Marvel Studios has released 25 films set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe — and it has far more planned for the next couple of years.

While the franchise’s solo films build the foundation of the MCU, the Avengers movies bring all of the studio’s efforts together.

These epic team-ups give viewers something to look forward to between films, and they tend to be some of the most popular additions to Marvel’s lineup.

But how do they compare to one another? Below is every Avengers movie so far, ranked from the worst installment to the best.

‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ is the weakest ‘Avengers’ movie

No matter how you spin it, Avengers: Age of Ultron tends to be the weakest of Marvel’s Avengers movies. In terms of Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb scores, it falls below all the other films in the series. On Rotten Tomatoes, it received a 76 percent Tomatometer score and an 83 percent audience score. On IMDb, it landed at 7.3 stars — above the halfway point but below the rest of the Avengers films.

Criticisms of Age of Ultron vary, but fans seem to agree about how it misused its main villain. While many viewers were excited to see the Marvel Comics character on-screen, the end result proved to be a bit of a letdown.

Age of Ultron has also come under fire recently for its treatment of its heroes. Not only were fans disappointed with Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor Johnson) and Scarlet Witch’s (Elizabeth Olsen) introductions, but they didn’t take well to the awkward romance between Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson).

Finally, many reviewers felt there were simply too many plot threads for the film to handle, leaving storylines feeling dull and underdeveloped. Because of those things, Age of Ultron seems to be the least-loved Avengers movie. But given how much people adore these films, that’s not saying much.

‘The Avengers’ is an iconic staple in Marvel’s lineup

The Avengers is an iconic Marvel movie, if only because it marks the first time the MCU’s heroes got together to defeat a looming threat. The 2012 film sees the original Avengers trying to stop Loki (Tom Hiddleston) from destroying Earth. Seeing Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Bruce Banner, and Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Black Widow, and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) work together for the first time is an undeniable highlight of The Avengers.

Of course, that’s not the only reason it’s so beloved among the fandom. The Avengers blends action and humor to create an experience that’s difficult to forget.

On Rotten Tomatoes, The Avengers received a 91 percent score from both critics and general audiences. Meanwhile, on IMDb, it snagged an 8-star rating, placing it above Avengers: Age of Ultron but below the later Avengers movies.

Overall, fans seem to agree that the 2012 film is a hit. It’s definitely a classic MCU installment, but it simply doesn’t compare to the films that top off Phase 3.

‘Avengers: Infinity War’ is the second-best Avengers movie — but it’s close

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Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame both wrap up the Infinity Saga, presenting two epic conclusions to the first three phases of the MCU. Viewers agree that these sequels are some of the best additions to the franchise. However, Infinity War falls just below Endgame when it comes to rankings.

While both films received an 8.4 rating on IMDb, Avengers: Infinity War did slightly worse on Rotten Tomatoes. Its audience score actually falls slightly above Endgame, coming in at 91 percent (Endgame‘s rating is 90 percent). However, despite audiences ranking the two films about the same, Infinity War received a lower percentage from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Its final rating came in at 85 percent, while Avengers: Endgame’s was 94 percent.

Avengers: Infinity War is definitely the more lighthearted of the two movies, drawing Marvel’s heroes together in comical ways. With so many personalities, things do get tense — and that reality leads to some incredibly snarky and fun banter. The comedy harkens back to the earlier Avengers movies, but Infinity War also has plenty of action and a shock ending that places it above them.

‘Avengers: Endgame’ ends the Infinity Saga with a bang

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While the first three Avengers are action-packed and comedic, they just don’t compare to Avengers: Endgame. The conclusion to the Infinity Saga doesn’t have as many laugh-worthy zingers as its predecessors. However, it has massive stakes, epic fight sequences, and some heart-wrenching farewells.

Those are the primary reasons fans love Endgame so much, landing it an 8.4 rating on IMDb. Its Rotten Tomatoes scores were 94 and 90 percent, signaling that audiences and critics appreciated the big finale.

And it’s hard to deny that Avengers: Endgame proved an epic conclusion to a decade’s worth of storytelling. In an era of huge endings letting fans down, Phase 3’s last hurrah proved something special. It left its mark on the franchise and kicked off new beginnings — in addition to giving its OG characters a proper sendoff.

All of the Avengers movies are currently streaming on Disney+.

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Dave Bautista Completely Rethought His Training Regimen for the ‘Avengers’ Movies

• Marvel fans know Dave Bautista for his portrayal of Drax the Destroyer, but the Guardians of the Galaxy star had a career in professional wrestling before pursuing acting. With a history of bodybuilding, it makes sense the former WWE fighter would take his training regimen seriously — especially when bringing one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s heroes to life. However, Bautista admits there’s a difference between how he approached his previous projects and how he trained for the Avengers movies.

Dave Bautista plays Drax the Destroyer in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ and ‘Avengers: Endgame’

Bautista made his MCU debut in 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, and he went on to reprise his role as Drax the Destroyer in the film’s sequel. The actor also plays a prominent part in Avengers: Infinity War, which sees all of the MCU’s characters uniting in an attempt to defeat Thanos (Josh Brolin). He later appears in Avengers: Endgame, when all of the heroes return from the Blip, though his involvement in that Avengers movie is far briefer.

