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Marvel Studios might be having fun building out its on-screen multiverse in recent movies and shows, but DC has them beat: it's not only been making movies and shows based on its superheroes since the '50s, but it also established the existence of a multiverse that linked all of its past TV shows and movies together way back in 2019, years before the MCU had even thought about a sacred timeline. But what does that mean for someone who wants to watch all of the many DCU shows available?

Well, for one thing, they'd probably need some kind of guide to help them do it.

The Complete DC Cinematic Multiverse So Far in Release Order

So, you want to watch every live-action project featuring DC superheroes or related characters (I'm looking at you, Human Target's Christopher Chance, and Lucifer, both of which are DC Universe-adjacent in comic book lore)? It'll take you a long time, somewhat fittingly - this is a list of projects spanning 73 years, after all - but here's the whole shebang for you to explore, spanning decades, fictional realities, and no less than eight Dark Knights. Get ready.

• Superman and the Mole Men (1951)
• The Adventures of Superman (1952-1958)
• Batman (1966)
• Batman (1966-1968)
• Shazam! (1974-1976)
• The Secrets of Isis (1975-1976)
• Wonder Woman (1975-1979)
• Superman: The Movie (1978)
• Legends of the Superheroes (1979)
• Superman II (1980)
• Swamp Thing (1982)
• Superman III (1983)
• Supergirl (1984)
• Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)
• Superboy (1988-1992)
• The Return of Swamp Thing (1989)
• Batman (1989)
• Swamp Thing (1990-1993)
• The Flash (1990-1991)
• The Human Target (1992)
• Batman Returns (1992)
• Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993-1997)
• Batman Forever (1995)
• Batman & Robin (1997)
• Steel (1997)
• Smallville (2001-2011)
• Birds of Prey (2002-2003)
• Catwoman (2004)
• Constantine (2005)
• Batman Begins (2005)
• Superman Returns (2006)
• The Dark Knight (2009)
• Watchmen (2009)
• Human Target (2010-2011)
• Jonah Hex (2010)
• Green Lantern (2011)
• The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
• Arrow (2012-2020)
• Man of Steel (2013)
• Gotham (2014-2019)
• The Flash (2014-2023)
• Constantine (2014-2015)
• Supergirl (2015-2021)
• Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
• Suicide Squad (2016)
• Lucifer (2016-2021)
• Legends of Tomorrow (2016-2022)
• Powerless (2017)
• Wonder Woman (2017)
• Justice League (2017)
• Black Lightning (2018-2021)
• Aquaman (2018)
• Krypton (2018-2019)
• Titans (2018-2023)
• Shazam! (2019)
• Joker (2019)
• Doom Patrol (2019-2023)
• Swamp Thing (2019)
• Pennyworth (2019-2022)
• Batwoman (2019-2022)
• Watchmen (2019)
• Birds of Prey (2020)
• Stargirl (2020-2022)
• Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
• Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
• The Suicide Squad (2021)
• Superman & Lois (2021-2024)
• Naomi (2022)
• The Batman (2022)
• Black Adam (2022)
• Peacemaker (2022-)
• Gotham Knights (2023)
• Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023)
• The Flash (2023)
• Blue Beetle (2023)
• Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)
• Joker: Folie à Deux (2024)
• The Penguin (2024)
• Creature Commandos (2024)

Yes, we know there's no link for the 1992 Human Target; it is, inexplicably, the one project in the above list that simply doesn't appear to be available at all anymore. 

The Many Different DC Cinematic (and Televisual!) Universes

Although those responsible for the production of the many different projects above surely didn't intend for their work to be part of a decades-long narrative experiment that involved multiple realities that nonetheless have the opportunity to interconnect and occasionally crossover, that doesn't mean that there aren't notable families of projects to be found inside the above list. Here are the ones you should probably pay attention to.

