for their first team-up. In The Avengers, the heroes unite to stop extra-terrestrial beings from destroying New York City. But can they learn to work together?
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Iron Man 3 (2013)
Shane Black, the screenwriter behind movies like Lethal Weapon and The Monster Squad, switches to director-mode for the third installment in the Iron Man franchise, which pits Tony Stark against a threat known as "The Mandarin."
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
In Thor's second film, he battles Malekith the Dark Elf (remember him?), and has to forge an unexpected alliance with his brother, Loki (yay!), to defeat him.
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Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Captain America (and a few friends) work to expose a plot at S.H.I.E.L.D., with far-flinging consequences for the rest of the series. The filmmakers say they were influenced by '70s conspiracy movies, like Three Days of the Condor (which also shares a star, Robert Redford, with this film).
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
A group of intergalactic misfits come together, led by Peter Quill (aka Star-Lord), to keep a powerful stone out of the wrong hands — all while listening to '70s Lite-FM tunes. When it came out, the soundtrack to this movie also hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts.
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Earth’s Mightiest Heroes need to band together once again to stop an A.I. that's hell-bent on destroying all humanity — an A.I. that was created by Tony Stark. Along the way, they meet twins Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.
Ant-Man (2015)
Petty thief Scott Lang becomes Ant-Man, who, with his ability to shrink, proves that big heroes can come in tiny packages.
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
If your favorite thing about the MCU is seeing the match-ups between different superheroes and their powers, this movie — about the rift that forms between Captain America and Iron Man after the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron — features one of the best, all-out superhero fights in the whole series. Bonus: It also has the introduction of Tom Holland's Spider-Man!
Doctor Strange (2016)
This film chronicles the transformation of a hotshot neurosurgeon into a mystical Sorcerer in a movie that sometimes looks like the inside of a blacklight poster from a college dorm.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
When Star-Lord and the rest of the gang — including a Baby Groot! — return for more space adventures, there's a reckoning about what it means to be a family.
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Many a Spider-Man have come before (Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield) but Spider-Man: Homecoming is the first Spider-Man movie that's officially a part of the MCU. He's briefly in Captain America: Civil War, but here he gets to star in a caper about what it's like to balance superhero duties with high school.
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
The God of Thunder heads to a planet where he encounters unexpected things — including his buddy, Hulk. But how will he get back to Asgard to defeat the villain Hela? It was directed by Taika Waititi, who was previously known for directing humorous indies like What We Do in the Shadows, and he gives Thor more of a comedic bent.
Black Panther (2018)
Director Ryan Coogler, who revitalized the Rocky franchise with Creed, hopped over to the MCU to create the country of Wakanda, a land that kept itself isolated until a world-spanning threat causes King T'Challa to step up and reach out beyond its borders.
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Thanos proves why he's the Big Bad villain of the franchise in an epic — and we mean epic — battle that pulls in characters from all corners of the MCU.
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
The Ant-Man sequel, which follows his further adventures into the Quantum Realm, stays on the lighter side; director Peyton Reed says that one of its big inspirations was the delightful Barbra Streisand comedy What's Up, Doc?
Captain Marvel (2019)
We won't complain about how it took Marvel Studios more than 20 movies to make a woman the title character (except a little). Instead, we'll focus on how Brie Larsen stars as a former Air Force pilot who has to return to Earth in the '90s to tangle with some space aliens.
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
The culmination of all the groundwork laid by the 21 films that came before it, Avengers: Endgame features all the favorites in an inter-galactic, time-jumping battle to save the world after "The Snap."
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
After all of the chaos of Avengers: Endgame, this smaller story, about Peter Parker's school trip to Europe (which gets upended by villain Mysterio, played by Jake Gyllenhaal), provides a nice denouement.
Black Widow (2021)
After spending nearly two dozen movies rattling around the MCU, Natasha Romanoff finally gets her time in the spotlight. And while this is the opening movie for Marvel's "phase four," the events of the film actually take place just after Captain America: Civil War. Confused yet?
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
After Black Widow, Marvel didn't slow down. The title character of this film is a master of unarmed combat, so of course there are plenty of cool fight scenes with stars Simu Liu, Awkwafina and Tony Leung.
