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The 8 Most Universally Beloved Animated Superhero Movies of All Time, Ranked

The 8 Most Universally Beloved Animated Superhero Movies of All Time, Ranked

hollywood copy - alina watson

When it comes to superheroes, animation is an unrivaled art form. Often, through this imaginative and almost unlimited medium, concepts and characters can be realized far better than in live-action performances. These 2D masterpieces also give highly skilled animators a chance to shine and studios an opportunity to deliver exciting projects to audiences in an interesting way.

As the superhero genre continues to be prolific, the subject matter and themes of animated movies vary widely. From comical farces such as Megamind to gripping comic book-centered works like Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, there is something for everyone. This visually stunning category of cinema isn’t going away anytime soon, and now is a perfect time to revisit the most universally beloved animated superhero movies that have been overwhelmingly admired by audiences.

8

‘Megamind’ (2010)

Megamind and Minion victory walking through the streets of Metro City.
Image via DreamWorks Animation

Viewing the milieu from an antagonist’s perspective, Megamind follows the titular character, voiced by Will Ferrell, as he wreaks havoc and learns what he really wants in life. The DreamWorks comedy is a hilarious contribution to the category, full of self-deprecating humor and clever juxtapositions. Ferrell is sublime as the blue, large-craniumed character. Brad Pitt is equally committed as the stereotypical superhero Metro Man, and Tina Fey is sharp and sassy as the hard-hitting reporter Roxanne Ritchi.

Megamind has fun plot twists and stellar animation. It is one of the best contemporary animated comedies and a great watch for superhero fans of any age. After the success of DreamWorks’ live-action rendition of How to Train Your Dragon, fans wonder if Megamind will be next.

7

‘Big Hero 6’ (2014)

Hiro tries to put hand armor on Baymax in Big Hero 6
Hiro tries to put hand armor on Baymax in Big Hero 6
Image via Disney Animation

A superhero movie that is able to reach even younger audiences is the undeniably charming Big Hero 6. After a tragedy, Hiro (Ryan Potter) enlists the healthcare robot named Baymax (Scott Adsit) that was built by his brother to help catch a villain. Teaming up with his older brother Tadashi’s (Daniel Henney) friends, they form their own squad and use their knack for inventions to give themselves super-human abilities.

Baymax became an instant favorite in pop culture. The adorable robot that was more interested in healing people than hurting them became one of the most endearing characters in any animated film. Even though Big Hero 6 is targeted toward a much younger demographic than most superhero films, there are some profound, philosophical topics covered in the film. Themes of passivism, vengeance, guilt, and forgiveness are all woven throughout the storyline. Big Hero 6 is a unique superhero movie and explores interesting questions about when to take action and why, and it is suitable for fans of all ages.

6

‘The Incredibles’ (2004)

Helen Parr aka Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) in 'The Incredibles'
Helen Parr aka Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) in ‘The Incredibles’
Image via Pixar Animation

Four years before Iron Man would usher in the MCU, Pixar released one of the best superhero movies ever created. Unlike most superhero movies that focus on a solo figure, The Incredibles is a whole family of crime-fighting crusaders. Staying together as a family and working together as a team make the Parr family unique and fascinating to watch.

The Incredibles is full of meta humor and inside references that fans of superhero stories will appreciate. The writing is delightfully clever and includes an amusing blend of comic book-style hero antics and mundane suburban life. Every aspect of The Incredibles is done well, and the action sequences are exciting and add credibility to the story. It is undoubtedly one of Pixar’s finest and a unique and valuable addition to the genre.

5

‘Teen Titans Go! To the Movies’ (2018)

The Teen Titans escape on a golf cart in 'Teen Titans Go! To the Movies'
The Teen Titans escape on a golf cart in ‘Teen Titans Go! To the Movies’
Image via Warner Bros.

Another superhero comedy that charmed its way into viewers’ hearts is Teen Titans Go! To the Movies. The many meta-humor and comic book references are all part of the appeal for this animated hit. It messes with and pays tribute to many of the featured characters’ lore, including a time-travel twist where Robin (Scott Menville) brings about the demise of Bruce Wayne’s parents.

