In 2008, two of the biggest movies of the summer were a movie based on a DC superhero (The Dark Knight) and a Marvel hero (Iron Man). Now in 2025, two of the biggest movies of the summer are based on a DC hero (Superman) and a team from Marvel (Fantastic Four: First Steps). Even though the exact origin is disputed, writer and American humorist Mark Twain is frequently credited with the expression: “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” The basic idea is that while the details may change, similar elements tend to repeat, offering a compelling mirror to the past.
2008 marked a significant turning point in the superhero movie genre, asIron ManandThe Dark Knightrevitalized it and set the template for the genre’s dominance that continues to this day. Now in 2025, bothSupermanandThe Fantastic Four: First Stepshave revitalized not only their individual heroes’ brands, but also their respective franchises. Here is howSupermanandThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsnot only serve as mirrors ofThe Dark KnightandIron Man, but also how each set of films represented their respective years.
How 2025 Mirrors 2008 for Superhero Films
It’s not always a one-to-one comparison, but it does feel likeSupermanis this year’sThe Dark Knight, whileThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsis this year’sIron Man. This isn’t a matter of comparative quality since that is all subjective, but the roles they occupy in the zeitgeist. In this scenario, it also makesThunderbolts*theHellboy II: The Golden Armyof 2025 (a critically acclaimed, underrated movie that sadly disappointed at the box office) andCaptain America: Brave New WorldisThe Incredible Hulk(with it being a 17-year later sequel). At least 2025 doesn’t so far have its answer toThe Spirit.
SupermanandThe Fantastic Four: First Stepshave been positively received by fans and critics, but the consensus does seem to suggestSupermanis the slight favorite. That doesn’t meanThe Fantastic Four: The First Stepsis bad. After all, sayingThe Dark Knightwas better thanIron Manwasn’t throwing shade atthe MCU’s first film; it simply highlighted how good the genre’s offerings were, with the second-best one still being incredible.Supermanis now tracking to be the highest-grossing superhero movie of 2025, which will mark the first time sinceThe Dark Knightin 2008 that a film based on a DC Comics hero beat one based on Marvel Comics.
This seems appropriate, as Superman and Batman are not only DC’s most famous superheroes, but arguably the most famous in the entire genre. NeitherThe Dark KnightnorSupermanare a direct adaptation of one specific storyline, but pull from a rich pool of inspirations to craft original stories that feel iconic to the character, including pitting them against their archenemy.Supermanis fantastical whileThe Dark Knightis grounded, digging deep into what audiences love about the characters.By distilling down years of stories, themes, and iconography into one whole,SupermanandThe Dark Knightfeel like versions of these legendary heroes that audiences have waited their whole lives for.
The Fantastic Four: First StepsandIron Manshare many similarities, and it isn’t because both have opening montages that explain the lead’s backstory. As with many heroes of the Marvel Age, the emphasis is on science and technology, as the Fantastic Four were described as the greatest scientific minds, and Tony Stark is a genius inventor who builds a suit of armor in a cave with a box of scraps.
Even thoughThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsis part of the MCU’s Phase Six and the 37th film in the franchise, due to taking place in a separate reality, it feels like a new, fresh start, the same wayIron Mandid 17 years ago. Earth 828 feels like the utopia Tony Stark never truly committed to building after dismantling his weapons program.The Fantastic Four: First StepsandIron Manare enjoyable self-contained stories that also set up a larger story waiting to unfold.
‘Iron Man’ and ‘The Dark Knight’ Spoke to 2008
‘Superman’ and ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Are What We Need in 2025
What is fascinating, though, is that the two major superhero movies of 2008 and 2025 mirrored each other in ways that their creative teams likely could not have predicted. BothIron ManandThe Dark Knightwere adaptations of characters who, famously, have no superpowers and instead are billionaires using their money to invest in gadgets to fight evildoers, domestic and abroad. In contrast to prior superhero movies,Iron ManandThe Dark Knighttook their fights to a global scale, as Iron Man’s origin and key set-piece in Act Two are set in the Middle East. Meanwhile, Batman travels outside Gotham City to retrieve a criminal from Hong Kong.Iron ManandThe Dark Knightare movies deeply rooted in the mid-2000s War on Terror, withIron Manproviding a power fantasy of victory for a global conflict that American citizens had grown quickly disillusioned with, whileThe Dark Knightexamines the lengths one will go to in the name of justice.
