8 Superhero Movie Sequels That Completely Rewrote Their Heroes (& Created Plot Holes)

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Superhero movies are incredibly popular right now, with several new films coming out every year. They consistently break box office records and have become a major part of pop culture, as audiences love seeing comic book characters come to life on screen. These films draw from decades of comic book stories, providing a rich foundation for adaptation. While franchises like the MCU and DCU have found success by showcasing different interpretations of these well-known heroes, the quality hasn’t always been consistent.

It’s disappointing that many superhero movies don’t consistently portray established characters. Often, sequels disregard details and rules that were previously set, leading to significant changes in a hero’s powers, personality, or backstory. This inconsistency is a recurring problem, and filmmakers seem unable to settle on a definitive way to adapt these characters for the screen.

8) Cyclops is a Great X-Men Leader… Until He’s Not

Although Cyclops isn’t always portrayed as the strongest mutant in the *X-Men* films, he’s one of Marvel’s most recognizable characters. He’s consistently shown as a leader within the mutant community and has been a key part of X-Men stories for years. This has led to him appearing in several *X-Men* movies produced by Fox, with three different actors taking on the role over twenty years. Unfortunately, this has also created some confusing differences in how the character is presented.

Cyclops hasn’t been portrayed very well in the X-Men movies, and hasn’t become a solid, consistent character. His leadership abilities are especially inconsistent – briefly highlighted in the first X-Men film, but then largely ignored. Afterwards, he often comes across as childish and sulky.

Beyond that, the films struggled to portray Cyclops consistently. A common issue was his age; he appeared to be around 16 years old in movies taking place in both the early 1970s and the mid-1980s, which didn’t make sense given the timeline.

7) Iron Man’s On-Again, Off-Again Retirement

Iron Man is undoubtedly a central figure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal was consistently excellent throughout the Infinity Saga. However, the writing sometimes didn’t quite live up to the character’s importance, and his story wasn’t always handled with the consistency a hero of his stature deserved.

Iron Man’s story in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has some noticeable inconsistencies. He announced he was retiring from being a hero twice, but quickly returned both times. Also, the explanation for how his suits worked changed several times throughout the movies, seemingly to fit the needs of the plot. Despite being a beloved character, Tony Stark wasn’t always portrayed consistently throughout the MCU.

6) Wonder Woman Power of Flight

Wonder Woman is one of the strongest characters in the DC Extended Universe, but the movies haven’t presented her story consistently, leading to confusing plot holes. She debuted in the present day in *Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice*, then her origin story was told in a solo film. Later, *Wonder Woman 1984* showed events that happened *before* those in *Batman v Superman*, which creates a frustrating contradiction and makes the earlier crossover film seem poorly planned.

The movie concludes with the hero discovering she can fly, a power that surprisingly wasn’t used in the previous films, *Batman v Superman* and *Justice League*, despite taking place years later. It’s odd – wouldn’t that ability have been helpful against the villains in those movies? This inconsistency highlights a larger problem with the DC Extended Universe’s handling of Wonder Woman. She repeatedly withdraws from the world, only to dramatically reappear as if she can easily choose to be known or unknown. This happens after both *Wonder Woman* and *Wonder Woman 1984*, and reusing this plot point makes her character seem inconsistent and weakens her overall portrayal within the franchise.

5) How Hulk’s Powers Work

The Hulk is known as one of the most powerful heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but surprisingly, he’s not as strong in the films as he is in the comic books. First appearing in 2008’s *The Incredible Hulk*, the character has been important to many MCU storylines. However, the films haven’t fully explored the Hulk’s potential, and he’s only had one movie focused solely on him, despite being a long-running character in the franchise.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe hasn’t presented a clear, consistent portrayal of the Hulk. Initially, he seemed like a transformation of Bruce Banner, but later became established as a distinct personality. The story then shifted to Hulk fully taking control, followed by Banner losing the ability to transform altogether. Eventually, Banner and Hulk merged into one off-screen before *Avengers: Endgame*. The character’s power level also fluctuates – sometimes he’s a huge advantage, other times a problem – making his treatment within the MCU’s overall story feel inconsistent and unfair.

4) Captain Marvel Said To Call in The Case Of Emergencies

Superhero stories don’t always have problems with complicated timelines. Captain Marvel was introduced in the 2019 film *Captain Marvel*, which showed she got her powers in the 1990s and then fought battles with the Kree throughout the galaxy. This explained how she could appear in *Avengers: Endgame* and immediately be a powerful force within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, giving Captain Marvel a backstory *before* her first appearance created some storytelling challenges for the character.

Since Captain Marvel was established as a hero operating before the events of *Iron Man*, and even stated she’d be available in emergencies, her lack of involvement in major crises like the Battle of New York and *Avengers: Infinity War* felt illogical without a complicated explanation. It was especially strange that she didn’t participate in the Guardians’ fight with Ronan the Destroyer, considering she’d faced him before. This creates a perception of Captain Marvel being an inconsistent hero – despite her immense power, she was conveniently absent from several key events where she realistically should have intervened.

3) Magneto’s Complicated Heroism

There’s been a lot of discussion about how Marvel should introduce Magneto into its cinematic universe. He was a central figure in Fox’s X-Men movies, often switching between being a hero and a villain. Magneto’s complexity comes from his motivations, which make his actions understandable even when he’s acting like a villain. This nuance has been a core part of his story, but it hasn’t always come across effectively in the films.

I’ve always thought Magneto was really well-portrayed in the *X-Men* films – they’ve definitely shown how complicated he is. But I’ve also noticed they seem hesitant to let him just *be*. He’s always switching between being a hero and a villain, and while I get that it helps us know who to support, it feels a bit forced. It’s like they need to categorize him, only for him to predictably change his mind and do a complete 180 in almost every movie. It feels unnecessary and a little frustrating.

2) Thor’s Complete Personality Change (& His Powers)

While Thor: Ragnarok is often praised for its humor, it presents a bit of a contradiction with the character of Thor. When he was first introduced in 2011’s Thor and continued as an original Avenger in The Avengers, and through Thor: The Dark World and Avengers: Age of Ultron, Thor was generally portrayed as a serious character, and his difficulty understanding Earth-based humor was often played for laughs. However, Ragnarok dramatically alters his personality.

Unlike earlier Marvel movies where Thor was a serious character, *Ragnarok* presented him as much more lighthearted and funny. This shift in personality, along with other choices in the film, felt jarring compared to his previous appearances. For instance, earlier films suggested Thor’s power came *through* his hammer, Mjolnir, but *Ragnarok* showed that wasn’t true when the hammer was destroyed. While *Ragnarok* ultimately improved Thor’s character, it created noticeable inconsistencies within the overall Marvel Cinematic Universe.

1) The Science of Ant-Man’s Powers

As a big Marvel fan, I have to say, Ant-Man’s powers create the most confusing plot holes for me. It all started with the first *Ant-Man* movie in 2015, where Scott Lang learned about the Pym particles from Hank Pym. Basically, these particles let him change size, but here’s the weird part: he doesn’t lose any strength when he shrinks! So even when he’s tiny, he’s still super strong, which always feels a bit…off to me.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe hasn’t really established clear rules for how Ant-Man and Pym particles work. He stays strong when small, but gets *stronger* when he grows large, and his weight seems to change depending on the situation-like when people can carry shrunk objects or when he flies on an ant. While sticking to consistent science would limit the stories they could tell with Ant-Man, it’s disappointing that the character’s powers aren’t handled more consistently within the franchise.

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2025-09-20 19:44