The 11 Best Comic Book Movies Streaming Now

From Hellboy to Iron Man, a treat for your inner nerd.
Image may contain Collage Advertisement Poster Helmet Clothing Apparel Human Person Hat Sunglasses and Accessories
Everett Collection

Just because 'Black Panther' is monopolizing comic-book movie conversations doesn't mean there's nothing outside the multiplex. From timeless superhero tales to stories that are a bit more grounded in reality, here are the best adaptations available on Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon.

  • This image may contain Appliance
    Everett Collection
    01

    Akira (1988)

    **Where to stream it:** Hulu\ \ Katsuhiro Ôtomo’s *Akira* was many Americans’ introduction into the world of anime—and what an introduction it was. In a post-World War III world, Tokyo has become a dystopia overridden with terrorism, organ harvesting, and the abuse of military power. But when two teens happen upon a secret government plot, the future of Neo-Tokyo is in their hands.
  • Image may contain Performer Human Person Clothing Hat Apparel Clown and Mime
    Everett Collection
    02

    Batman (1989)

    **Where to stream it:** Hulu\ \ Tim Burton’s classic creepy-camp adaptation helped pave the way for more serious comic-book movies. Michael Keaton delivers a brilliant performance as billionaire bachelor Bruce Wayne, who spends his days wandering around his massive estate and his nights using assorted high-tech gadgets to defend Gotham from The Joker (Jack Nicholson).
  • Everett Collection
    03

    Ghost World (2001)

    **Where to stream it:** Amazon\ \ Before you knew her as Black Widow, Scarlett Johansson was Rebecca, the second fiddle to Thora Birch’s Enid: best friends and social outcasts trying to navigate post-high school life. The two drift apart after Rebecca gets a job as a barista and Enid befriends a lonely fried chicken restaurant manager (Steve Buscemi), creating a story about alienation that’s as funny as it is heartbreaking.
  • Everett Collection
    04

    Hellboy (2004)

    **Where to stream it:** Netflix\ \ Guillermo del Toro used his talent for terror to create a comic book movie that ably mixes horror, action, comedy, and the paranormal into one visually stunning feature. A demon originally summoned to Earth by the Nazis during World War II—just go with it, OK?—Hellboy (Ron Perlman) grows up to defend the world against dark forces and all the things that go bump in the night.
  • Everett Collection
    05

    V for Vendetta (2006)

    **Where to stream it:** Netflix\ \ Hugo Weaving is V, an anarchist in a Guy Fawkes mask who attempts to overthrow a fascist-like regime with the help of Evey (Natalie Portman), a woman whose dedication to the cause blurs her sense of right and wrong. James McTeigue’s translation of Alan Moore’s graphic novel won over even Moore’s most skeptical fans, and to this day, V’s mask is a recognizable symbol of protest (see: Anonymous).
  • Everett Collection
    06

    Iron Man (2008)

    **Where to stream it:** Amazon, Hulu\ \ Back before Iron Man was the core of the Marvel Cinematic Universe—hell, before anyone had heard the phrase "Marvel Cinematic Universe"—director Jon Favreau had to fight to cast the scandal-plagued Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark. It's a good thing he did: RDJ brings just the right amount of humor (and baggage) to swaggering billionaire Stark.
  • Everett Collection
    07

    The Dark Knight (2008)

    **Where to stream it:** Amazon with HBO\ \ With all due respect to Christian Bale, the brilliance of Christopher Nolan’s Batman reboot rests on its villains. Heath Ledger, who passed away before the film’s release, posthumously won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as The Joker—and deservedly so. Ledger plays his role with a perfect mix of insanity, intensity, and dark humor, and still leaves time for some gorgeous action scenes.
  • Everett Collection
    08

    Watchmen (2009)

    **Where to stream it:** Amazon with HBO\ \ Despite the initial backlash from fans of Alan Moore’s comics, people have warmed to Zack Snyder’s adaptation. The visually stunning (if head-scratching for the uninitiated) interpretation of Moore’s magnum opus bent space and time to tell the story of an alternate universe where America and Russia are on the brink of nuclear war. (Well, at least it *used* to feel like an alternate universe.)
  • Everett Collection
    09