Teen Titans Go! To the Movies features Nicolas Cage as Superman five years before his cameo in The Flash. Unlike the all-too-brief moment in The Flash, Cage’s Superman actually has significant screentime and plays a key role in the film. Teen Titans Go! To the Movies is pure entertainment. It blends aspects of Hollywood, filmmaking, and the best of the superhero genre. Like the other exemplary movies mentioned on this list, Teen Titans Go! To the Movies is well deserving of the admiration it has received, especially by superhero and comic book fans.





















































Collider Exclusive · Star Wars Quiz
Which Force User
Are You?
Light Side · Dark Side · Or Somewhere Between

The Force is not a binary. It is a spectrum — from the serene halls of the Jedi Temple to the shadowed corridors of Sith space. Ten questions will reveal where you truly fall. The Force has always known. Now you will too.

🔵Jedi Master

🟡Padawan

🔴Sith Lord

⚫Inquisitor

⚪Grey Jedi

01

What is the Force to you?
Your relationship with the Force defines everything else.




02

When you feel strong emotions — anger, grief, love — what do you do?
The Jedi suppress. The Sith feed. Others choose differently.




03

The Jedi Council gives you an order you disagree with. You:
How you handle authority reveals your alignment.




04

You are offered forbidden knowledge that could give you enormous power. The cost is crossing a moral line. You:
The dark side’s pull is never more than a choice away.




05

Your approach to training and learning is:
A student’s habits become a master’s character.




06

In a duel, your lightsaber fighting style reflects:
Combat is the purest expression of a Force user’s philosophy.




07

A defeated enemy lies at your feet, powerless. You:
Mercy — or its absence — is the truest test of alignment.




08

The Jedi Code forbids attachment. Your honest view on love and bonds:
The source of the greatest falls in the galaxy.




09

Why do you use the Force at all? What’s the point?
Purpose is the difference between a knight and a weapon.




10

At the final moment — light side or dark side pulling at you — what wins?
In the end, every Force user faces this moment. What does yours look like?




Your Alignment Has Been Determined
Your Place in the Force

The scores below reveal how the Force sees you. Your highest number is your true alignment. Read on to understand what that means — and what it will cost you.

🔵
Jedi Master

🟡
Padawan

🔴
Sith Lord

⚫
Inquisitor

⚪
Grey Jedi

Disciplined, compassionate, and deeply attuned to the living Force, you have walked the path long enough to understand its demands — and accept them. You lead not through authority alone, but through example. You have felt the pull of the dark side and chosen otherwise, every time. That is not certainty. That is courage.

You are earnest, powerful, and brimming with potential — and you know it, which is both your greatest asset and your most dangerous flaw. You act before you think, trust your gut over your training, and sometimes confuse impatience for bravery. The Masters see something in you, though. The question isn’t whether you have what it takes — it’s whether you’ll be patient enough to find out.

You are not simply dangerous — you are certain, and that is worse. You have decided what the galaxy needs, and you have decided you are the one to deliver it. Your power is genuine and formidable, earned through sacrifice that would have broken lesser beings. But examine your victories carefully. Every Sith believed their cause was righteous. The dark side’s cruelest trick is that it agrees with you.

You were forged in fire and reshaped by those who found you at your lowest. You serve, because service gave you structure when you had none. Your allegiance is not to an ideology — it is to survival and to the master who gave you purpose. But there is something buried beneath the conditioning. The Jedi you hunt? You recognize them. Because you remember what it felt like before the choice was taken from you.

You have looked at the Jedi Code and the Sith Code and found both of them incomplete. You walk the line not out of indecision but out of conviction — you genuinely believe both extremes miss something essential. The Jedi don’t fully trust you. The Sith think you’re wasting your potential. They’re both partially right. But so are you.

