10 Things We Loved About Pre-MCU Comic Book Movies

There was a time when comic book films were often perceived as juvenile entertainment made for children and basement dwelling nerds. With that outdated perspective, it was difficult to get name actors to play fan favourite characters.

Fortunately, when Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart signed on to play Erik Lensherr and Charles Xavier in Bryan Singer's X-Men, the thespians elevated the material and demonstrated that these types of movies could be just as entertaining and thought provoking as any other genre.

The somewhat friendly dynamic these actors brought to their respective roles further illustrated that heroes and villains need not be presented as mere black and white archetypes, but rather, three dimensional beings with complex motivations.

Also, when Alfred Molina was cast as Doc Ock in Spider-Man 2, his transition from well-meaning scientist to Peter Parker's antagonist became one of the finest character arcs and performances in a superhero film.