Despite sharing the screen with so many other heroes in the recent Avengers installments, Bautista put a great deal of effort into preparing for the ensemble films. He no doubt understood the impact they’d have on the fanbase. After all, they did conclude 10 years of storytelling.

The ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ star hired a personal trainer for the ‘Avengers’ movies

Being in an Avengers movie is a big deal, and it’s not something Bautista took lightly. The Guardians of the Galaxy star wanted to ensure he looked the part when Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame hit theaters — more so than ever before. During an interview with Men’s Health, he admitted he even hired a personal trainer to help him rework his fitness routine:

“Being in the Avengers got me to hire a personal trainer. Because literally for the first time in my film career, I was really concerned about looking better. I wanted to not only look big, but I wanted to look toned — I wanted to look like a superhero, that big figure, small waist look. We focused on making my muscles look more rounded, my waist more tapered, my back wider, and my thighs more developed. We went back towards a real bodybuilding style, but not with heavy weights — we focused more on power training.”

With the help of trainer Jon Bennett, Bautista took on a regimen that saw him splitting his exercise into types of days: Push Day, Legs Day, and Pull Day. That helped him bulk up and stay agile to play Drax. It also showed him what he’d been doing wrong before.

“I actually found out that everything I’d been doing all these years was wrong,” Bautista told Men’s Health.

He added, “I was squatting wrong. I was bench pressing wrong — my shoulders were in the wrong place — so we worked a lot on that.”

Will Dave Bautista appear in more Marvel movies in the future?

After 10 years of hard work in the MCU, Bautista is looking forward to moving on to other projects — something he’s already started by landing roles in Army of the Dead, Dune, and Knives Out 2. However, before he officially bids farewell to the franchise, he has a couple more appearances, namely in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and the Guardians of the Galaxy Christmas Special.

The actor has hinted those outings will be his last as Drax “bittersweet.” Bautista went on to say that he’s looking forward to finishing that chapter of his life, even if saying goodbye won’t be easy:

“So I’m looking forward to this, man. My cast and obviously the director, James Gunn, they’re like family to me. This is kind of where my journey started. It’s come full circle and I’m looking forward to wrapping it up.”

Bidding farewell to Bautista will prove just as emotional for fans. However, it’ll be exciting to see what he brings to other franchises — and we’ve got two more appearances from Drax before Bautista’s time in the MCU is through.

The first two Guardians of the Galaxy films — and all of the Avengers movies — are available to stream on Disney+.

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‘The Morning Show’: Where Is Claire In Season 2 and What Does That Mean for Yanko?

• After nearly two years away, The Morning Show fans will finally get to pick up with their favorite characters. However, not everyone is there right away when Season 2 returns. Weatherman Yanko Flores (Nestor Carbonell) is still giving the forecast, but Claire (Bel Powley) is nowhere to be seen. 

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for The Morning Show Season 1.]

“I think we pick up six months after the end of season 1 where she breaks up with him,” Carbonell told Showbiz Cheat Sheet in a Webex interview on Sept. 10. “He still loves her, he’s still heartbroken, he’s still hoping that there’s a chance, there’s a chance they can get back.”

Claire and Yanko were secret lovers. Their relationship formed at the same time as Mitch Kessler (Steve Carell) got caught coercing colleagues into sexual relationships. Yanko and Claire were legitimately in love, so kept their relationship secret.

However, Yanko encouraged them both to come forward to HR and make their relationship above board. Yanko felt relieved but the HR inquiry caused Claire more stress. In the season finale, she broke up with Yanko. When Season 2 returns, Claire is not even working on The Morning Show anymore. 

“She’s left the show,” Carbonell said. “Claire has gone to England and no clue as to whether she’s going to come back in any way, shape or form. So she’s really left him in limbo to pick up the pieces on his own.”

Season 2 of The Morning Show begins on New Year’s Eve 2019 and depicts the beginning of 2020 and the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Along the way, Carbonell says Yanko misses Claire “in the biggest way possible… which is great because we find him in such a vulnerable state only for him to fall into hot water at work as well and become extremely vulnerable there which is always a dream for an actor to get to play.”

Carbonell spoke more about the hot water Yanko finds himself later in the season. We’ll share that when viewers get a chance to see those episodes of The Morning Show. In the meantime, Carbonell looked back on season 1 with Powley. 

The HR meeting was an elaborate scene. The episode intercuts between Yanko and Claire’s interviews to show how each one responds drastically differently to the questions. One shot begins on Claire’s interview and spins around the table. By the time it gets back around, Yanko is sitting in the chair, but the camera has not cut. 

“That was a lot of fun because we start that interview in the HR thing where Claire is in the seat, the camera spins around and then she quickly has to go there,” Carbonell said. “I think she had to hide so she couldn’t be seen. Then I had to slip in the chair. It was a great little Hollywood move where you’re shifting people or shifting props without having to cut or do a special effect.”

Carbonell did not recall specifically if Powley hid under the table. He joked that the trick was entirely professional.

“I’m going to leave it at that,” Carbonell said. “I’m going to leave that alone, I don’t know where she went but it was all above board. You’re going to get me fired now.”

New episodes of The Morning Show premiere Fridays on Apple TV+. We’ll have more with the cast throughout the season on Showbiz Cheat Sheet.