The Batman '66 Universe

Admittedly, this is less a "universe" than a movie that spun out of a popular TV show, but Adam West and Burt Ward's caped crusaders managed to deal with the dastardly criminals of Gotham in a 1966 movie that exists somewhat tangentally to the three-series show that spawned it. (By similar logic, 1951's Superman and the Mole Men and the Adventures of Superman TV series that followed a year later are a universe of sorts; the former was a sneaky pilot for the latter.) Whether or not 1979's Legends of the Superheroes officially belongs on this list is open to question; it featured the show's actors returning to their iconic roles, but the two specials were technically attached to the animated Super Friends show rather than the 1966 Batman series...

• Batman (1966)
• Batman (1966-1968)
• Legends of the Superheroes (1979)

The Shazam! Universe

The Secrets of Isis series, which lasted two seasons featuring Joanna Cameron as a high school teacher transformed into an Egyptian goddess thanks to an amulet she discovered, would crossover with Shazam! on an irregular basis. When both shows were initially broadcast, they were paired together as 'The Shazam/Isis Hour,' as if the two were co-stars on an ersatz variety show.

• Shazam! (1974-1976)
• The Secrets of Isis (1975-1976)

The Superman '78 Universe

The four Christopher Reeve Superman movies spawned a spinoff in the shape of 1984's Supergirl, starring Helen Slater. In reality, that movie came about because producers had shopped the Superman movies to another studio, but wanted a further bite of that Super-apple. It's the same logic that saw them create the 1988 Superboy TV show, although that technically was not in canon with the other movies.

• Superman: The Movie (1978)
• Superman II (1980)
• Superman III (1983)
• Supergirl (1984)
• Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)

The Batman '89 Universe

The weirdness that is the Batman '89 universe! Despite recastings, the four Batman movies that were released from 1989 through 1997 were, in theory, all part of the same series... and then, the 2002 Birds of Prey TV show was created to be a glimpse at the future of that very universe. (Promotional plans for the show originally included referencing Michael Keaton's Batman and Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman from 1992's Batman Returns; the show was cancelled before they came to fruition.) To complicate matters even more, 2023's The Flash featured Michael Keaton returning to the role of Bruce Wayne, only to be replaced by George Clooney in the role as the result of time travel shenanigans. So was that the explanation behind the 1990s recastings in retrospect...?

• Batman (1989)
• Batman Returns (1992)
• Batman Forever (1995)
• Batman & Robin (1997)
• Birds of Prey (2002-2003)
• The Flash (2023)

The Nolanverse

Exceptionally straightforward in the context of their siblings, Christopher Nolan's three Batman movies featured the same core cast and no confusing canonical rewriting when you least expected it. It's 'just' a trilogy of movies. 

• Batman Begins (2005)
• The Dark Knight (2009)
• The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Look, between the Batman '89 movies, the Nolanverse, and more, Batman movies can get confusing. We have a guide to help here.

The Arrowverse

Who'd have thought that a TV show about Green Arrow of all people would end up giving birth to a TV franchise that would last more than a decade and include nine different shows (and multiple networks)? And yet, that's exactly what the Arrowverse evolved into from its humble beginnings, becoming a surprisingly diverse representation of what the DCU could look like onscreen. (And with somewhat understandable restrictions, both budgetary and "you can't use those characters, they're going to be in movies"-wise.)

• Arrow (2012-2020)
• The Flash (2014-2023)
• Constantine (2014-2015)
• Supergirl (2015-2021)
• Legends of Tomorrow (2016-2022)
• Black Lightning (2018-2021)
• Batwoman (2019-2022)
• Stargirl (2020-2022)
• Superman & Lois (2021-2024)

Want to know more about the Arrowverse? Click here.

The DC Extended Universe

When people think about onscreen DC Universes, this is probably the one they'd go to first: DC's attempt to respond to the MCU, as originally envisioned by director Zack Snyder and expended from that point... only to run aground in 2022 and come to an end entirely a year later. We enjoyed it while it lasted. (Well, except for that one movie. You know which one.)

• Man of Steel (2013)
• Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
• Suicide Squad (2016)
• Wonder Woman (2017)
• Justice League (2017)
• Aquaman (2018)
• Shazam! (2019)
• Birds of Prey (2020)
• Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
• Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
• The Suicide Squad (2021)
• Black Adam (2022)
• Peacemaker (2022-)
• Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023)
• The Flash (2023)
• Blue Beetle (2023)
• Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)

If you're looking for a more in-depth guide to this era, we've got you covered right here.