4

‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’ (2023)

The turtles eating pizza and looking awkward in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
The turtles eating pizza and looking awkward in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
Image via Paramount Pictures

Widely hailed as the preeminent film about the “Heroes in a Half Shell,” Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is one of the best animated movies of the past five years. It broke the mold and became the first TMNT movie to cast actual teenagers in all four leading roles. Audience reception of the film was monumental, and it became one of the highest-grossing superhero movies that isn’t Marvel or DC.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem features Micah Abbey, Nicolas Cantu, Shamon Brown Jr., and Brady Noon as the reptile protagonists. Outcasts of society, the young turtles are forced to live in the sewers for fear of discovery by humans. Jackie Chan is exemplary as their adoptive father, Splinter, and the pathos delivered in his performance is impactful. Mutant Mayhem has an outstanding 95% critics rating and 90% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, demonstrating how beloved this visually stunning triumph is.

3

‘The Lego Batman Movie’ (2017)

Batman (Will Arnett) fires his grappling gun in The Lego Batman Movie
Batman (Will Arnett) fires his grappling gun in The Lego Batman Movie
Image via Warner Bros.

Building on the success of 2014’s The Lego Movie, Warner Bros. turned its sights to the legendary Caped Crusader and ended up creating not only one of the best Batman movies ever made, but one of the best DC superhero movies of all time. Will Arnett stars as Batman, the billionaire Bruce Wayne by day and the masked crime-fighting hero by night.

The Lego Batman Movie features some of Batman’s most iconic villains, including Joker (Zach Galifianakis), Two-Face (Billy Dee Williams), The Riddler (Conan O’Brien), Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz), and Scarecrow (Jason Mantzoukas). There is a hilarious performance by Michael Cera as the innocent and naive Robin, who is accidentally adopted by Batman and longs to be part of a family. The movie is full of adorable LEGO iconography, and the animation is an utterly charming blend that is evocative of stop-motion animation.

2

‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ (2018)

An animated superhero movie that is as entertaining for adults as it is for kids, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse sent shock waves through the cinema. It featured a bold, visually rich, and complex animation style that was unlike anything seen in a major blockbuster release before. It pushed the boundaries in a new and exciting way by changing what modern audiences had come to expect in a cartoon’s visual presentation. The financial success of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse proved to movie-making studios that sometimes taking a creative risk is definitely worth it.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse wouldn’t have resonated with audiences so deeply if it were simply visual. For real impact and lasting likability, it had to have a good story and interesting characters as well. Luckily, Into the Spider-Verse has both. The movie focuses not only on the main protagonist, Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), but features alternate versions of Spider-Man from other dimensions like Spider-Ham (John Mulaney), Spider-Man Noir (Nicolas Cage), and Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson). Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was a pioneer in the superhero animation genre, and it continues to influence future projects.

1

‘Batman: Mask of the Phantasm’ (1993)

Batman sits with his head in his hand and his mask off, looking sad in Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
Batman sits with his head in his hand and his mask off, looking sad in Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
Image via Warner Bros.

When you spend your life living incognito, it is hard to prove your innocence. In Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, Batman (Kevin Conroy) is being blamed for the murders of mob bosses throughout Gotham City. The actual culprit is another masked and caped figure called Phantasm (Stacy Keach). Mark Hamill makes an appearance as The Joker, a role he became known for in Batman: The Animated Series.

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is the perfect example of why the animated Batman films are some of the principal iterations of the character. It explores the core of who Bruce Wayne is and why he felt compelled to rip his own life apart and live half of his existence as a solitary alter ego. Mask of the Phantasm has dramatic animation, superb sound mixing, and writing that remains unsurpassed in the entirety of the character’s canon. It tells a deep, complex story, and far from being a Saturday morning cartoon, the animation served the gravitas of the story the filmmakers wanted to tell without putting limits on their creativity.


batman-mask-of-the-phantasm-movie-poster.jpg

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm


Release Date

December 25, 1993

Runtime

76 minutes

Director

eric radomski, Bruce W. Timm

Writers

Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, Bob Kane, Martin Pasko, Michael Reaves, Jerry Robinson



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