All 6 Live-Action Superhero Movies Turning 20 in 2026, Ranked

Two decades is a mighty long time, and for these superhero films, 2026 marks their big 20th birthday. In retrospect, 2006 was, to say the least, interesting for superhero cinema. It didn't have too many major hits, but the ones that actually connected were fun and very memorable, thankfully.

For the most part, though, 2006's superhero reputation is pretty interesting. It has some absolutely horrific movies, but for the most part, the superhero offerings of this year were actually received with mixed reviews. This reception is partially due to the fact that, as time has gone on, people have given some of them some more slack, looking back on them with less hate than when they were first released. Which ones are the best, and which are the worst, though?

6 'Ultraviolet' (March 3rd)

Never heard of Ultraviolet? Not many would be surprised, honestly. The reputation this movie has is not one to be proud of. When it was released on March 3rd of 2006, critics absolutely ripped the project to shreds, claiming it to be incoherent, amateurish, and all-around forgettable. To say that this was a low point in both director Kurt Wimmer's (known for Total Recall and Point Break) and actor Milla Jovovich's (known for The Fifth Element and Resident Evil: Afterlife) careers is putting it lightly.

Ultraviolet tried its best to be like movies akin to The Matrix, but ultimately failed. Indeed, everything about it is disappointing, from the plot to the performances to the production design and overall visual language. Time has been slightly kind to it, with many now crediting it as a movie that can be considered so bad that it's good. Alas, Ultraviolet does have a unique visual style, which is one of its very few positives.

5 'Zoom' (August 11th)

Another movie that has a small cult following, but is a widely considered failure, is none other than Zoom, starring Tim Allen. This superhero movie is executed to be directed a lot more towards children, but even in that department, it manages to not work. It has a minute rating of 5% on Rotten Tomatoes—yes, a rating that low is possible—and is a gigantic box-office failure, delivering only $12 million with a budget of$75.6 million.

As stated, though, some find it to be a source of childhood nostalgia, comparable to the previous year's Sky High, which gives it a tiny cult following—a larger one than the likes of Ultraviolet, but not by much. If there were a word to describe the collection of negative reviews for Zoom, it'd be "uninspired." It's fun to watch at the end of the day, though, but its shortcomings are undeniable. In fact, Tim Allen even received a Razzie (an award for terrible film achievements) for his performance.

4 'My Super Ex-Girlfriend' (July 21st)

First, she was the protagonist of the Kill Bill series, then, three years later, she stepped into the superhero franchise as Jenny Johnson in My Super Ex-Girlfriend. However, it's definitely not as great as Kill Bill... at all. Some people consider it a "chick flick," but others think it's a really fun movie that one should sit back and not take too seriously.

My Super Ex-Girlfriend is full of cliches, but, honestly, those can make for a comedic ride, even if sometimes the audience isn't supposed to be laughing. The central idea of an obsessed woman scorned using her superpowers to get back at her boyfriend is quite dated, but Thurman, Luke Wilson, and Anna Faris all do their best to elevate the material. At the end of the day, though, My Super Ex-Girlfriend is a goofy enough movie with a serviceable amount of camp and heart that one can get through without wanting to fall asleep.

3 'X-Men: The Last Stand' (May 26th)

If anything is true and quite well-known among fanbases, it's that the X-Men franchise has always had a tough time in Hollywood, and it all began with the third installment, X-Men: The Last Stand. The first two X-Men movies were received very well by both critics and fans, and are considered some of the founding fathers of the modern superhero cinema landscape (alongside the likes of movies like Spider-Man). That all went down the drain, though, with the release of this trilogy-capper.

X-Men: The Last Stand started the terrible trend for the X-Men franchise that makes it clear that, when they try to adapt the famous comic book storyline "Dark Phoenix Saga," it never ends well. The way that director Bryan Singer and the rest of the crew adapted this iconic plot in a less-than-ideal manner disappointed fans, but also critics. In fact, it is simply a horribly written movie with a convoluted plot, clumsy dialogue, disappointing action, and way too many characters, most of which are underdeveloped.

2 'Superman Returns' (June 28th)

It was always going to be difficult to follow up on the original Christopher Reeve franchise, which is considered the first major theatrical superhero movie success. When it came about, though, Superman Returns did the best it could. While it could not bring Reve back, as he'd unfortunately passed just two years before the release, it cast Brandon Routh, who would (eventually and after considerable backlash for years) become a fan favorite Superman actor. However, many can't deny the fact that making Superman Returns a sequel to the original series (which ended a whopping 19 years earlier) was probably not the best idea.

Superman Returns does the best with what it's given, though, and while it's far slower than it should have been, it's actually a pretty fun movie to watch that can be relatively moving when it needs to be. While he may not have been Christopher Reeve, Brandon Routh does the absolute best he can and ends up doing a very good job. In fact, people were genuinely so excited to see him make a comeback in the big CW crossover event, "Crisis on Infinite Earths".

1 'Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut' (November 29th)

The third and final Superman project of 2006 was yet another tribute to the Christopher Reeve franchise. 26 years after the movie was initially released, studios decided to re-release Superman II. This version was Richard Donner's original vision for the film before he was eventually replaced by Richard Lester midway through production—thankfully, after principal photography had already concluded, giving Lester mostly only say in the editing bay and other post-production areas.

When 2006 came along, it was decided that the world needed to see what Donner's original vision for the project was, and the film was re-edited to show the people what could have been. Many people consider this iteration of the movie better than the original, as it restores some missing footage, and overall weaves the story in a bit of a better manner than before. Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut is considered one of the best Superman movies—some calling it the best of all time, and for good reason. The movie is definitely still a product of its era, which adds some goofiness that can take away from the stakes, but, at the end of the day, it's still a great ride and one of Reeves' finest hours.