10 Favorite Franchises

I have shared my favorite movies and favorite directors. Now I wanted to share my favorite franchises of all time. Most of these franchises include main story films, spin-off films, and sometimes TV shows. These 10 franchises are all ones that I get so excited about when a new entry comes along and usually end up being some of my most anticipated of the year. These are also franchises that I try to watch at least once a year or once every couple of years. With that being said and in no particular order, here are my 10 favorite franchises.

1. Middle Earth

The Middle Earth franchise is one of my all-time favorite fantasy franchises. It consists of the three The Lord of the Rings films, the three The Hobbit films, and The Rings of Power TV shows. I really enjoy the expansive world-building this franchise has. We get to explore so many different areas such as Rohan, Gondor, Erebor, the Shire, and so many others. There are also a lot of fun races and creatures with the Elves, Hobbits, and Dwarves. This whole franchise has such an epic feel to it. I get a good amount of enjoyment from all the films and TV shows. The Lord of the Rings is just so epic and basically a perfect trilogy. The Hobbit is a fun prequel to the Lord of the Rings that sheds some more light on Bilbo and The Rings of Power is a fun prequel show that shows the origin of the rings and many fan favorite characters. Overall, this is a truly epic franchise. Click here to see my Letterbox'd ranking of the Middle Earth films.

2. Wizarding World

The Wizarding World franchise is another all-time great fantasy franchise. It includes the eight Harry Potter films and the three Fantastic Beasts films. The Harry Potter films are a great example of fantastic storytelling. the story stays connected across all 8 films and ties things from the first film all the way to the last film. The Fantastic Beasts films are largely standalone but do add some good backstory to Dumbledore and his conflict with Grindelwald. I really enjoy the world built in this franchise with a whole secret world for magical users. The Harry Potter world gives us a view of the wizarding world for students with some brief looks into the adult world while the Fantastic Beasts films let us go all into the adult world. I also quite enjoy all the magical battles across all the films and the various creatures and elements that get introduced in each movie. In the end, this a great franchise that is centered around some wonderful storytelling. Click Here to see my blog post ranking of the Wizarding World films.

3. MCU

The MCU is the peak of interconnected storytelling. The MCU consists of 34 films and 10 TV shows with at least 8 movies and 6 TV shows coming soon. The first 23 movies are considered the Infinity Saga and revolve around Thanos and the Infinity Stones. The current set of films and TV shows are considered the Multiverse Saga and revolve around Kang the Conqueror and the Multiverse. The MCU has done a great job of tying together stories from so many different sub-franchises into one complete narrative. The last culmination of films ended with Avengers Endgame which paid off over 20 films and 10 years of storytelling. Nothing like this has been done in film before nor has anything been done since then. This franchise consists of a lot of my favorite movies and characters. I also really enjoy the more lighthearted tone that has been established. Overall, the MCU is the perfect example of interconnected storytelling and sets a standard that many other franchises have tried and failed to achieve. Click here to see my blog post ranking of the MCU films and here to see my blog post ranking of Phase 4 of the MCU

4. Star Wars

Star Wars is the franchise that has been one of my favorites for the longest. This franchise consists of 9 movies in the Skywalker Saga, 2 Spin films, and 10 TV shows with potentially 3 more movies and 3 movie TV shows in the works. I have been a Star Wars fan for as long as I can remember. I have many Star Wars action figures, Lego Sets, T-shirts, and a Millennium Falcon sitting in the corner of my apartment. This franchise consists of multiple of my favorite movies, TV shows, and fictional characters. I just love the escapism to a faraway galaxy and a classic Sci-Fi fantasy adventure. This franchise was also instrumental in the development of special effects. Movies would not be where they are today without the original films. I think the scores in these films are just so good with John Williams creating amazing music for almost every single film. This franchise also does a great job of building out the world of Star Wars with each movie and TV show exploring either a new planet or a different time. In the end, this is probably my favorite franchise of all time and one that was instrumental in my love of movies. Click here to see my blog post ranking of the Star Wars films and here to see my blog post ranking of the TV shows.

5. DCEU

The DCEU is the second superhero franchise to make the list. The DCEU consists of fifteen movies and one TV show with one final film (Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom) coming soon before the DC universe reboots. The DCEU has had its ups and downs but overall I have really enjoyed this franchise. The characters in this franchise are some of my all-time favorite heroes. I also liked how they decided to embrace standalone stories instead of trying to hold everything together with an overarching plot. I think most of the action in these movies was very well done and I very much like all of the actors they chose to play the various characters. A lot of people don't really like this franchise but I think, after a few rough patches, it has turned out okay. I enjoyed the Snyder Trilogy that started out this franchise as well as all of the lighter-toned movies after it. Overall, this franchise ended up being a lot of fun and while it did have some rough points, now that it is ending, I only remember the good stuff. Click here to see my blog post ranking of the DCEU films.

