5 Superhero Movies That Should Have Been Massive Hits But Bombed Instead

We are in a day and age where you can't take a step in the entertainment field in any direction without stumbling into a superhero movie. Whether that's Tom Holland's ubiquitous "Spider-Man," Jared Leto's atrocious "Morbius," or the latest iteration of Superman (à la James Gunn), the superhero fever in cinemas doesn't seem ready to die any time soon. As someone who's been sick of that in the past 5 years or so, I'm not going to lie, I get just a little bit of satisfaction when I see a run-of-the-mill superhero flick underperform at the box office — and a lot more when it's one that actually deserves to fail miserably and should've never gotten made in the first place (see "The Marvels" or "Joker: Folie à Deux").

On the other hand, I'm genuinely disheartened when an ambitious, daring, and atypical superhero film doesn't get its due, as viewers dismiss it and fail to appreciate its inventiveness or outside-the-box approach. Today, we'll be talking about five of those that deserved better than what they got at the box office.

I've been a longtime defender of "Super," James Gunn's second directorial feature starring Rainn Wilson as an awkward, self-made, and wannabe superhero. Upon release, the 2010 film was underrated by moviegoers and completely dismissed by critics, even though it contained a raw version of Gunn's quintessentially dark and quirky humor, which he made a killing with four years later with the first "Guardians of the Galaxy." "Super" simply came at the wrong time, right after Matthew Vaughn's "Kick-Ass" swept through cinemas, became all the rage, and introduced a new kind of superhero.

Gunn's film was a more subtle and realistic version of that, stemming from the simple heartbreak of a break-up and some religious views, and going completely bonkers with its comedy in a way that audiences didn't know what to do with at the time. Its protagonist, Frank Darbo (Wilson), is an everyman and a bit of a loser, not the type of hero that's easy to like at first. But his motivation to get his wife back from Kevin Bacon's pompous drug lord villain gradually turns him into a sympathetic crime-fighter who's more human underneath his clumsy and obnoxious demeanor than one would assume.

"Super" is viciously funny and aptly violent — taking full advantage of its R rating — with a gentle heart that plays on the heartstrings with aplomb. Still, before becoming a cult classic, Gunn's movie opened with terrible numbers at the box office, grossing only $422,000 against its low $2.5 million budget. It's not hard to imagine that if Gunn had had the same hype and fame he does today, "Super" could've been a low-key hit at the very least back then — it would've deserved it, too.

Actor Peter Stebbings' directorial feature debut, "Defendor," is a touching little dramedy disguised as a superhero flick. The plot follows Arthur Poppington (Woody Harrelson), a delusional middle-aged man under psychiatric care, who becomes a vigilante by night in order to take revenge on his archnemesis, Captain Industry, whom he believes is responsible for his mother abandoning him and dying of a drug overdose.

Arthur, aka Defendor, has no special powers other than a firm belief in doing the right thing and serving justice whenever it needs to be served. His methods of fighting criminals (who he thinks are employed by Captain Industry) are unconventional and often fail woefully, resulting in him getting beaten up or shot multiple times. Despite those setbacks, Arthur never gives up and becomes friends with a young sex worker who claims to know the real identity of Captain Industry.

"Defendor" uses Arthur's figment for comedic beats, but underneath its humor, there's a tragic and emotionally resonant story driven by childhood trauma and mental disability. Harrelson beautifully captures the duality of this character and delivers a top-tier performance (alongside a more than capable cast) that should've gotten a lot more praise than it initially did. The film's failure at the box office was mainly due to being self-released by its production company theatrically, making only $44,000 against its $3.5 million budget. Although "Defendor" has become a cult classic since, it would've deserved to be the indie darling that it really was from the get-go.

After David Ayer completely botched the first-ever big-screen adaptation of DC's antihero "Suicide Squad" in 2016. James Gunn stepped in five years later to fix the fiasco with a reboot. That was 2021's "The Suicide Squad" — a loudly entertaining if somewhat formulaic effort — with a stellar cast that included John Cena, Idris Elba, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, and Sylvester Stallone. I guess it's a twist of fate that while Ayer's atrocious mishit made a ton of money, Gunn's much more enjoyable take ended up losing a lot, grossing $168 million worldwide without even making back its budget of $185 million at the box office.

"The Suicide Squad" may not be among the greatest superhero movies of all time — ultimately, it's a far lesser version of "Guardians of the Galaxy," which is palpable in its every second — but it's several levels above the original and other superhero flicks that reside in the same league. Stallone's hysterical voice-acting as King Shark alone is more amusing than anything the DCU has done in the past ten years, including 2025's "Superman."

Out of all the films on this list, Kieran and Michele Mulroney's "Paper Man" might be the one with the loosest tie to a classic superhero feature. That's because the only caped vigilante in it is merely an imaginary friend — Captain Excellent, played by a pre-Deadpool and pre-Green Lantern Ryan Reynolds — dreamed up by failed novelist Richard Dunn (Jeff Daniels). 

Richard is having writer's block, and his relationship with his wife, Claire (Lisa Kudrow), is rapidly falling apart, so he moves to Long Island to regroup. He wants to get better at life, but the conversations with Captain Excellent don't help, as the imaginary friend repeatedly points out to him that he can never make the right decisions without his help since he was a child. But when Richard meets a teenager named Abby (Emma Stone) and hires her to babysit children that don't exist, they become close in a way that makes Richard hopeful for a better future.

"Paper Man" never had a chance to become truly big since it only had a limited theatrical release in North America after being screened at several film festivals. But it's the kind of genuinely affecting and endearing indie flick (with a pitch-perfect small cast no less) that should've deserved much more than it got, both critically and commercially. Just imagine if it came out after Reynolds blew up with "Deadpool" — its chances to reach and charm a larger audience would've skyrocketed. That said, it's still a quiet, contemplative, and neurotic little movie with a specific target audience. But if that's your vibe, "Paper Man" might surprise you in the best way possible.

There's a debate about whether Edgar Wright's action rom-com, "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World," is really a superhero movie. But its fans can surely agree on one thing: This film should've been an absolute blockbuster. It was not. Despite showers of high praise from both critics and viewers, Wright's feature disappointingly underperformed at the box office, grossing only $51 million worldwide against its $60 million budget.

It's still baffling how such a visually multifaceted, boldly creative, and uncompromisingly original film couldn't wow enough people to break even at the very least. Adapting the bonkers story of a shy guy finding his new love and fighting her evil exes from a minimalist comic book with such a visual gusto as Wright did is a huge accomplishment. Not to mention that the film's cast was stacked to the brim, including Michael Cera, Aubrey Plaza, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Chris Evans, Kieran Culkin, Anna Kendrick, and Jason Schwartzman, just to mention a few. "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World" is hysterical, vividly mesmerizing, and a total blast regardless of whether you're familiar with its source material. It's an utter shame that wasn't reflected in its earnings for whatever reason, since if there's an ambitious (superhero) movie that should've been a massive hit instead of a bomb, it's this one.