The Batman 2022 Universe

Less a "universe" than a movie and its TV spinoff, but both The Batman and The Penguin are leading into 2026's The Batman Part II, and who knows where things will go from that point...? 

• The Batman (2022)
• The Penguin (2024)

The Almost Kinda Sorta DCU

Okay, this one might be a little strange, but bear with me: we know, from comments made by writer/director/studio co-chair James Gunn that Xolo Maridueña will be returning to screens as Blue Beetle as part of the new DCU, and we also know that Peacemaker's second season - which spun out of 2021's The Suicide Squad - will also take place in the new DCU. So, are these projects part of the new DCU canon or not? Officially no, although something similar to them might have happened in the new canon. But if you want a tease of what lies ahead, this might be where to start.

• The Suicide Squad (2021)
• Peacemaker (2022-)
• Blue Beetle (2023)

How does all of this fit together, anyway?

The real answer is that it's easier if you just pretend they don't. For the most part, these things weren't intended to play together or co-exist. In many respects, they actively contradict each other. (Look how many different versions of Batman and Superman are there, after all!) And yet... they do, worryingly, all slot together once you realize that they all co-exist inside the larger DC Multiverse... something that's been canonically stated in two different projects to date.

Firstly, there's Crisis on Infinite Earths, the umbrella term for the five-episode crossover between the CW's Arrowverse shows that happened in December 2019 and January 2020. (It technically ran across episodes of Supergirl, Batwoman, The Flash, Arrow, and Legends of Tomorrow, although each series was retitled 'Crisis on Infinite Earths' for the duration of the storyline.) A loose adaptation of the 1985 comic book series of the same name, the TV Crisis featured the seeming destruction of the multiverse and included a cavalcade of references and cameos from a number of former DC screen projects, both through newly shot material and archive footage. 

In addition to the shows that were officially part of the event - and the other Arrowverse series that lent characters or concepts while existing in the larger framework of the pre-existing franchise - Crisis referred to the 1966 Batman TV series, the 1989 Batman movie and its sequels, the 2018 Titans series, Smallville, 2006's Superman Returns, the 2002 Birds of Prey series, 1990's The Flash series, 2019's Doom Patrol and Swamp Thing shows, 2012's Green Lantern, the Fox/Netflix Lucifer series, and even the animated 1990s Batman series... as well as all manner of comic book storylines. Importantly, the storyline also featured an extended cameo from Ezra Miller's Flash from the DCEU, in which he seemingly got the idea to call himself the Flash.

Three years later, Miller's DCEU Flash then entered the multiverse himself in 2023's The Flash movie, which saw the character change his own history and as a result, accidentally break down the barriers of reality itself. His time-traveling antics seemingly sent him into the realities of the 1989 Batman movie as well as an alternate version of the history of the DCEU itself... and in a much-discussed, heavily CGI sequence, saw animated cameos from the Superman from 1978's Superman: The Movie as well as a never-made 2000s reboot for the franchise featuring Nic Cage. Additionally, Adam West's Batman from the 1966 Batman movie and series can be seen, as can George Reeves '50s Adventures of Superman version of the Man of Steel.

The very short version of events is: between these two projects - and the fact that the main characters from both literally crossover and meet - it's safe to say that every single DC live-action project to date co-exists inside the DC Multiverse in some form or another.

(Well, okay; there are arguments to be made that things like Joker, and the 2022 Batman movie might somehow have escaped this fate...)

Factor in that we know that certain characters from the DCEU - John Cena's Peacemaker, Viola Davis's Amanda Waller, and Xolo Maridueña's Blue Beetle, at the very least - will make the jump into the upcoming new DCU that begins with December 2024's Creature Commandos, and it seems as if there are arguments to be made that even the new status quo has the opportunity to be connected to everything that came before. 

But, like we said: it might be easier to just pretend that everything isn't as connected as it may be. Just for the sake of your free time (and your sanity)...

Enjoy our guides to how to watch the recent DCEU, the Arrowverse, and James Gunn's upcoming DCU.