In the wake of Captain America: Brave New World, we’ve taken a look at all Captain America movies in the MCU series and ranked them all from worst to best.
Captain America: Brave New World has finally made its way into theaters to widespread critical um. People seem quite split on it, and on whether this means a comeback for the Marvel Cinematic Universe or if it’s yet another opportunity to beat this already dead horse. But regardless, the film is here to stay, as the fourth entry in the Captain America film series within the MCU.
The Captain America movies (The First Avenger, The Winter Soldier, Civil War, and Brave New World) all follow its titular hero, Captain America, although with the addition of Brave New World, we now have two protagonists who have taken up that title. The first three films follow Steve Rogers (Chris Evans, of Knives Out), an idealistic super soldier from the 70s, while the fourth features Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie, of The Hurt Locker), who has to become the successor to the mantle after Rogers’ story came to an end in Avengers: Endgame.
Each film in the series features different setups, plotlines, and themes, but their core has always been the same: who is Captain America as both hero and person and what is his role in his current situation? Obviously, some have tackled this better than others, and today I have taken a look at all Captain America movies and ranked them from worst to best. Since the first three films are at least around a decade old now (ow, my back), some plot elements may be mentioned, though I will keep the Brave New World section as spoiler-free as possible. Speaking of which…
4. Captain America: Brave New World (2025)
Director: Julius Onah
Full Review: Captain America: Brave New World Review
Before you immediately start doomposting things like “oh god, the newest film is the worst, I knew it, the MCU is never getting out of the ninth circle of hell,” I need to clarify. This is only called a worst to best list by technicality. Worst doesn’t immediately equal bad; it just means the least good. And that is what Captain America: Brave New World is. Not the best, but definitely not bad either.
The most important job this film had, in my opinion, was to justify Sam Wilson for taking up the mantle for future Captain America movies. On that front, it succeeded quite well. Sam isn’t a retread of Steve’s character, but instead shows the story of a man who is trying to be a hero in a world that is rapidly expanding far beyond his scope. It is a relatable issue to follow, and it feels satisfying when he still courageously carves his own path and ideals amidst that different universe. Or in other words, a Brave New World… (You’re free to slap me if you see me on the street for that pun)
The remaining cast can be hit or miss depending on how much the film chooses to expand on them, but at the very least, they remain competent and likeable enough for me to continue watching. Characters such as Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez, of Winner) as Sam’s sidekick Falcon is someone I thought would be annoying: an overly excited newbie. But they keep him nuanced and pleasant enough that I dug the chemistry between him and Sam. The film even manages to get some mileage out of Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford, of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny), who shows legitimate complexity when it would have been easy to just have him be government man = bad. Sometimes it felt like Harrison Ford was struggling to stay focused, but being fair, the man’s 82 years old.
Then there is the action, and similarly to its portrayal of Captain America, the biggest thing I appreciate is that it forged its own identity outside of previous films. Whereas the previous movies showed Captain America’s shield action in mostly ground level and hand to hand combat, Brave New World has a greater emphasis on aerial action thanks to Sam’s high-tech wingsuit. The mid-climax sequence involving jets over the ocean was especially a highlight, and there wasn’t a moment where I was confused or bored whenever the movie said it’s time for some shield bashing.
So the film is perfectly entertaining and competent. But that is also a flaw, at least in a ranked list like this, because though the film does enough, it doesn’t do much beyond that. This is the “worst” Captain America film because, ironically enough, the Captain America films with Steve set too many high bars for it to quite overcome yet. Add in a few instances of distracting CG especially in the climax, and this is a film that I had genuine fun with and would even rewatch, but on a streaming service rather than in theaters again.
3. Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Directors: Anthony and Joe Russo
It seriously pains me to put this at number 3. I love this movie, and I think it still holds up even after nine years. But similarly to Brave New World, Captain America: Civil War’s sin isn’t anything that it committed; it’s just that the remaining two movies gave me an even more satisfying experience, even if in this case it is by a width of a flea’s hair.
Captain America: Civil War is an excellent character study of not just Steve, but his fellow Avenger and friend Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr., of Oppenheimer) as well. The characters all follow believable arcs that form a conflict that is much more layered than a simple right vs wrong. The action is entertaining, getting the inner child of me excited for whether Captain America or Iron Man would win in a fight, while another part of me is getting sucked into the tragedy of two friends inexorably coming into conflict over differing stances.
Yet despite that, the film does have a couple of minor flaws that hold it back from being the absolute best of the best. Certain characters, namely Spider-Man (Tom Holland, of Uncharted) feel like he was written in less for the story and more for fans who were starved to see Spider-Man in the MCU at the time. There’s some tonal inconsistencies where overall grim and tragic situations are peppered with one-liners or jokes. The latter isn’t an issue unique to this film, but just because the paddle isn’t a unique tool of punishment doesn’t make it any less painful to your backside.
Of course, none of these issues come anywhere close to bringing the overall experience down into the negatives. But with the top 3 movies on this ranking list being so excellent, it ultimately came down to those miniscule blemishes. Make no mistake, Captain America: Civil War is still well worth your time, it’s just that it was a diamond with a millimeter-wide smudge next to a clean diamond and a red diamond.
2. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
Director: Joe Johnston
With how well the second and third Captain America movies were received, it can be easy to write off the first one as a lesser one. When the Captain America movies are brought up in film discussions, this film is usually mentioned in passing or as a side note to the others. And for the longest time, that’s how I remembered it as well. Yet when I went back, I had to admit that I had slept on many of Captain America: The First Avenger’s strengths.
For one, as this film explores Steve Rogers’ rise as Captain America, the story is set during the 70s. This gives the movie an almost period piece-like visual style that is unique to the MCU. For instance, the multiple costume designs are contextualized in the setting and situation. Captain America initially wears a rather ostentatious American flag inspired uniform, but it works because that is when he is being paraded as a mascot rather than a soldier. When he does go into battle, his suit is refined accordingly. Small touches like that bring the world alive just a little bit more.
But what cannot be understated is how much First Avenger lays the foundations for Steve Rogers as a character. When you break him down, Steve is a pretty simple person. He is a man with a good heart with a strong will and cleverness. Thus, it’s up to the movie to present those simple characteristics so that we can admire them. There’s two scenes that demonstrate this in particular. One is where Steve is in a military training camp, and is tasked to retrieve a flag from the top of a pole. Instead of trying to climb it, he instead makes the entire pole fall, showing his smarts and also willingness to take drastic actions if necessary. The other scene is where a fake grenade is tossed into the midst of soldiers. Steve is the only one who, instead of ducking for cover, covers the grenade with his own body without hesitation, demonstrating his good heart.
That character forms the basis for every action Steve takes in the film. And because he follows it with such conviction, he becomes a figure that is mythical in scope yet greatly relatable. After all, being a good person is a value that anyone (unless you like kicking puppies or something) can admire and relate to. And it persists throughout his entire journey in the MCU, which wouldn’t have lasted so long if his arc hadn’t gotten its solid foundation in this movie.
The only part that I think this movie falls behind on the rest of its counterparts is in the action. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still competently made and enjoyable, but it also doesn’t do much to be truly memorable. Directors Anthony and Joe Russo, who directed the second and third movies, demonstrate some excellent choreography and editing that helps Steve feel both human yet also superhuman and mythical, and that sort of directing is something that First Avenger sadly lacks in comparison.
But overall, Captain America: The First Avenger is a highly underrated movie. At the very least, it is an essential place to start if you want to fully understand who Steve Rogers is. That greater focus on Steve alone is what ultimately gave it the edge to be in a spot above Civil War, even though I struggled with that choice far longer than it was healthy.
1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Directors: Anthony and Joe Russo
While choosing my number 2 and 3 was harder than crafting Captain America’s shield in real life, number 1 was decided from the start. While all the aforementioned movies had small flaws that determined their placement, I legitimately cannot find a significant flaw with Captain America: The Winter Soldier. It is not only what I consider the best Captain America movie, but also what I wish the MCU movies would hold as a standard.
Firstly, the tone is uniquely tense within the MCU. Most nowadays know MCU for its brand of humor and quips, for better or for worse. Yet while there is some casual banter or a few one-liners here and there, Winter Soldier maintains an overall rock-solid atmosphere of mistrust and tension. This is where Steve has to face the fact that the organization he’s worked for after waking up in the 21st century, S.H.I.E.L.D, is corrupt and trying to eliminate him. This gives the film an almost spy thriller-esq undertone that keeps things grounded and thus feels special in the series.
It’s also where Steve’s character shines once more after its stellar buildup in The First Avenger. Remember the bringing down the pole scene I mentioned above? In Winter Soldier, Steve ultimately has to do the same thing, but this time with S.H.I.E.L.D. It is a tough choice to make as the ramifications of such a big organization falling would leave him potentially exposed and defenseless. Yet Steve chooses to go ahead and bring down the entire corrupt group for the sake of freedom.
The action also is the finest the Russo brothers have produced. While later projects like Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War or Avengers: Endgame have more bombastic and bigger setpieces, Winter Soldier instead has a higher focus on down to earth action such as knives, gunfights, and hand to hand encounters. Yet due to its smaller scale and also how well it is acted and edited together, it actually brings a greater sense of urgency. It also puts Steve in a more relatable position action wise, since we the audience know more about the threat of a knife to the throat rather than a planet-busting laser.
I genuinely cannot think of a flaw with this movie. Perhaps other MCU films have been grander, or more climactic. But as a movie and piece of character storytelling, Captain America: The Winter Soldier has such a razor-sharp focus and polish that I genuinely wish Marvel would re-release this in theaters again. It’s the movie I turn to when I argue that comic book movies can be not just fun action movies, but gripping genre pieces and character studies as well.
Something I must stress once more is that all the Captain America movies are, at the very least, highly entertaining and earnest films. Even if their quality may vary compared to one another, I am glad this series’ quality has remained relatively consistent throughout the MCU’s rocky history. I even daresay that I am looking forward to new entries to come.