    Doctor Strange (2016)

    **Where to stream it:** Netflix\ \ After a car accident leaves impeccable-but-cocky neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) with permanent hand damage, he searches for an experimental procedure to save his career—and ends up learning how to bend time. That, of course, creates a Pandora’s Box of problems for his superhero and flesh-and-blood friends, forcing him to learn to use his newfound powers to save the world.
  • Image may contain Human Person Fireman Clothing Apparel and Helmet
    Everett Collection
    10

    Deadpool (2016)

    **Where to stream it:** Amazon\ \ After a decade in movie purgatory, the Marvel antihero's debut was massively successful—raking in more than $780 million worldwide at the box office with its mix of pop-culture savvy and dark blue humor. In the movie, Ryan Reynolds’ Wade Wilson seeks revenge on the doctor whose experimental cancer treatment turned him the outcast we know as Deadpool—his pain might be gone, but so are his looks.
  • This image may contain Animal Fish Water Aquatic Sphere and Sea Life
    Everett Collection
    11

    Captain America: Civil War (2016)

    **Where to stream it:** Netflix\ \ Marvel’s Captain America mini-franchise is its most politicized, and in this installment, Cap (Chris Evans) and Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) face off over the government’s role in superheroes’ behavior. The heated disagreement forces all the Avengers to pick sides; while sowing discord on a team who kicks ass for a living is a bad idea, the ensuing ass-kicking is a great one.
TopicsAMP Stories
Read More
TV's 2018 Challenge: Being As Intimate As It Was in 2017
The year's best shows were unburdened by the pressure of audience—and next year needs more of that quiet confidence.
Jason Parham
If Great TV Is Everywhere, Why Do We Talk About It Less?
Streaming services and social media have capsized not just how we watch TV, but how we discuss it.
Jason Parham
Thor: Ragnarok Makes Superhero Movies Fun Again
Marvel's latest is the most effortlessly enjoyable hangout movie to emerge in a long time, which might be Thor's most heroic feat yet.
Angela Watercutter
Ta-Nehisi Coates Is Writing a Black Panther Marvel Comic Series
The journalist's Black Panther story is slated to come out next year.
Kevin McFarland
Watch Comic-Con Cosplayers Get Caught in Our IRL Pokémon Go Game
From Chewbacca to Harley Quinn to a pint-sized Black Panther, we tried to catch ’em all.
Brian Raftery
The Latest AI Documentary Asks: Just How Scared Should We Be?
The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist seeks the middle ground on a polarizing technology—and ends up letting tech execs like Sam Altman off the hook.
Miles Klee
How Democracy Now! Became the Blueprint for Indie Media
WIRED sat down with Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman to talk politics, AI, and the future of media. A documentary about her rise hits theaters today.
Kate Knibbs
FCC Enforcement Chief Offered to Help Brendan Carr Target Disney, Records Show
Last year, as FCC chair Brendan Carr threatened ABC over a Jimmy Kimmel monolog, a civil servant overseeing West Coast stations privately pledged support, according to emails obtained by WIRED.
Dell Cameron
I Watched a 7.5-Hour Movie in Theaters to Confront My Dwindling Attention Span
Sátántango is considered a holy rite for hardcore cinephiles. In a packed screening with no cellphones in sight, it also offered a salve for brain rot.
John Semley
Uncanny Valley: Nvidia’s ‘Super Bowl of AI,’ Tesla Disappoints, and Meta’s VR Metaverse ‘Shutdown’
In this episode, we dive into Nvidia’s annual developer conference and what CEO Jensen Huang is saying about the future of the company.
Brian Barrett
I Asked Netflix’s Reality TV Boss Why So Many Men On Dating Shows Are Terrible
Brandon Riegg tells WIRED he empathizes with the struggle to find “quality men” and that Love Is Blind has no MAGA agenda.
Manisha Krishnan
Uncanny Valley: Iran’s Threats on US Tech, Trump’s Plans for Midterms, and Polymarket’s Pop-up Flop
In this episode, we discuss Iran’s threats to target US tech firms, gear up for the midterm elections, and get a scene report from the Polymarket pop-up bar in DC.
Kate Knibbs