10 Marvel Blockbusters Produced by Victoria Alonso

Avengers: Endgame (2019)​

After 21 films with an increasingly complex and sometimes contradictory narrative, Avengers: Endgame brought the most ambitious saga in history to a conclusion — a lively extravaganza reminiscent of an Italian opera. The time-travel theme doesn’t make much sense, and some of the characters end on a dubious note, but the emotional impact of this extraordinary film is hard to resist. Beyond the special effects, camerawork and solid script, the performances of superstars the likes of Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson and Mark Ruffalo transform this ending into something beyond mere entertainment. Not surprisingly, this film has taken in nearly $3 billion worldwide.​​

Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

​Infinity War, which lays the groundwork for the grand finale in Avengers: Endgame, is not exactly a work of art, but it is a fantastic display of cinematic artistry. In this 19th installment of the Marvel saga, the challenge was to strike a balance between suspense and comedy, as well as clearly mapping out the actions and decisions that bring all these superheroes together in their desperate mission to save the universe. The least-convincing aspect is the villainous character of Thanos, who collects all six Infinity Stones in an attempt to destroy half of all living beings. The battle scenes are a lavish display of adrenaline and motion. This film grossed just over $2 billion.​​

Black Panther (2018)

​​Black Panther is the most revolutionary and innovative film in the Marvel canon. In a long-overdue Hollywood first, director and cowriter Ryan Coogler created an African American superhero who is faithful to his roots, yet still universal. He did so by focusing on Afrofuturism, a dynamic fusion of African folklore, elements of science fiction and a soundtrack featuring the most progressive edge of hip-hop. At times it feels like a James Bond film, but it also measures up perfectly to Marvel’s epic standards. Sadly, its lead actor, Chadwick Boseman, passed away in 2020 at age 43. This film grossed an estimated $1.3 billion worldwide.

Captain America: Civil War (2016)​

With superpowers comes great responsibility, which can sometimes be too much to bear. A weighty moral argument adds complexity to this engrossing conclusion to the Captain America trilogy (these three films, taken together, may be Marvel’s best to date). The plot unfolds in a new reality, rife with paranoia and mixed feelings. The seemingly inevitable intra-superhero civil war ultimately breaks out, and the final showdown between Iron Man and Captain America is violent and unforgettable. This film grossed about $1.1 billion.​​

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)​

After the high-energy sequence of explosions and special effects in The Avengers, keeping up the excitement in a sequel seemed to be an impossible mission. But writer and director Joss Whedon pulled it off by focusing on a smart concept full of possibilities: the idea of an artificial entity that rebels, takes on bodily form and decides to destroy humanity as the way to save planet Earth. And Ultron plants the seeds for the inner conflict that would provide the basis for a future film in the saga. This film grossed around $1.4 billion.​​​

​​Iron Man 3 (2013)​

Much of the beauty in Marvel’s storytelling lies in building upon everything that came earlier. Up until the moment when the writers began to muddle the plotlines with the introduction of infinite multiverses (implying that no event is actually very important), the scaffolding of parallel stories was stunning. Released in 2013, the third installment in the Iron Man series leans heavily on our prior knowledge of the hero, his strengths and weaknesses. Ben Kingsley shines as the Mandarin, a villain who is more than meets the eye. This film took in about $1.2 billion.​​​

The Avengers (2012)

​More than an excellent action-adventure flick, The Avengers scored a cinematic feat: It was preceded by five films that invested the time and patience to lay out in detail the individual stories of Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and The Incredible Hulk. When all of these characters come together — along with Black Widow and Hawkeye — to turn back an extraterrestrial threat, the viewer’s empathy is absolute. This film grossed over $1.5 billion; it was the third greatest opening-weekend box office hit of all time, and the highest-grossing film of 2012.​​​​

Ernesto Lechner is a contributing writer who covers music, film and culture. A frequent contributor to the Latin Grammy Awards, his work has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Rolling Stone and Billboard, among other major publications.​