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News & Current Events Mar 26, 2026 at 6:12 AM

What is the best superhero or comic based movie that isn't from Marvel or DC?

Posted by RandomCaiman

Marvel and DC have been the undisputed kings of the genre in terms of critical acclaim and box office success, but they are not the only comic publishers that have dipped their toes into the movie business. Companies such as Dark Horse Comics, Image, and many others have tried their hand at adapting their work onto the silver screen. so the question is besides anything from DC or Marvel who has down it the best?
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Asha_Brea Mar 26, 2026 +1
The Rocketeer. The Mask of Zorro.
1
Desertbro Mar 26, 2026 +1
Partial to ***Flash Gordon*** (1980) myself. It was hella tongue-in-cheek fun.
1
DoctorJJWho Mar 26, 2026 +1
The Mask of Zorro is peak.
1
sufferingplanet Mar 26, 2026 +1
The Rocketeer is such a gem.
1
Wrong-Vermicelli4723 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Edge of Tomorrow and Dredd 
1
SonovaVondruke Mar 26, 2026 +1
“All You Need is Kill” is a light novel.
1
Kitlun Mar 26, 2026 +1
It was adapted into a manga before then being adapted into a film and, more recently, an anime.
1
Wrong-Vermicelli4723 Mar 26, 2026 +1
like many light novels before and after it , All you need is kill got the manga treatment as well. But yes you’re correct that it’s a light novel 
1
HorrorMovieMonday Mar 26, 2026 +1
The Crow
1
UncookedBurt Mar 26, 2026 +1
Kick-Ass
1
KarmaChameleon306 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Kick-Ass 2 was so good!
1
the_ballmer_peak Mar 26, 2026 +1
Dark Horse Comics: - Tank Girl - The Mask - Hellboy - Sin City - 300
1
FeralGiraffeAttack Mar 26, 2026 +1
I can't believe this was so far down. Hellboy and 300 are GOATed
1
donotgotoroom237 Mar 26, 2026 +1
>Dark Horse Comics: Your comment made me miss this era when this Barnes and Noble dupe in my country had dedicated shelves for Dark Horse and Vertigo baack in the day right next to DC and Marvel. Nowadays those shelves are occupied by manga. I'm happy for the manga fans, but man do I miss the Dark Horse shelves.
1
NeoChrisOmega Mar 26, 2026 +1
Hellboy and Sin City were phenomenal.
1
gambalore Mar 26, 2026 +1
Really, Hellboy 2
1
00collector Mar 26, 2026 +1
‘Scott Pilgrim VS. The World’ may not be the absolute best, but it’s very good.
1
Desertbro Mar 26, 2026 +1
One of my absolute favorites.
1
BoringBarnacle3 Mar 26, 2026 +1
It’s great!!
1
StyleSquirrel Mar 26, 2026 +1
Road to Perdition
1
latenightnerd Mar 26, 2026 +1
This is the correct answer.
1
NotTobyFromHR Mar 26, 2026 +1
That's a superhero comic? Or movie?
1
StyleSquirrel Mar 26, 2026 +1
A movie based on a comic book. Though I forgot it's actually DC...
1
harshety Mar 26, 2026 +1
Good but tragic
1
_Goose_ Mar 26, 2026 +1
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) The Adventures of Tintin
1
Liewvkoinsoedt Mar 26, 2026 +1
Call me crazy, but I don't think Tintin is considered a 'superhero comic'.
1
_Goose_ Mar 26, 2026 +1
“Best superhero OR comic based movie”
1
Liewvkoinsoedt Mar 26, 2026 +1
Yeah I see the title. You forgot "that isn't from Marvel or DC", the implication being specifically superhero-based stories.
1
Krayt88 Mar 26, 2026 +1
I think the implication is that it's a comic not by the big 2. Any comic, superhero or otherwise.
1
grumpy_snack Mar 26, 2026 +1
The Incredibles
1
Helpful-Attorney-924 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Mystery Men
1
HappyGilOHMYGOD Mar 26, 2026 +1
Chronicle
1
ProposalActive6161 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Chronicle was solid but I gotta go with The Mask from '94 💀 That movie was absolutely unhinged in teh best way possible and Jim Carrey just went completely off the rails with it. Dark Horse really knew what they were doing adapting that comic - it had this perfect mix of comedy and genuinely creepy moments that most superhero movies today are too scared to attempt. Plus the practical effects still hold up way better than half the CGI we get now. Carrey's physical comedy in that green suit was pure chaos and I'm here for it 😂
1
HappyGilOHMYGOD Mar 26, 2026 +1
Possibly an unpopular opinion but the second half of The Mask is garbage. The first half is amazing though
1
CheckYourStats Mar 26, 2026 +1
Robocop feels so much like a live action comic book, I initially wanted to say that. I believe it was an original screenplay, but it was at least diagonally influenced and inspired by comics.
1
Ok_Commercial_5024 Mar 26, 2026 +1
The story goes that the Robocop producers initially approached the publishers of Judge Dredd with the intention of making a Dredd film, but could not secure the rights. In the DVD making of documentary of Robocop they show a work in progress maquette/sculpt of the ‘Robocop’ suit design, and it literally just has a 1:1 of Judge Dredd’s helmet. Robocop also has a big connection to Frank Miller of Sin City/The Dark Knight Rises fame - he worked on the script of Robocop 2, and adapted his full unused script into a comic series some time ago.
1
CheckYourStats Mar 26, 2026 +1
I watched “RoboDoc” semi-recently, and if memory serves me right, that mock-up was from Rob Bottin, and it was independent on th two co-creators of RoboCop.
1
TorthOrc Mar 26, 2026 +1
Teenager Mutant Ninja Turtles. The 90’s one
1
mattressprime Mar 26, 2026 +1