Eternals (2021)
For Eternals, the studio rounded up an impressive ensemble cast that includes Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden, Salma Hayek, Kumail Nanjiani, Brian Tyree Henry, Gemma Chan, Don Lee and Kit Harington for a movie directed by Nomadland's Chloé Zhao. This film tells the story of a race of super-beings who were sent to protect planet Earth, and their adventures throughout history.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
He's supposed to be a friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man, but somehow he becomes a friendly, multiverse-altering Spidey! After a run-in with Doctor Strange, Peter makes a mistake that pulls heroes and villains from other universes into his world. Can he set it right again? (Note: This is the one that, for some reason, still isn't on Disney+, so you're going to have to rent.)
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Once the multiverse has been toyed with, Doctor Strange is sent in a mission across universes to help a teenager, America Chavez (played by Dancing With the Stars winner Xochitl Gomez), who can't yet control her universe-hopping powers and is being pursued by an unlikely villain. Here's another example of how all superhero movies are connected: After Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness lost its original director, they turned to Sam Raimi. Who is Raimi? He directed the Spider-Man films — the ones with Tobey Maguire. Full circle!
Thor Love and Thunder (2022)
Thor may have hung up his hammer and taken a break from heroism, but when a "god killer" (played by Christian Bale) shows up and starts threatening Asgard's kids, he puts his cape back on. Only this time, there are other gods for him to team up with — if his ego doesn't get in the way.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
After Chadwick Boseman unexpectedly passed away, Marvel announced that they would not re-cast the role of T'Challa for the Black Panther sequel. Instead, his death is worked into the story of the film, which is mostly concerned with who will lead Wakanda after T'Challa's death, and what kind of leader they will be. The result has earned an Academy Award for Angela Bassett, who plays Queen Ramonda, in addition to nominations for Best Original Song, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Costume Design and Best Visual Effects.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
Just when you thought you were done with the Quantum Realm, they keep pulling you back! This time, the Pym family takes a trip to the Quantum Realm together, and learns about the dangers that might lurk beneath. This movie also has a role for Kang the Conqueror, who Loki fans will recognize as "He Who Remains."
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
Release Date: May 5, 2023
After The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, the gang is all together in Knowhere again. But when it falls under attack, Peter Quill leads a dangerous mission — once again scored to pop songs — to make it safe. James Gunn, who was recently tapped to run the DCEU at Warner Bros., directs this as his final Guardians outing.
The Marvels (2023)
Release Date: November 10, 2023
Nia DaCosta, director of the most recent Candyman film, steers a three-ring circus where a trio of heroes — Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau — all switch places when they use their powers, which makes things complicated when you're heading flerkens and visiting planets that only talk in song.
Deadpool & Wolverine
Release Date: July 26, 2024
Deadpool? Not in the MCU. Wolverine? Not in the MCU. Put them together — and maybe they're in the MCU? Now that Disney has acquired 20th Century Fox, Deadpool and the X-Men can be brought into the fold, making this Deadpool's first MCU movie despite it being the third standalone Deadpool movie. (Got it?) But since he defines himself as such an irreverent outsider, how will he do now that he's part of the team?
Captain America: New World Order
Release Date: February 14, 2025
No, not that Captain America — we're talking about the current shield-holder, Sam Wilson (once known as Falcon). It'll be directed by Julius Onah, whose done tense movies like The Cloverfield Paradox and Luce. The movie has been pushed to 2024 (even if the tie-in Happy Meal toys were not, whoops spoilers), meaning Deadpool is the only MCU entry for the year 2024.
Thunderbolts
Release Date: May 5, 2025
In the comics, the Thunderbolts were a villain team-up. Not too many details about this have been released, but from the cast listing we can assume that they're gathering under the leadership of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who'll have Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) in town, among others.
Fantastic Four
Release Date: July 25, 2025
Hasn't there been a recent-ish, big-screen Fantastic Four movie already? Yes there has been. Twice. But that doesn't mean there isn't room for another! And while there have been rumors floated that everybody and their brother would star in this, an announcement was finally made that the cast will include Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm.
Blade
Release Date: November 7, 2025
While '90s kids think of Wesley Snipes when they hear the name "Blade," this time Moonlight's Mahershala Ali will put his own spin on the daywalking vampire.
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty
Release Date: May 1, 2026
Comics fans know that Kang is another way to refer to "He Who Remains," so look for him to be the Big Bad looming over phases five and six.
