All 4 Avengers Movies, Ranked by Impact

Who doesn’t love The Avengers? Earth’s Mightiest Heroes had been at the forefront of Marvel Comics for decades before making their live-action debut in 2012. The appropriately titled The Avengers not only cemented the Marvel Cinematic Universe as cinema’s juggernaut throughout the 2010s but also sent a shiver down the spine of every major movie studio head, who quickly scrambled to create their own cinematic universe, often with little success.

The movie spawned three sequels, each one bigger than the one before. Each of these celebrated blockbusters also had a significant impact on the movie industry and the cultural space, transcending the boundaries of the big screen to become certified phenomenons of the 2010s. Which of the four Avengers movies had the bigger impact, though, both within the MCU (in-universe consequences, that is) and in the real world (industry-wide effects)? As we wait for the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, now’s the time to answer that question.

4

‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ (2015)

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As is the case with most worst-to-best Avengers rankings, let us begin with Avengers: Age of Ultron. The sequel to the first Avengers movie sees the team working to stop Ultron (James Spader), an advanced AI created by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo). Like many other AIs, Ultron soon concludes that the problems on Earth all trace back to humanity itself, specifically the Avengers. Thus, he goes rogue, recruits the twins Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) Maximoff, and launches a full-scale attack against the team.

Age of Ultron is among the most divisive superhero movies ever. Widely considered a step down from its predecessor, it was widely criticized for its bloated and often needlessly contrived plot, lack of character development, and an overall more uneven tone. Ultron is a fine villain, and the Maximoff twins are solid additions, but it’s not enough to elevate what is effectively a mediocre movie. Age of Ultron didn’t have the same overwhelming acclaim as the 2012 original from either critics or audiences and is the lowest-grossing film in the franchise to date. Today, whenever the Avengers saga is discussed, Age of Ultron is often seen as the ugly fuckling everyone wants to forget about.

3

‘Avengers: Infinity War’ (2018)

Age of Ultron‘s immediate sequel was Avengers: Infinity War, the most ambitious outing in the MCU up to that point. The plot sees the Mad Titan Thanos (James Brolin) begin his plot to wipe out half the life in the universe by reuniting all six Infinity Stones. The Avengers find themselves divided across the galaxy, separated into teams trying to defend the stones, while Thanos and his estranged daughter, Gamora (Zoe Saldaña), embark on a dangerous journey.

Infinity War is arguably the best Avengers movie, offering the best balance between intricate, emotionally charged storytelling and larger-than-life stakes brought to vivid life through undeniable, explosive spectacle. The film is the epitome of the superhero genre and has the best villain in the MCU by a mile. Its impact was significant, too: it broke box office records and took the MCU to the next level, featuring a massive gathering of characters who audiences would’ve never expected to see together. The now-iconic ending, where Thanos succeeds and half the main characters disappear, was also shocking, to say the least, becoming perhaps the most talked-about cinematic moment of 2018. Yet, it’s also fair to say Infinity War‘s overall impact suffered from the fact that it was just half of the story; everyone knew the blipped characters would return the next year. The film was also overshadowed by Black Panther in terms of pure cultural impact.

2

‘Avengers: Endgame’ (2019)

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Fans waited a whole year to figure out how the Avengers would bring back all those who disappeared and defeat Thanos; they got their answer once Avengers: Endgame premiered. The film sees the remaining Avengers attempting to pull off a “time heist” by entering the Quantum Realm and traveling back in time to reunite the six Infinity Stones. However, their attempts also bring back a past version of Thanos, more ruthless than the one they already dealt with. As they prepare for the fight of their lives, the Avengers suffer tragic losses that make them question if they have the strength to succeed.

It’s hard to explain just how big a phenomenon Avengers: Endgame was. Showtimes were sold in advance, midnight showing tickets flew as soon as they came out, and audiences camped outside the movie theater—the expectation was that big. The film very much felt like the culmination of an entire decade of continuous, interconnected storytelling, marking a decisive step forward in the way cinematic stories could be told. Simultaneously, it was also a victory lap for the MCU, a way for them to collect their hard-earned praise and even take a bow without needing to actually say goodbye. In retrospect, it was also the end of an era, the climax of the superhero genre as a whole. Arguably, no movie in the genre has been as impactful or universally adored since, although a few have come close.

1

‘The Avengers’ (2012)

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If Endgame was the end of an era, then The Avengers was the beginning. The 2012 film sees the unhinged god Loki (Tom Hiddleston) attempting to conquer Earth by using the Tesseract to open a portal to another world, meaning to launch an alien invasion. Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) assembles the initial six Avengers, trying to form a defence against Loki. However, internal conflicts make things difficult, as these six heroes aren’t exactly used to working as a team. It doesn’t help that Loki has the power to control minds with a powerful staff, so there’s that.

Very few movies can claim to have started a genuine revolution in cinema; The Avengers is one. The film was the first to pull off something as ambitious as gathering characters from different movie series and bringing them together as a team while telling a cohesive storyline, easy enough for everyone to understand. It proved that a cinematic universe could not only exist but actually thrive beyond anyone’s wildest expectations. The Avengers broke box office records up to that point and became the defining cinematic event of the year, surpassing Christopher Nolan‘s last Dark Knight movie and the best James Bond effort in years. It inspired every movie studio to imitate its formula, hoping to replicate its success, and cemented the superhero genre as the reigning champ of the 2010s. Many movies built the MCU, but The Avengers is certainly the pillar upon which the entire franchise rises.