Its fair to say that DC has been slow on pulling the trigger on its cinematic universe.
Marvel Studios has been far above board with its Avengers, Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, and other films and television properties that have a shared cinematic continuity. DC, on the other hand, only has The Man of Steel released. Not much of a “shared” universe. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will be the second of these next year, and Suicide Squad is filming now, but there really is not much to look to when comparing the two universes.
This does not mean that DC has not had a lot of film and television properties, however. The Christopher Nolan Batman films may be the greatest superhero films of all time, and recent television shows like The Flash and Arrow are getting people hooked. There is actually and incredible history of DC films, so we wanted to look at the complete list of what has been released, and what is still waiting to come out, from the various DC comics.
Live-action films
| Year | Title | Production studio(s) | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Superman and the Mole Men | Lippert Pictures | Theatrically-released pilot for the 1950s Adventures of Superman television series | ||||
| 1954 | Stamp Day for Superman | United States Department of the Treasury | Government-produced short film in the public domain | ||||
| 1966 | Batman: The Movie | 20th Century Fox | Related to the 1960s Batman television series | ||||
| 1978 | Superman | Warner Bros./Dovemead Film Export A.G./International Film Productions | Won 1 Special Oscar, nominated for 3 more | ||||
| 1980 | Superman II | ||||||
| 1982 | Swamp Thing | Embassy Pictures | |||||
| 1983 | Superman III | Warner Bros./Cantharus Productions N.V./Dovemead Films | |||||
| 1984 | Supergirl | Artistry Ltd/Cantharus Productions/Pueblo Film Group | |||||
| 1987 | Superman IV: The Quest for Peace | Warner Bros./Golan-Globus/Cannon Films. | |||||
| 1989 | The Return of Swamp Thing | Lightyear Entertainment | Limited theatrical release | ||||
| Batman | Warner Bros./PolyGram Filmed Entertainment | Won 1 Oscar | |||||
| 1992 | Batman Returns | Nominated for 2 Oscars | |||||
| 1995 | Batman Forever | Nominated for 3 Oscars | |||||
| 1997 | Batman & Robin | ||||||
| Steel | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/QDe | ||||||
| 2004 | Catwoman | Warner Bros./Village Roadshow Pictures/Di Novi Pictures/Frantic Films/Maple Shade Films | Not directly based on the character of the same name | ||||
| 2005 | Batman Begins | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/Legendary Pictures/Syncopy Inc./Patalex III Productions | Reboot; nominated for an Oscar | ||||
| 2006 | Superman Returns | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/Legendary Pictures/Bad Hat Harry Productions | Somewhat related to Superman and Superman II; nominated for an Oscar. | ||||
| Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut | Warner Bros. | Re-edited director’s cut film, direct-to-video release | |||||
| 2008 | The Dark Knight | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/Legendary Pictures/Syncopy Inc. | Won 2 Oscars, nominated for 6 more | ||||
| 2009 | Watchmen | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/Legendary Pictures/Lawrence Gordon Productions/Cruel and Unusual Films | |||||
| 2010 | Jonah Hex | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/Legendary Pictures/Weed Road Pictures | |||||
| 2011 | Green Lantern | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/De Line Pictures | |||||
| 2012 | The Dark Knight Rises | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/Legendary Pictures/Syncopy Inc. | |||||
| 2013 | Man of Steel | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/Legendary Pictures/Cruel and Unusual Films/Syncopy Inc. | Reboot; Start of the DC Extended Universe | ||||
| Upcoming | |||||||
| 2016 | Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual Films/Atlas Entertainment | Post-production | ||||
| Suicide Squad | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment/Atlas Entertainment | Filming | |||||
| 2017 | Wonder Woman[1] | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment/Atlas Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual Films | Pre-production | ||||
| Justice League Part One[1] | |||||||
| 2018 | The Flash[1] | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment | In development | ||||
| Aquaman[1] | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual Films | ||||||
| 2019 | Shazam[1] | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment/New Line Cinema | |||||
| Justice League Part Two[1] | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual Films | ||||||
| 2020 | Cyborg[1] | Warner Bros./DC Entertainment/RatPac Entertainment | |||||
| Green Lantern Corps[1] | |||||||
Serial films (1941–1952)
| Year | Title | Production studio | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Adventures of Captain Marvel | Republic Pictures | Published at that time by Fawcett Comics |
| 1942 | Spy Smasher | ||
| 1943 | Batman | Columbia Pictures | |
| 1946 | Hop Harrigan | ||
| 1947 | The Vigilante | ||
| 1948 | Superman | ||
| Congo Bill | |||
| 1949 | Batman and Robin | ||
| 1950 | Atom Man vs. Superman | ||
| 1952 | Blackhawk | Published at that time by Quality Comics |
From DC imprints
Television films
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Wonder Woman | Pilot episode for an unproduced TV series. |
| 1975 | It’s a Bird…It’s a Plane…It’s Superman | TV adaptation of the 1960s Broadway musical. |
| 1997 | Justice League of America | Pilot episode for an unproduced TV series; never aired on the U.S. |
| 2003 | Return to the Batcave: The Misadventures of Adam and Burt | Television movie reuniting the cast of the 1960s Batman TV show |
Episodes as films
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | The Flash | Episodes of the 1990s The Flash television series released as direct to video films. |
| 1991 | The Flash II: Revenge of the Trickster | |
| The Flash III: Deadly of the Nightshade |
Animated films
All the feature films are produced by Warner Bros. Animation and are released direct-to-video, except the first as indicated.