Fast-forward to 2025, andSupermanandThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsare equally parallel films to one another. Both films are based on superheroes that essentially launched their respective universes in the comics, with Superman’s publication in 1938 not only kicking off the DC Universe but also the idea of the superhero as a whole. The Fantastic Four were the first heroes to define what audiences now know as Marvel Comics.
WhereasIron ManandThe Dark Knightvery much tried to ground their stories,Superman and The Fantastic Four: First Stepsembrace the colorful flights of fancy that past adaptations have chosen to ignore, like Krypto or Galactus in complete form, respectively. Each pull from earlier eras of the comics, asThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsis rooted in the 1960s Stan Lee and Jack Kirby run in which the team originated.Supermandraws heavy inspiration from the Silver and Bronze Age of Comics.
SupermanandThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsare very optimistic films that stand in sharp contrast to the world in which they are released, which is the second Trump administration. With the spread of misinformation, mass deportations, a list of political scandals far too long to list, and defunding various public services while increasing the wealth of billionaires, it feels hard to be hopeful.Supermanshows the struggles of being a good person in a world that doesn’t believe in it.The Fantastic Four: First Stepspresents a world that audiences want to believe in, one where everyone can come together to pool their resources for the common good. These are superhero stories, morality tales that are meant to inspire goodness in others and are needed now.
Both movies underline their themes with specific quotes. InThe Fantastic Four: First Steps, the film quotes anthropologist Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Superman not only has Clark Kent tell Lois Lane that trusting everyone and being sincere in a world defined by cynicism is “the real punk rock,” which is highlighted by the film’s closing credits using theTeddybears ft. Iggy Pop’s “Punkrocker.”
SupermanandThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsdon’t hide away from some of the problems of the world, but they also don’t allow themselves to be consumed in cynicism or nihilism. Releasing these movies now, in this current political climate, seems transgressive and, dare we say it, makes them… punk rock.
The Future of Superhero Movies
It is far too early to tell whereSupermanandThe Fantastic Four: First Stepswill eventually lead, just as it felt too early to predict the direction ofThe Dark KnightandIron Man.Iron Manpromised the start of something new, a shared universe that has grown into the most successful film franchise of all time.The Dark Knightfelt like a game-changer, something that the superhero genre could never top (and some would say it still hasn’t). Even Nolan’s follow-up,The Dark Knight Rises, failed to match the high barset by its predecessor, and opening alongsideThe Avengersin 2012 marked the actual shift in the superhero genre that audiences are still living in today.
Supermanmarks the beginning of a new shared universe, similar toIron Man, yet it also feels distinctly unique, akin toThe Dark Knight, making it challenging to top with a sequel.The Fantastic Four: First Stepsis an excellent introduction to these heroes that will be followed up inAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Wars, as Marvel Studios looks tomake them the new face of the MCU. In an ironic twist of fate, the Fantastic Four’s archenemy will be played by Robert Downey Jr., the actor who kicked off the entire franchise. In a meta-textual way, it is the MCU’s future facing off against its past.
With bothSuperman,The Fantastic Four: First Steps, andHellboy IIstand-inThunderbolts*, 2025 has been a great year for superhero movies. It is not onlya marked improvement over the all-time low point of 2024, which was dominated by Sony-Marvel duds likeMadame WebandKraven the Hunter, or 2023 flops likeAnt-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaandThe Flash, but also a stronger point that many of the “glory days” fans look back on. Just like 2008, it is an exciting time to be a fan, and hopefully, the future is bright.The Fantastic Four: First StepsandSupermanare in theaters now.