Ghost World
1
on-a-pedestal Mar 26, 2026 +1
Unbreakable. Split. Glass. Good Trilogy.
1
SoWrongItsPainful Mar 26, 2026 +1
Darkman
1
pbj_everyday Mar 26, 2026 +1
Flash Gordon (1980)
1
Desertbro Mar 26, 2026 +1
...got to talk to Flash and Dale at San Diego ComicCon in the 2000s - they had a petition to get the film released on DVD in the USA.
1
Loki-L Mar 26, 2026 +1
Hellboy, Mask or Sin City Men in Black were Malibu before Marvel bought them Scott Pilgrim was based on a comic The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise started out as ab independent comic. Dredd (the new one not the one with Stalone) is an adaptation of a British comic book character. There are a bunch of movies made based on Franco-Belgian comics but the quality is not always there. The Lucky Luke one with Terence Hill and the Asterix with Gerad Deperdieu were okayish, Spielberg's Tintin one was bad. We don't count anime for this, do we? If we include comic strip in addition to comic book characters Flash Gordon deserves a mention for the sound track alone.
1
Shadowmereshooves Mar 26, 2026 +1
The Crow is the only answer for me, if that question ever comes up, Watchmen would be in the running, but it's technically DC I guess?
1
Aninjasshadow Mar 26, 2026 +1
V for Vendetta was originally published under Vertigo Comics before being acquired by DC Comics if memory serves. I think technically DC owned them when the film was made; however, it definitely deserves a mention.
1
jackcatalyst Mar 26, 2026 +1
I'm going with the Golden Army but I still haven't seen A History of violence Edit: Nevermind that's DC
1
HuckleberryDry5254 Mar 26, 2026 +1
I think the Golden Army was an original story by Del Toro and not actually a Mignola adaptation. But I could be wrong
1
mikeweasy Mar 26, 2026 +1
Hellboy 1 and 2.
1
Successful-Plan114 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Though campy, Spawn.
1
motherfxcker-jones Mar 26, 2026 +1
Came here to say this. I don’t remember it being too campy though so definitely due for a rewatch.
1
-ImJustSaiyan- Mar 26, 2026 +1
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
1
ontheweed Mar 26, 2026 +1
Timecop
1
HorizontalBob Mar 26, 2026 +1
Special (2006) is definitely not talked about enough.
1
Telemako Mar 26, 2026 +1
Unbreakable
1
vinhluanluu Mar 26, 2026 +1
D*** Tracy needs to be mentioned more when it comes to comic movies.
1
AshleySchaefferWoo Mar 26, 2026 +1
Spawn for sure
1
Johncurtisreeve Mar 26, 2026 +1
Hellboy 2
1
FeelingArm6598 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Road to Perdition
1
rockqc Mar 26, 2026 +1
Hellboy
1
Hironoveau Mar 26, 2026 +1
TMNT and Robocop
1
Stevenwave Mar 26, 2026 +1
RoboCop is the other way around. It was the film first, with comic spin-offs, which have been Marvel, but not all.
1
dornwolf Mar 26, 2026 +1
Of those not mentioned, The Phantom isn’t bad. Those early 90’s catching the initial Batman wave were pretty decent
1
Nobodydog Mar 26, 2026 +1
There was a boom of indy comic book movies in the early 90's. It wasn't from one company in particular, but the success of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles showed that there was space for interesting ideas that could be bought from comic books. The Crow, The Rocketeer, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Shadow (before it was ruined by the LA Earthquake, true story), The Mask, Tank Girl, Judge Dredd, Barb Wire, Mystery Men, D*** Tracy, The Phantom, and to a lesser extent Dark Man (which wasn't based off a comic book, but the comic book vibes got it made).
1
cocot69 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Spawn ?
1
iimMrBrightside Mar 26, 2026 +1
Dredd (2012)
1
Silverishfox Mar 26, 2026 +1
A History of Violence
1
FanSince09 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Darkman
1
cire1184 Mar 26, 2026 +1
I just find these fun. Spawn 1997 Kick Ass 2010
1
snap2 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Kickass was kind of badass.
1
Greygor Mar 26, 2026 +1
Mystery Men And for cheese factor and fun, Darkman, a superhero film that wasn´t a comic.
1
Johnny_Alpha Mar 26, 2026 +1
Dredd.
1
Stevenwave Mar 26, 2026 +1
My personal fave of what I've seen is Dredd. I love how that film simply knows what it is, what it aims to do, and it just fuckin nails it all. Hellboy's another good option. I bet there's a lotta people who aren't aware the Kingsman series is based on comics, which I think have been published by Marvel but they haven't published all of them and it isn't generated by them.
1
Satchzaeed Mar 26, 2026 +1
The first half of Hancock
1
fullmoon63 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Gotta go with Hellboy (Guillermo del Toro ones). Those movies had so much personality.
1
childhood121 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Kara Murat The Rocketeer Lucky Luke
1
CaptainPatterson Mar 26, 2026 +1
Unbreakable hands down.
1
WordsAreEnough Mar 26, 2026 +1
Freaks (2018) is actually a really solid indie super power movie.
1
Soyoulikedonutseh Mar 26, 2026 +1
Hellboy and The Incredibles is the only answer to this.
1
Kris-p- Mar 26, 2026 +1
Green hornet
1
Desertbro Mar 26, 2026 +1
People forgetting ***Birdman*** (2014) so quickly...sheesh...
1
jrgman42 Mar 26, 2026 +1
Watchmen?
1
fairiestoldmeto Mar 26, 2026 +1
The Sandman
1
KhonMan Mar 26, 2026 +1
It’s DC
1
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