How should Marvel movies and shows be watched in order?

Here, we have compiled a complete list of all Marvel Cinematic Universe films and television shows, in chronological sequence, beginning with Captain America: The First Avenger, set in World War II. So while 2008’s Iron Man can lay claim to being the first film in the MCU, that film’s story gives Chris Evans the edge over Robert Downey Jr.

That is because the events of The First Avenger, in which Evans plays the role of Captain America for the first time, occur in 1942. The Tessarect, the energy cube that kicks off the Infinity Saga and leads up to Avengers: Endgame in 2019, is also wholly unveiled there for the first time.

Timeline continuity continues with 1995’s Captain Marvel, featuring Brie Larson as the intergalactic superhero Carol Danvers. As soon as the credits roll on Iron Man, RDJ’s groundbreaking performance as Tony Stark will be unleashed upon the world. Once that is out of the way, you can see the films in order (except for 2021’s Black Widow, which takes place after 2016’s Captain America: Civil War).

After the events of Endgame (which wrapped up the first three phases of the MCU), a time jump of five years pushed most of the MCU into the future, where it remains. Filming for Phase 4 began with Shang-Chi, and since then, shows like Loki, WandaVision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Hawkeye have been invited to do some serious plot advancing.

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Then, Far From Home and No Way Home delivered a massive one-two Spider-Man punch. The subsequent releases in the series, including Thor: Love and Thunder, Moon Knight, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, all follow in order. And now we have the She-Hulk as well!

What do you seek is a more nuanced Marvel Cinematic Universe experience? In that case, you might be interested in learning how to watch Marvel films in the correct order. Compared to the preceding list, this one is a bit more complicated.

Fortunately, Marvel has now confirmed the actual years for each film’s timeline. That extends up to Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which occurs around the time of No Way Home and hence is sandwiched between Endgame and Far From Home and other films like Hawkeye.

It helps to have seen a number of the prior Spider-Man films in order to properly grasp everyone’s motivations and objectives in No Way Home, as the MCU has featured a number of different Spider-Man villains from across the multiverse. The first two stars Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, respectively, while the third features Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock as the villainous Venom.

Also Read: Marvel ‘Captain America 4’ Has Found Its Director & All New Movie Updates

Check out our advice on the best order to watch the Spider-Man films for a comprehensive introduction to the franchise.