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DC Comics is one of the oldest American comic book publishers; and alongside Marvel, it’s one of the two biggest titans of the industry. Its pop-cultural significance has always been enormous, so much so that 1951 saw the release of Superman and the Mole Men, the very first feature film ever made based on a DC Comics property. We have come a long way since then. With dozens upon dozens of DC movies out there, superhero cinema has been completely re-defined by these heroes and villains.
Last impressions matter just as much as first impressions do, and the final shot of any DC film is no exception. That final continuous piece of footage, from the movie’s last cut to its eventual fade to black, is the image that the audience will walk away with as they make their way out of the theater. Thankfully, history has offered eight particular final shots from DC’s theatrical feature films that are among the best in the history of superhero cinema.
There are spoilers ahead for the ending of each entry!
8
‘Aquaman’ (2018)
James Wan‘s Aquaman was the old DCEU’s biggest commercial success, earning over a billion dollars at the box office internationally and proving to audiences that this wasn’t just “the silly hero who talks to fish.” Under Wan’s confidently gritty direction and Jason Momoa‘s imposing performance as the titular hero, Aquaman has remained one of Momoa’s highest-rated movies on Letterboxd for nearly a decade.
The movie’s ending sees Arthur Curry finally accept his role as King of Atlantis, Protector of the Deep. The very final shot tracks him as he speeds across the ocean, rising to the surface for a slow-motion shot of him in a triumphant pose. Cheesy? Perhaps. But after everything that has happened before that point, it’s a moment whose emotion feels well-earned, and seeing Momoa absolutely rock the iconic Aquaman costume definitely doesn’t hurt.
7
‘Superman’ (2025)
After the undeniable failure of the DCEU, Warner Bros. decided to reboot the franchise and start fresh with James Gunn and Peter Safran as co-chairmen and co-CEOs of DC Studios. The very first film in the new DCU was Gunn’s Superman. Though DC’s most iconic superhero has already been rebooted far more often than most, this portrayal led by David Corenswet immediately proved that it was worthy of audiences’ love and attention.
Indeed, it’s one of the best superhero movies since 2020, with precisely the kind of hopeful and upbeat ending that most fans might expect from a Superman film. Superman is lying in the Fortress of Solitude, watching recordings from his childhood in Smallville, the light of all that joy enveloping his face until we fade to white and roll the credits. It’s as optimistic as any final shot of any Superman movie should be.
6
‘The Dark Knight’ (2008)
It was the Dark Knight trilogy in general, and The Dark Knight more specifically, that fully cemented Christopher Nolan as the king of blockbuster filmmaking that people know him as today. This is still one of the most universally loved movies since 2000, praised by many not only as the greatest DC Comics film to date, but even as the greatest superhero and comic book movie of all time.
The film’s entire third act is one of the most breathtakingly tense and thrilling in the genre’s history, and the ending in particular is easily one of the most iconic of any superhero film ever. Batman agrees to take the fall for Two-Face’s actions and be hunted by the GCPD, fleeing the scene on his Batpod as Gordon tells his son that he’s “a silent guardian, a watchful protector, a Dark Knight.” That final shot of the Batpod from behind is brief, but it carries tremendous emotional and thematic weight.
5
‘The Batman’ (2022)
When it was announced that there would be yet another Batman reboot, fans didn’t exactly know what to expect. In the end, though, Matt Reeves‘ The Batman ended up becoming many people’s favorite live-action Batman film to date, with Robert Pattinson at the very top of his game playing one of the most interesting version of the character that the big screen has seen thus far.
It’s one of the best crime films of the 2020s so far, with one of the best endings of any 2020s crime film. Batman and Catwoman say goodbye, Selina asking the Caped Crusader to leave Gotham with her. He has to refuse, so they drive their motorcycles in opposite directions. After Batman looks down at his rearview mirror to see Selina leave his view, our last shot is of him looking back up, nothing but sheer determination on his face.
4
‘Batman Forever’ (1995)
After the success of Tim Burton‘s movies, expectations for the next cinematic Batman outing were high. Warner, however, didn’t want Burton to return for the threequel. So, they put Joel Schumacher on the director’s chair and cast Val Kilmer as the Dark Knight after Michael Keaton‘s departure. The result? Batman Forever, one of the most divisive superhero movies of all time.
The final shot is of [Batman] and Robin running toward the camera in front of the Bat-Signal.
Though not many people would rank it as one of the best live-action Batman movies, it’s undeniably one that has a killer final scene. After defeating the Riddler and Two-Face, Batman says goodbye to Chase. The final shot is of him and Robin running toward the camera in front of the Bat-Signal. There is perhaps no live-action shot of the Dynamic Duo more iconic or exciting than this one.
3
‘Clayface’ (2026)
If you had gone back in time and told someone from the past that the third theatrical film in the new DCU would be a standalone body horror film focused on a Batman villain as random as Matt Hagen, they likely wouldn’t have believed you. Indeed, Clayface is the franchise’s latest, and fans of the genre would likely agree that it already deserves to be counted among the best body horror movies of the 2020s so far.
Lately, Hollywood has loved to make films framing classic villains as “misunderstood.” Not Clayface. Here, Matt Hagen’s descent into villainy is a surprisingly bleak and terrifying one, and the final scene of the movie finally shows us his final transformation into the iconic monster that Batman fans know and love. It’s undoubtedly the scariest final shot of any DC film to date, and that has to count for a lot.
2
‘Batman’ (1989)
With Batman’s popularity waning in the late ’70s, people in Hollywood wanted to make another Caped Crusader film. Eventually, with 1989’s Batman, Tim Burton completely revolutionized the superhero film genre, proving that these kinds of characters could lead properly dark and serious films. Led by Michael Keaton, one of the best live-action Batman actors to date, this is as fun as ’80s classics get.
The film’s final scene is a slow boom shot traveling up the sides of a building, finally ending with the image of Batman watching the projection of the brand-new Bat-Signal from atop a rooftop. It’s the ultimate visual representation of the Dark Knight, a silent protector contemplating his city in the darkness of the night as he’s called to come to the rescue.
1
‘Superman’ (1978)
Richard Donner‘s Superman wasn’t the first live-action theatrical feature film featuring a comic book superhero, but it surely was the first film of its kind. Never before had audiences seen such a modern, high-budget blockbuster production about a superhero, and the film’s success proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that the genre deserved to be treated with cinematic prestige.
It’s one of the best crowd-pleasing sci-fi movies of all time, and its final shot may very well be the single greatest, most iconic, and most foundational shot of any superhero movie in history. On paper, it seems simple: Having saved the day, Superman flies above the Earth as the Sun rises on the horizon, flying toward with the camera with a smile. The whole image is as timeless as superheroes themselves, a perfect encapsulation of the hope and joy that they’re supposed to represent.
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Diego Pineda Pacheco
Almontather Rassoul