Avengers: Secret Wars
Release Date: May 7, 2027
Two Avengers movies in a row? When have we seen that before? Whether or not these will have the same intense one-two punch as Infinity War and Endgame, we can see that the MCU is definitely building to something with the end of phase six.
Marvel Movies and TV Shows in Release Order
If you really want to make sure you're up-to-date with every corner of the MCU, here's a list of releases that include all the Marvel Studios shows. The exact premiere dates of the upcoming shows haven't been set yet, so the exact order may shift around some.
Iron Man (2008)
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Thor (2011)
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
The Avengers (2012)
Iron Man 3 (2013)
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013)
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Agent Carter (2015)
Daredevil (2015)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Ant-Man (2015)
Jessica Jones (2015)
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Luke Cage (2016)
Doctor Strange (2016)
Iron Fist (2017)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
The Defenders (2017)
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Inhumans (2017)
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
The Punisher(2017)
Runaways (2017)
Cloak & Dagger (2018)
Black Panther (2018)
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)
Captain Marvel (2019)
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Spider-Man: Far from Home (2019)
WandaVision (2021)
Loki (2021)
Black Widow (2021)
What If...? (2021)
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
Eternals (2021)
Hawkeye (2021)
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Moon Knight (2022)
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Ms. Marvel (2022)
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022)
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
Secret Invasion (2023)
The Marvels (2023)
Echo (2024)
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Agatha All Along (2024)
Captain America: New World Order(2025)
Daredevil: Born Again (2025)
Thunderbolts (2024)
Fantastic Four (2025)
Blade (2025)
Ironheart (2025)
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (2026)
Avengers: Secret Wars (2027)
Marvel Movies and TV Shows in Chronological Order
Grab your Time Stones, Marvel fans, because it's time to scramble things up! This list comes with some huge caveats, though: The MCU includes time travel, which makes some entries hard to place unless you want to catalog every minute. (Looking at you, Loki.) Some of the series and movies are taking place concurrently, which means the order isn't exact, and some TV shows run several seasons that overlap different movies (hello, Agents of SHIELD), so you might want to stagger them throughout. (I didn't.) But for a rough timeline, this one is pretty good.
Captain America: The First Avenger
Agent Carter
Captain Marvel
Iron Man
Iron Man 2
The Incredible Hulk
Thor
The Avengers
Iron Man 3
Agents of SHIELD
Thor: The Dark World
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Daredevil
Guardians of the Galaxy
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Ant-Man
Jessica Jones
Luke Cage
Captain America: Civil War
Black Widow
Black Panther
Spider-Man: Homecoming
Iron Fist
The Defenders
The Punisher
Doctor Strange
Inhumans
Cloak & Dagger
Runaways
Thor: Ragnarok
Ant-Man and the Wasp
Avengers: Infinity War
Avengers: Endgame
Loki
WandaVision
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Spider-Man: Far From Home
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Eternals
Spider-Man: No Way Home
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Hawkeye
Moon Knight
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law
Ms. Marvel
Thor: Love and Thunder
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3
Secret Invasion
The Marvels
Echo
Deadpool & Wolverine
Where to stream every MCU film
If you’re looking for how to watch all the Marvel movies and shows on streaming services at home, they're all now available through The Marvelsand Echo. You can find them to buy on Amazon Prime Video and iTunes, and almost all of them are also on the Disney+ streaming service. But there's one big exception to the Disney+ rule: Sadly for Spidey fans, Spider-Man: No Way Home is missing from the service. That's because the Spider-Man movies are technically owned by Sony, which has no streaming service of its own, so the two studios have a complicated agreement about when and for how long Disney can have the Spider-Man films. In addition, the first Hulk movie — the one where Edward Norton stars as the Hulk instead of Mark Ruffalo — was a Universal movie, but it's still Marvel Studios and counts as being part of the MCU, and it is available to stream on Disney+ for the moment.
More movies to watch in order
Don't forget to check out more of our movie roundups, including the Spider-Man movies in order, the X-Men movies in order, the DC movies in order, the Star Wars movies in order, the Mission:Impossible movies in order, the Pirates of the Caribbean movies in order, the Jurassic Park movies in order and The Hobbit/Lord of the Rings movies in order.
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