Talk:List of American superhero films

Wanted

Wanted is not a superhero film...

Birdman

Where is Birdman?

List criteria

I'm sorry, am I reading this article's title right? "List of American superhero films", right? More than half of the massive table clearly do not qualify as superhero films. Back to the Future? Transformers? Terminator? Jurassic Park?! InfiniteNexus (talk) 18:24, 4 February 2024 (UTC)

Do people not bother to read the above posts? I said it before and it looks like I have to say it again. We all have different opinions of what is a superhero movie and what isn't. Most of the unlikely superhero movies have independent reliable sources verifying that they are superhero movies, or have superhero characters. Personal opinions are immaterial. I don't know about Jurassic Park and the Back to the Future movies- I didn't post them there. Personally, I couldn't find sources for those so if you want to remove them than help yourself. But the Transformers and most of the Terminator posts have sources and should stay. I don't understand why I have to keep explaining this to people. They're either not reading the above posts already explaining this, or they have but don't care.Sparkles32 (talk) 21:17, 4 February 2024 (UTC)

The various Terminators fit quite well with certain types of supervillains, and the Autobots are often viewed as superheroes in various relevant lists outside Wikipedia. Back to the Future and Jurassic Park are both science fiction franchises, but I thought they did not depict superhumans of any type. Dimadick (talk) 21:28, 4 February 2024 (UTC)

Hello @Sparkles32 - I have found a Comic Book Resources clickbait listicle that describes James Bond as a superhero. Should all his films now be added to the list? CBR seems to have been used elsewhere on this list as a "reliable source" so I guess that means Bond is no longer just a spy, he's a legit superhero. Verlaine76 (talk) 12:54, 3 June 2024 (UTC)

If it's an independent source, then yes. But maybe another time because there are so many.Sparkles32 (talk) 19:14, 8 June 2024 (UTC)

It's from Comic Book Resources: 'In 2008, the University at Buffalo's research library described CBR as "the premiere comics-related site on the Web."' Would you consider that reliable source on comic book superhero movies or not? Verlaine76 (talk) 10:22, 12 June 2024 (UTC)

At this point though, what is the point of this list? Who does it help? Vague citations saying "My son likes superheroes" then lists Nintendo's Luigi as one, feels a bit of a stretch to include him in. Same with Toy Story, is it because Buzz Lightyear is a toy version of a superhero character? Andrzejbanas (talk) 17:30, 3 June 2024 (UTC)

According to @Sparkles32 this is how it is with Wikipedia now, to be on the list does require matching any clearly established definition, it only has to be "someone somewhere on a website said a character is a bit like a superhero". Verlaine76 (talk) 20:40, 3 June 2024 (UTC)

This would go against the MOS:FILM though. As we designate genre by as "

Genre classifications should comply with WP:WEIGHT and reflect what is specified by a majority of mainstream reliable source. If this was a list featuring superheroes, maybe. But that's not the defition here. Andrzejbanas (talk) 06:41, 4 June 2024 (UTC)rces.

First of all, it's not according to me. In the list of superhero television series talk page, it was discussed that we needed independent reliable sources verifying if the tv shows were superhero shows or if one or more of the main characters IS a superhero. Second, if the citations are legit, then they should stay because everyone has a different opinion on what's superhero and what isn't. It should apply to this list too because opinions vary but are immaterial. Again, I didn't put Jurassic Park or Back to the Future on this list and I can't find cites for them. So if you want to remove them, be my guest. As for the others that aren't cited, well, this list is a work in progress. They basically have the same arguments on the tv show talk page so maybe you guys should read it thoroughly. God bless!!!Sparkles32 (talk) 19:14, 8 June 2024 (UTC)

You're claiming a unanmity of opinion on the superhero TV shows talk page that does not actually exist. It's just you and one other person from 2016 vs. dozens of people saying, "WTF is going on with this page?" This is a clear violation of the selection criteria for Wikipedia lists.Justin Bacon (talk) 06:58, 16 June 2024 (UTC)

Actually I think there's a very simple solution: we simply need to change the title of this page. Sparkles32 has made it very clear that selection criteria are not actually in regard to whether the films fit the genre definition of superhero movie. The Criterion for being on this list is solely "somebody, somewhere, on something that you could tenuously claim is a reliable source has described a character in the movie as a superhero". Therefore I suggest renaming this page "List of Films Where a Character is described as a Superhero, or like a Superhero." Verlaine76 (talk) 18:46, 19 June 2024 (UTC)

What's your principle if the movie has a narrator that explicitly clarifies none of the characters are superheroes, but there's an "independent source" that refers to a character as a superhero film regardless? It's just an opinion that the narrator was being literal, no? And personal opinions are immaterial. Vortexagon (talk) 08:15, 17 June 2024 (UTC)

Sparkles32 has made it very clear - the only principle at play here is "Did someone somewhere describe a character in this film as a superhero". Everything else is irrelevant! Verlaine76 (talk) 18:49, 19 June 2024 (UTC)

Incorrect Worldwide Gross numbers

Many, many entries on this list are incorrectly formatted. For some reason, a number such as 1.5 million is then formatted 1.5,000,000 which makes no sense. I'd love to fix these, but there are just so many errors. I'll consider coming back to do so in the future if no one takes up the task. lukini (talk | contribs) 05:39, 17 June 2024 (UTC)

List inclusions/exclusions

How come certain films are not included while others are? Sin City, Men in Black, RIPD, Kingsman, Hellboy, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Elektra and more are not included on this list but Resident Evil, Star Wars, The Terminator, Ghostbusters, Mortal Kombat, Austin Powers, Pitch Black are? I personally believe that at the very least, if it started out as a comic, graphic novel, manga or some other comic book related source, it should be included. If they belong to a franchise that includes merchandising like comics but started out as a cartoon, video game, movie, etc, that doesn't count. - RVDDP2501 (talk) 18:31, 4 October 2024 (UTC)