Shorts
| Year | Title | Production studio | Collection | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Superman | Fleischer Studios | Superman | Theatrical release. In public domain. |
| The Mechanical Monsters | ||||
| 1942 | Billion Dollar Limited | |||
| The Arctic Giant | ||||
| The Bulleteers | ||||
| The Magnetic Telescope | ||||
| Electric Earthquake | ||||
| Volcano | ||||
| Terror on the Midway | ||||
| Japoteurs | Famous Studios | |||
| Showdown | ||||
| Eleventh Hour | ||||
| Destruction, Inc. | ||||
| 1943 | The Mummy Strikes | |||
| Jungle Drums | ||||
| The Underground World | ||||
| Secret Agent | ||||
| 2000 | The Vault | Noodle Soup Productions | Gotham Girls | Web series; somewhat related to DC animated universe. |
| Lap Bat | ||||
| Trick or Trick?, part one & two | ||||
| A Little Night Magic | ||||
| More Than One Way | ||||
| Precious Birthstones | ||||
| Pave Paradise | ||||
| The Three Babes | ||||
| The Gardener’s Apprentice | ||||
| Lady – X | ||||
| 2001 | Hold That Tiger | |||
| Miss Un-Congeniality | ||||
| Strategery | ||||
| Baby Boom | ||||
| Cat-n-Mouse | ||||
| Bat’ing Cleanup | ||||
| Catsitter | ||||
| Gotham Noir | ||||
| Scout’s Dis-Honor | ||||
| I’m Badgirl | ||||
| 2002 | Ms.ing in Action | |||
| Gotham in Pink | ||||
| Hear Me Roar | ||||
| Gotham in Blue | ||||
| A Cat in the Hand | ||||
| Jailhouse Wreck | ||||
| Honor Among Thieves | ||||
| No, I’m Batgirl | ||||
| Signal Fires | ||||
| Cool Hands, Cold Heart | ||||
| 2003 | Chase Me | Warner Bros. Animation | None | Silent film; part of the DC animated universe. |
| 2008 | Have I Got a Story for You | Studio 4°C | Batman: Gotham Knight | |
| Crossfire | Production I.G | |||
| Field Test | Bee Train | |||
| In Darkness Dwells | Madhouse | |||
| Working Through Pain | Studio 4°C | |||
| Deadshot | Madhouse | |||
| 2010 | The Spectre | Warner Bros. Animation | DC Showcase | |
| Jonah Hex | ||||
| Green Arrow | ||||
| Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam | ||||
| 2011 | Catwoman | |||
| 2015 | John Con Noir | Cool Town Claymation | Constantine | Part of the series’ promotion. |
| Twisted | Blue Ribbon Content | Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles | Web series | |
| Bomb | ||||
| Big |
Episodes as films
Television series episodes released as direct to video films.
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Superman: The Last Son of Krypton | Each one compilation of three episodes originally aired during first and second season of Superman: The Animated Series. |
| 1997 | The Batman Superman Movie: World’s Finest | |
| 1999 | Batman Beyond: The Movie | Compilation of the first two episodes of Batman Beyond. |
| 2001 | Justice League: Secret Origins | Compilation of three episodes of the Justice League. |
| 2004 | Justice League: Starcrossed |
Lego versions
All films are released direct to video, except as indicated.
| Year | Title | Production studio | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Lego Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite | TT Animation | Based on video game Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes. | ||||
| 2014 | The Lego Movie | Animal Logic | Theatrical release; featuring Lego versions of several DC heroes. | ||||
| Lego DC Comics: Batman Be-Leaguered | Warner Bros. Animation | Television movie | |||||
| 2015 | Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League | ||||||
| Announced | |||||||
| 2015 | Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League: Attack of the Legion of Doom | Warner Bros. Animation | |||||
| 2017 | The Lego Batman Movie[5] | Animal Logic | Spin-off of The Lego Movie. | ||||
| 2018 | The Lego Movie 2[6] | ||||||
Fan and unofficial films
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Batman Dracula | By Andy Warhol; it was screened only at his art exhibits |
| 1965 | Alyas Batman at Robin | |
| 1966 | James Batman | |
| The Wild World of Batwoman | Jerry Warren re-released the film under the title She Was a Hippy Vampire | |
| 1967 | Batman Fights Dracula | |
| 1973 | Fight Batman Fight! | |
| 1991 | Alyas Batman en Robin | Spoofs the 1960s Batman TV series |
| 2002 | Lobo Paramilitary Christmas Special | Made with a budget of $2,400 |
| 2003 | Batman: Dead End | Made with a budget of $30,000; Batman is cornered into fighting Xenomorphs and Predators. |
| Batman: Revenge | Premiered in 2003, nearly three years before Lego officially announced their Batman product line | |
| 2004 | Grayson | Original screenplay for a full-length picture is available for download at the Untamed Cinema official website |
| World’s Finest | ||
| 2005 | Batman: New Times | Intended to help sales of the Minimates toy line |
| Robin’s Big Date | ||
| 2009 | Saturday Morning Watchmen | An animated parody of Watchmen |
| 2010 | City of Scars | Made with a budget of $27,000 |
| 2011 | Superman Classic | |
| Seeds of Arkham | Sequel to City of Scars. The Batmobile in the film is the 1989 replica | |
| 2012 | Bizarro Classic | A sequel to Superman Classic |
| The Death and Return of Superman | Short film by Chronicle writer Max Landis. | |
| Batman: Death Wish | Styled after the Joel Schumacher films Batman Forever and Batman & Robin. | |
| Batman Revealed | ||
| 2015 | Electrogenesis | Based on the character Static Shock |
Vertigology 
