Both Marvel and DC have had varying levels of success in the superhero genre, and they've capitalized on said success by crafting sequels to their most popular movies. This allowed the writing to explore the film's lore in several new ways.
As more sequels are pumped out, the movies progress, and the superhero universe delves deeper, it's easy to forget some details that were established early on. Sometimes the writing explains these challenges. Other times a film acts as if the plot point never existed in the first place or retcons the details altogether.
8 Superman Broke His Promise In Superman Returns
At the end of Superman II, Superman (Christopher Reeve) repairs General Zod's (Terrance Stamp) damage at the White House and promises the President not to abandon his duty again. Despite Superman Returns considering Superman II canon, this didn't stick with Superman (Brandon Routh).
For the next five years, Superman deserts Earth and the people he swore to protect to search for evidence of possible life on Krypton, discovered by astronomers. During this time, Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth) had a son who grew up never knowing Superman was his biological father. Additionally, Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) was released from prison because Superman wasn't around to testify against him.
7 Harry Was Never Told The Truth About His Father Until Spider-Man 3
At the end of Spider-Man (2002) Harry Osborn (James Franco) believes Spider-Man killed his father, Norman (William Dafoe). Throughout the sequels, Harry pursues revenge and eventually learns Spider-Man is his best friend, Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire).
In the climax of Spider-Man 3, Peter begs Harry to help him take on Venom (Topher Grace) and Sandman (Thomas Haden Church). Harry refuses until the butler reveals he cleaned Norman wounds the night he died and discovered Norman was responsible for his own demise. However, why the butler waited so long to tell Harry this important truth — and how he arrived at this conclusion — is forever a mystery.
6 Harvey Dent's Death Count Doesn't Add Up
At the end of The Dark Knight, Commissioner James Gordon (Gary Oldman) laments that Harvey Dent's (Aaron Eckhart) five murders — two of who were cops — can't be covered up. He also believes the city will be in chaos if the truth is revealed, given the people had high hopes riding on Harvey.
Upon a closer inspection, viewers will notice Gordon's claim wasn't entirely true. Dent's on-screen victims were made up of three people, only one of which was a cop, (the second cop was merely knocked unconscious). While it's still very serious, the disparity between the two remains confusing.
5 Spider-Man: Homecoming Got A Major Part Of The MCU Timeline Wrong
The opening of Spider-Man: Homecoming establishes the villainous origins of Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton) and his crew. Their operation of cleaning up the city in the aftermath of The Battle of New York in The Avengers (2012) is overtaken by The Department of Damage Control, thus putting them out of a job.
However, the timecard states this event took place in 2010, two years before The Battle of New York took place. This was something that threw off longtime MCU fans. While Captain America: Civil War co-director, Joe Russo did confirm this was a mistake, it remains unchanged and continues to baffle fans old and new.
4 Batman V. Superman Reinterprets A Big Man Of Steel Criticism
In Man of Steel, (Henry Cavill) engages in an intense battle against General Zod (Michael Shannon), ravaging the city of Metropolis in the process. Despite this, the citizens praise Superman for saving them during the aftermath, and the military states he is their ally.
Batman v. Superman alters these claims. In the opening, Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) is seen witnessing the battle and the civilian deaths which occurred in the process and vows to avenge them by taking Superman down. Over the course of the movie, Superman's status is more split than ever. The problem with all of this lies in that Man of Steel never hinted at these consequences.
3 Gamora Wasn't The Last Survivor Of Her Planet
In Guardians of the Galaxy when Gamora (Zoe Saldana) is arrested alongside the other Guardians by the Nova Corps, she's listed as the last survivor of her people. However, in Avengers: Infinity War, Gamora reveals — and audiences are later shown in a flashback — that her adopted father Thanos (Josh Brolin) only slaughtered half her people. Thanos later tells Gamora her planet and people were near extinction back then and that his actions have given them a better life ever since. It can be theorized Thanos was lying, but Avengers: Endgame has established he is no liar.
2 Batman's Return To Gotham In The Dark Knight Rises Is Implausible
In the first act of The Dark Knight Rises, Batman (Christian Bale) gets his back broken thanks to Bane (Tom Hardy) and is imprisoned in a pit miles away from Gotham City or anything else. Fortunately, he eventually climbs his way out and makes his way back to Gotham.
There's no explanation as to how Batman achieved this. He was stripped of all his money, his costume, and weapons arsenal — giving him no easy way to return home. Moreover, Bane had the city on lockdown so how Batman managed to return unnoticed is puzzling. While the "he's Batman" explanation has been used to justify such impossible circumstances, the superhero trilogy often is grounded in realism.
1 The Incredible Hulk's Post-Credits Scene Is All But Useless
The post-credits scene of The Incredible Hulk shows General Thaddeus Ross (William Hurt) meeting with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) in a bar where the two talk about the formation of the Avengers. This implied that they would need Bruce Banner's (Edward Norton's) abilities as Hulk.
Iron Man 2 came along a few years later, making it clear Stark was only to be a consultant for the Avengers. When The Avengers (2012) was released a new actor and story had been crafted for Banner altogether, rendering this scene moot. A one-shot short film tried to retcon the scene by creating a different motive behind it, but it was a rather hasty fix.