6. Mission Impossible

The Mission Impossible franchise is one of the premier spy franchises today and somehow just keeps getting better and better. This franchise consists of seven movies with at least one more on the way. Tom Cruise has done a fantastic job of bringing this franchise to become the blockbuster spectacle that it is today. Ethan Hunt is such an interesting character to follow and the rest of his team is always so much fun. This franchise always comes through with big exciting action sequences whether it be the helicopter chase in MI:6, the train fight in MI:7, or the Dubai tower sequence in MI:4. These movies also have a ton of amazing practical stunts with Tom Cruise risking his life for our entertainment. There hasn't been a bad Mission Impossible movie yet and at this rate, they just keep getting better and better, In the end, this is a fantastic franchise with amazing stunt work and exciting action and I just can't want to see where it goes from here. Click here to see my blog post ranking of the Mission Impossible films.

7. Indiana Jones

The Indiana Jones franchise is easily the most iconic adventure movie franchise out there and has inspired so many adventure movies we see today. The Indiana Jones franchise consists of five movies and a spin-off TV show about Young Indiana Jones. The original three films are so iconic and some of the greatest films ever made. Harrison Ford was the perfect person to center this franchise around. He has the charm and the humor that makes a perfect Indiana Jones. The action in these movies is also so much fun with most of the action being very practical. There are so many iconic moments in this franchise such as the big boulder chase, the truck chase, and the Indy vs. the tank sequence. These movies always manage to deliver top-notch action that is very entertaining. Even the last two movies, while very flawed, are still so much fun to watch. The side characters in these movies are also a lot of fun with characters such as Salah, Marcus Brody, Henry Jones Sr., Short Round, and Marion. Finally, just like in Star Wars, the music by John Williams is amazing with songs that perfectly match the tone of the scene. Overall, the Indiana Jones franchise is the quintessential adventure franchise. Click Here to see my blog post ranking of the Indiana Jones films.

8. Star Trek

Star Trek is another iconic Sci-Fi franchise and surprisingly not one I really got into until my senior year of college. The Star Trek franchise consists of ten original films, three rebooted films, and 10 TV shows. I have seen all of the movies but only three of the TV shows (Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Animated Series, and Star Trek: The Next Generation). I enjoyed almost all of the movies and all three TV shows. I actually have The Next Generation as one of my all-time favorite TV shows. The Star Trek franchise tells so many great stories in both the movies and TV shows. It also has so many great and iconic characters in both the original series and the next generation. I really like that this show goes hard into the Sci-Fi aspect more so than fantasy like in Star Wars. It just has more of a sense of realism to it. The shows and movies also have so many cool aliens and planets that show up such as the Klingons, The Vulcans, The Borg, and so many others. There are also a few solid space battles that are a lot of fun to see. In the end, this is a very fun franchise that is a perfect example of classic Sci-Fi. Click here to see my Letterbox'd ranking of the Star Trek films.

9. James Bond

The James Bond franchise is the OG spy action franchise. This franchise consists of twenty-five films with six actors playing the title character over the years. This is the quintessential spy franchise that has been an inspiration for spy movies for the past 60 years. Just like with many of these other franchises, the effects are very practical. Some may not have aged super well but the movies are all very entertaining nonetheless. I quite enjoyed watching through all of these movies and seeing the progression of technology from the 1960s until now. I have enjoyed all of the actors that have played James Bond. I thought they all added something new to the role. Daniel Craig is my favorite out of the actors but they are all very good. I also like all of the globetrotting settings these movies bring in with each film being in a fun new location. I also enjoy the fun gadgets that have become a staple of the James Bond franchise. Finally, I enjoy the intro songs that are specific to the franchise. Each movie has its own unique opening song that is usually pretty decent. Overall, The James Bond franchise is a very exciting franchise and one that has been around for so long and will probably always be around. Click here to see my Letterbox'd ranking of the James Bond films.

10. John Wick

The John Wick is the final franchise on this list and is the premier action franchise of today. The John Wick franchise consists of four films with a spin-off film and TV show coming soon. The John Wick franchise is the most elite and consistent action franchise out today. All four movies are very good to great films with very few flaws throughout the entire franchise. The action sequences in this film are top-notch notch with very practical and precise fight choreography. Keanu Reaves is a great lead for this franchise as he can handle the tone and fighting choreography very well. There are so many solid action sequences that are exciting and realistic while also still managing to have some over-the-top aspects to them. One of the best things about this franchise is the world-building. This underground world is just so interesting and so well-established. I really like how much of it we get to explore as each movie manages to dive deeper into some new aspect. In the end, this is a very well-done franchise and easily one of the best-made and consistent franchises out there. Click here to see my blog post ranking of the John Wick films.