Marvel movies only — 1/3

Marvel movies only — 1/3 Marvel movies watch orders MCU release phases and story order with other continuities Current through October 26 2026 Eastern Use the story-first route for the MCU, the separate phase index for release order, and Supplemental Viewing for other screen continuities. Films stay intact; flashbacks and credit scenes can reach outside a movie’s main setting. Coverage at the cutoff: 137 mixed-format catalogue records, including 38 original MCU theatrical features. The inventory contains 107 core movie records, 9 imprint adaptations, 12 historical or compilation entries, 3 MCU Special Presentations, 3 boundary cases 1 alternate edition and 2 supplemental narrative shorts added by the coverage audit. It is not a count of 137 distinct feature-length stories. Contents • MCU release phases • MCU story first movie order • Supplemental Viewing separate movie continuities • Special presentations and narrative shorts • Publisher history boundary cases • Editions and release exclusions • Coverage and source notes • Dated changelog • Sources MCU release phases Phase numbers identify MCU release groupings, not fictional dates. The film list uses US theatrical dates. Other continuities do not inherit MCU phase numbers; legacy television is not retroactively numbered as a phase. Phase 1 2008-05-02 Iron Man 2008-06-13 The Incredible Hulk 2010-05-07 Iron Man 2 2011-05-06 Thor 2011-07-22 Captain America: The First Avenger 2012-05-04 The Avengers Phase 2 2013-05-03 Iron Man 3 2013-11-08 Thor: The Dark World 2014-04-04 Captain America: The Winter Soldier 2014-08-01 Guardians of the Galaxy 2015-05-01 Avengers: Age of Ultron 2015-07-17 Ant-Man Phase 3 2016-05-06 Captain America: Civil War 2016-11-04 Doctor Strange 2017-05-05 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 2017-07-07 Spider-Man: Homecoming 2017-11-03 Thor: Ragnarok 2018-02-16 Black Panther 2018-04-27 Avengers: Infinity War 2018-07-06 Ant-Man and the Wasp 2019-03-08 Captain Marvel 2019-04-26 Avengers: Endgame 2019-07-02 Spider-Man: Far From Home Phase 4 2021-07-09 Black Widow 2021-09-03 Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings 2021-11-05 Eternals 2021-12-17 Spider-Man: No Way Home 2022-05-06 Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness 2022-07-08 Thor: Love and Thunder 2022-11-11 Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Phase 5 2023-02-17 Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania 2023-05-05 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 2023-11-10 The Marvels 2024-07-26 Deadpool & Wolverine 2025-02-14 Captain America: Brave New World 2025-05-02 Thunderbolts* Phase 6 2025-07-25 The Fantastic Four: First Steps 2026-07-31 Spider-Man: Brand New Day Endgame Encore is an edition of the Phase 3 film, not a new Phase 6 story. Announced future films are not included as released. MCU story first movie order Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk and Thor overlap. Later post-Endgame neighbors are a practical viewing route where exact dates remain unsettled. The annotations distinguish main stories from flashbacks and credit scenes. 1. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011-07-22); feature: Most of this belongs in World War II, with a modern-day ending. [1] [2] 2. Captain Marvel (2019-03-08); feature: The main story is in 1995, but its credits jump much further ahead. [1] [2] 3. Iron Man (2008-05-02); feature: Tony builds the suit that starts this whole modern run. [1] [2] 4. Iron Man 2 (2010-05-07); feature: Tony is out in public as Iron Man, with the Avengers setup taking shape. [1] [2] 5. The Incredible Hulk (2008-06-13); feature: Bruce is already on the run; this is the MCU Hulk, separate from the 2003 movie. [1] [2] 6. Thor (2011-05-06); feature: Thor arrives on Earth during the same early Avengers stretch. [1] [2] 7. The Avengers (2012-05-04); feature: This is where those separate introductions finally come together. [1] [2] 8. Thor: The Dark World (2013-11-08); feature: Thor returns to the aftermath of Loki’s attack and a threat across the realms. [1] [2] 9. Iron Man 3 (2013-05-03); feature: Tony is dealing with what happened in New York. [1] [2] 10. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014-04-04); feature: Steve’s modern life runs straight into the truth about S.H.I.E.L.D. [1] [2] 11. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014-08-01); feature: The space side opens up with a completely different group. [1] [2] 12. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017-05-05); feature: Go straight here after the first Guardians; only a short time has passed for them. [1] [2] 13. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015-05-01); feature: The team is established, but creating Ultron changes where everybody goes next. [1] [2] 14. Ant-Man (2015-07-17); feature: Scott’s first run with the suit sits between Ultron and Civil War. [1] [2] 15. Captain America: Civil War (2016-05-06); feature: The Avengers split, which matters for nearly everything leading into Infinity War. [1] [2] 16. Black Widow (2021-07-09); feature: The main story follows Civil War; its credits belong after Endgame. [1] [2] 17. Black Panther (2018-02-16); feature: T’Challa returns to Wakanda shortly after Civil War. [1] [2] 18. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017-07-07); feature: Peter is back home after his first taste of the Avengers in Civil War. [1] [2] 19. Doctor Strange (2016-11-04); feature: Strange’s training stretches over time rather than happening in one neat week. [1] [2] 20. Thor: Ragnarok (2017-11-03); feature: Thor and Hulk’s story brings us right to the edge of Infinity War. [1] [2] 21. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018-07-06); feature: The main story runs before the Snap; save its credits until after Infinity War. [1] [2] 22. Avengers: Infinity War (2018-04-27); feature: The Earth and space stories collide when Thanos makes his move. [1] [2] 23. Avengers: Endgame (2019-04-26); feature: Start after Infinity War; the five-year jump and time travel are part of this movie. [1] [2] 24. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021-09-03); feature: This introduces Shang-Chi in the post-Blip world. [1] [2] 25. Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019-07-02); feature: Peter’s school trip comes after Endgame and the return from the Blip. [1] [2] 26. Eternals (2021-11-05); feature: The flashbacks cover centuries, but the main story belongs after Endgame. [1] [2] 27. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021-12-17); feature: Pick up right after Far From Home, with earlier Spider-Man films becoming useful background. [1] [2] 28. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022-05-06); feature: Place this after No Way Home; WandaVision matters to Wanda’s side of the story. [1] [2] 29. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022-11-11); feature: Wakanda faces its next chapter after T’Challa’s death. [1] [2] 30. Thor: Love and Thunder (2022-07-08); feature: Thor moves on from Endgame and his time with the Guardians. [1] [2] 31. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023-02-17); feature: Scott and Cassie’s post-Blip lives lead back into the Quantum Realm. [1] [2] 32. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023-05-05); feature: This follows the Holiday Special and closes out this version of the team. [1] [2] 33. The Marvels (2023-11-10); feature: Carol, Monica and Kamala meet; WandaVision and Ms. Marvel fill in the TV introductions. [1] [2] 34. Captain America: Brave New World (2025-02-14); feature: Sam is Captain America now; The Falcon and the Winter Soldier covers that change. [1] [2] 35. Thunderbolts* (2025-05-02); feature: This brings together characters from Black Widow, the Captain America stories and Ant-Man and the Wasp. [1] [2] 36. Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026-07-31); feature: Peter’s story continues four years after No Way Home, in a world that has forgotten him. [3] Multiverse branches Do not force these alternate-world stories onto one main-Earth calendar. For crossover material, release order is the safer introductory route. Deadpool & Wolverine (2024-07-26); feature: This crosses timelines, so watch the earlier Deadpool films and Logan first. [1] [2] The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025-07-25); feature: This starts on its own retro-1960s Earth, not the main MCU Earth in the sixties. [1] [2] Television dependencies without inserting the shows • WandaVision precedes Multiverse of Madness; WandaVision and Ms. Marvel introduce major characters used by The Marvels; The Falcon and the Winter Soldier explains Sam’s transition before Brave New World. • Guardians Vol. 3 follows the Holiday Special. The Punisher special supplies context before Brand New Day. Those specials are in the clearly labeled appendix below. • Save Captain Marvel’s credits until after Infinity War, Black Widow’s credits until after Endgame, and Ant-Man and the Wasp’s credits until after Infinity War. • The Raimi and Amazing Spider-Man films are useful before No Way Home; their crossover does not transfer every earlier event onto the main MCU Earth. Supplemental Viewing separate movie continuities Choose a lane and follow its entries. A number in one lane does not connect it to a different universe. Historical pilots and compilations retain their format labels so their original television material is not double-counted. Captain America serial 1. Captain America (1944); serial: A fifteen-chapter theatrical serial, with its own version of the character. [4] Bixby Ferrigno Hulk This is the David Banner television-film family. The two 1977 pilots come first; Married is a repackaged series story, and the three reunion films follow the television run. 1. The Incredible Hulk (1977); TV pilot / theatrical release: Start the David Banner television story here. [4] 2. Return of the Incredible Hulk (1977); TV pilot / theatrical release: Also called Death in the Family; follows the original pilot. [4] 3. The Incredible Hulk: Married (1978); TV episode / film release: Also sold as The Bride of the Incredible Hulk; a television-story release, not a new MCU film. [4] 4. The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988); TV film: Watch after the original Hulk television run; this one also introduces its Thor. [4] 5. The Trial of the Incredible Hulk (1989); TV film: Follow Returns with this version of Daredevil alongside David Banner. [4] 6. The Death of the Incredible Hulk (1990); TV film: Finish the Bixby/Ferrigno television-film run here. [4] Nicholas Hammond Spider Man The pilot and two episode compilations are movie-format releases of television material, not three additional stories to watch again after their episode versions.