Top 10 Black Superheroes Who Need Their Own Movies

Top 10 Black Superheroes Who Should Have Their Own Movies

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 black superheroes who should have their own movies.

For this list, we’ll be looking at popular, cool and inspiring black heroes and heroines who deserve a shot at the silver screen.

Did your favourite make the list? Let us know which hero you want to see at the movies first in the comments.

#10: Vixen

Vixen is a character who shows up in a lot of teams, but seldom has the spotlight all to herself. Although she was meant to be the first black female hero to headline her own series in the 70s, her book got cancelled when DC went through hard times. But her story definitely deserves to be heard. In some versions of Vixen’s origin story, she’s a supermodel with roots in a long line of superpowered women that all hail from the fictional African Nation of Zambesi. Her magical totem allows her to be as strong as an ox, as fast as a cheetah and able to taze a dude like an electric eel. There’s definitely enough in her powers alone for some awesome action scenes.

#9: Frozone

While the “Incredibles” franchise is full of great characters, Frozone’s scenes particularly stand out. His perfect blend of superheroic style with painfully relatable down-to-earth struggles struck a chord across multiple generations of viewers. It’s rare to see a character who feels just at home arguing with his wife about his super suit as he is skating through the sky on a cool ice bridge. But Samuel L. Jackson’s voice acting and an incredible script made Frozone smooth, chill and every other ice pun we can think of. We’d love to see his origins or in his own new adventure in a solo film. Would it be that hard for Disney to get him to record lines for a Frozone feature in between Nick Fury appearances?

#8: Black Lightning

Jefferson Pierce is a superpowered Olympic athlete and often serves as a high school principal in neighborhoods that face gang violence and corruption. Since he doesn’t believe in violence, he keeps his abilities under wraps until a series of new threats starts putting his students in danger. Black Lightning inspired people by fighting evil with his powers and reminding teens that education, understanding and self-determination are the keys to arriving at a better future. His inspiring origin story was made into a live action tv series that ran for four seasons. But he still deserves a big screen debut. If a director with style adapted his backstory, a Black Lightning movie could follow in “Black Panther’s” footsteps and become a cultural phenomenon.

#7: Steel

John Henry Irons is named after a mythical figure, wears a cape and carries a physics-defying hammer. That admittedly might sound a little like Thor. But we can’t forget that Irons engineered a suit of powered armour for himself and, oh yeah, he’s best friends with Superman. So basically we’re saying Steel is awesome and it’s unbelievable he’s been kept out of the spotlight. He did get a movie adaptation in the 90s starring none other than Shaquille O’Neal. Although Shaq’s a big fan of the character, the movie was… not great. Fortunately, a better and edgier version of the character just showed up in “Superman & Lois”. But we still believe a proper adaptation of Steel’s original ingenuity and kindness could soar on its own.

#6: Mr. Terrific

Although Mister Terrific isn’t traditionally a headline character featured in films, he definitely deserves to be. His superpower, being invisible to cameras and machinery, may sound like it’s too subtle for a blockbuster action movie. But it would be perfect for a stealth and intrigue-based spy flick. A movie could also focus on why Mister Terrific led the Justice Society: he has a brilliant mind. His brain rivals Batman for strategic brilliance and he has a talent for engineering all kinds of crazy gadgets. And although Mister Terrific is one of the top 3 smartest people on planet Earth, he also gets involved in superhero action. His toughness and wit would make him a fun hero to see outwitting and outfighting villains on screen.

#5: Power Man / Luke Cage

As Power Man, Luke Cage was the very first black superhero to headline his own comic series. Right from the start, his swaggering confidence and impenetrable skin made him one of Marvel’s most compelling characters. In recent years, he ditched the yellow shirt and steel tiara for a less garish costume. At the same time, he went from doing Heroes for Hire gigs with his buddy Iron Fist to being a full member of the Avengers. Cage also pioneered community-based hero work to build bridges with underprivileged neighbourhoods to peacefully reduce crime. The “Luke Cage” Netflix series was a start. However, it’s darker tone left out a lot of the fun side of the character. Luke Cage could cut loose in a stylized feature film.

#4: Storm

On a team full of people who have powers like “shoot lasers out of my face” and “werewolfing into a blue beast”, Storm has the ability to command the weather itself. Now we’re not saying that makes her better than the other X-Men. Although a tornado could majorly help you win a fight in an instant. But outside of her powers, Storm has a lot more to her backstory than we’ve seen in the movies so far. She’s had unique experiences that range from being raised as a goddess to becoming queen of Wakanda. Either of those plotlines alone are worth exploring in a full feature length film. It’s time for this weather-controlling mutant to have her time in the sun.

#3: John Stewart’s Green Lantern

John Stewart is not the first Green Lantern from Earth. But when compared to the hotshot Hal Jordan and Guy “anger issues” Gardner, he is the only one who reliably acts like a professional. As an ex-marine and a former architect, Stewart brings all the cool-headed leadership and tactical thinking it takes to wield the Green Lantern’s willpower-based power ring. Ever since he starred in the animated “Justice League” show, he’s become one of the better known members of the Green Lantern Corps. And what better way to make people forget about the major live action movie flop starring Hal Jordan’s Green Lantern than to make a film about Stewart? He’d be a fresh new face that audiences would take seriously.

#2: Static

Remember Static Shock? The cartoon was a huge hit when it came out in the early 2000s and for good reason. The writing was smart, Static made for a relatable role model and there was just something so cool about the way he rode around on a levitating disc. So here’s a question: Where has he been since then? When you have a character with this much personality and a successful tv show, you’d expect him to be used more often. We definitely appreciated seeing him in the ensemble of the “Young Justice” series lately. But he has more than enough history and charisma to lead a movie. It’s time he gave a shock to DC’s system with an electrifying story.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

War Machine
Although He’s Getting a TV Series, Don Cheadle’s Rhodey Could Easily Command a Movie

The Blue Marvel
He Has Incredibly Powerful Abilities That Would Be Fun to See Onscreen

Batwing
This Member of the Bat Family Could Soar in His Own Feature

Misty Knight
A Heroine With a Bionic Arm & Fascinating History

Icon
A Superb Superhero That Could Star in a Solo Film or With His Frequent Partner Rocket

#1: Cyborg

After upgrading from the Teen Titans to the Justice League, Cyborg starred in the weird and wacky “Doom Patrol '' and “Zack Snyder’s Justice League”. His great role in all those stories has given him enough popularity to be the logical choice to headline a crowd-pleasing solo movie next. And rightly so. There’s a ton of rich story potential in Cyborg’s struggle to cope with having most of his body replaced with machinery after a traumatic accident. It also helps that he has kickass powers like a sonic cannon and is already known for a memorable catchphrase. Cyborg could be the perfect man/machine hybrid for a legendary superhero movie.