The Most Powerful Weapons In DC Superhero Movies, Ranked

Ever since Superman hit the big screen in 1978, Warner Bros. has mined the DC Universe for more movies and has recently moved towards building a larger cinematic universe full of heroes. Though the DC Extended Universe wasn't quite the success story many hoped for, it was still responsible for introducing plenty of notable DC heroes and villains to the big screen. Along with them came some of the most powerful weapons in comic books, be they mystical, technological, man-made, or alien creations.

Now, there are plenty of objects of power in DC's live-action catalog to choose from, and each of them serves a special purpose in their respective films. Whether we're talking about standalone movies like "Green Lantern" or the entire DCEU timeline, these are, by far, some of the most powerful weapons ever brought from comics to the silver screen.

Just about every live-action version of the Batmobile is one of Batman's best toys, but none compare to the Wayne Enterprises' advanced military prototype vehicle dubbed "The Tumbler." First appearing in "Batman Begins," this tank is not to be trifled with. Not only does Batman (Christian Bale) use it to outmaneuver the Gotham Police Department, but its stealth capabilities (despite its size) are perfect for nighttime operation. Yes, it has its fair share of guns, but it's not like Batman ever actually shoots anybody.

In "The Dark Knight," we learn that the Tumbler can break apart and release a well-armed motorcycle-like vehicle that Alfred (Michael Caine) calls the Bat-Pod. In "The Dark Knight Rises," Bane (Tom Hardy) and his terrorist group get their hands on a few Tumblers while raiding Wayne Enterprises. Unlike Batman, Bane's forces utilize the Tumbler's more lethal capabilities, terrorizing Gotham for months as they patrol the city. Whether in Batman's hands or Bane's, these vehicles have proven themselves quite intimidating.

When it comes to supernatural threats, one needs a supernatural weapon in order to properly battle them. Tat's where John Constantine's (Keanu Reeves) Holy Shotgun comes in. Built entirely out of holy relics with a 12-shot, 12-gauge drum magazine, this baby can kill anything from vampires and demons to, potentially, the Devil himself. That is, if you can get close enough.

In "Constantine," the titular hero constructs this weapon in order to get revenge on Balthazar (Gavin Rossdale) for killing his buddy Beeman (Max Baker), and all hell breaks loose. The fact that this thing could take out demons who might otherwise be affected by conventional (and mortal) weapons earns it a spot here on this list, but the truth is, it's just a really cool weapon to see in action.

Speaking of supernatural weapons, the Crown of Sabbac is certainly among DC's most powerful. Though it's possible that the Holy Shotgun could render this demonic relic inert, the fact that they exist in two separate cinematic universes prevents us from knowing for sure. Appearing only in 2022's "Black Adam," the crown allows the wearer to access the complete powers of hell as their Shazam-like champion and can even open a doorway to the underworld. It's pretty spooky stuff.

Of course, as with anything inherently demonic, there's a catch. In order to wield the powers of hell, one must first die while holding the crown. It's not exactly the way one would want to level up, but when Ishmael Gregor (Marwan Kenzari) returns with more power than before, only death can stop him from reigning over humanity. Naturally, Black Adam (Dwayne Johnson) rips him in two (literally), destroying the artifact forever.

Based on the armor from Frank Miller's seminal "The Dark Knight Returns" DC Comics miniseries, "Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice" introduced the best live-action Bat-suit to date in the form of the Caped Crusader's anti-Superman mech suit. Believing that Henry Cavill's Superman is a threat to mankind, Ben Affleck's Batman crafts this suit of armor that allows him to go toe-to-toe with the Man of Steel. And, the crazy thing is, it works.

Batman is actually a match for Superman here, and while he had plenty of other weapons at his disposal — including sonic machines, Kryptonite grenades, and even a Kryptonite lance — the suit generally held up against the Kryptonian hero. Of course, this Bat-suit is nowhere near as powerful as Superman, but since Batman only put his armor together in, at most, a few months (and without knowing the full scale of Superman's abilities), it's an impressive weapon that earns its spot on this list.

It might seem silly to put something so realistic as a nuclear warhead on this list, but since only Superman can stop an atomic bomb, it's a necessary addition. In "Superman: The Movie," Lex Luthor (Gene Hackman) sends two nuclear missiles in opposing directions in order to cripple the United States of America and bring his real estate scheme full circle. Of course, at the end of 1978's "Superman," the Man of Steel (played perfectly by Christopher Reeve) sends the bombs into space to explode safely away from mankind.

Later, in "Superman IV: The Quest for Peace," Luthor again uses nuclear power against the Man of Steel, but this time via his living weapon, the Nuclear Man (Mark Pillow), a being made from Superman's very own DNA. The Nuclear Man nearly wipes the floor with Superman, and that's not the only time the Man of Tomorrow suffered while dealing with nuclear power. Although a different universe, "Batman V Superman" pulls once again from Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns" comic to show that Superman can be drained by nuclear energy — at least until he's recharged by the sun.

One might wonder how Blue Beetle's Scarab could be considered more powerful than full-on nukes. The answer is that, unlike nuclear warheads, the Scarab (also called Khaji Da) from "Blue Beetle" has a mind of its own in addition to it's other incredible abilities. Bonding itself to Jaime Reyes (Xolo Maridueña), the extraterrestrial artifact generates a nanotech-like suit of armor that gives Blue Beetle incredible powers and can almost magically generate weapons at will. These weapons range from swords or other melee objects to energy canons that can blast through steel and cause untold levels of damage.

As Blue Beetle, Jaime uses this sentient weapon for good, but it could easily be manipulated (or reverse-engineered) for evil if it ever fell to the wrong hands. Unfortunately, "Blue Beetle" only touched on a small fraction of the Scarab's actual capabilities, but even with that limited introduction, it's easy to see how it's one of the most deadly weapons on this list.

The DCEU's rules of magic are generally undefined, so it can be difficult to measure the true effectiveness of any specific artifact. Despite that, "Black Adam" makes it clear that the Helmet of Nabu is one of the most powerful items in existence. Sometimes called the Helmet of Fate, the helmet chooses who gets to wear it. In this case, Kent Nelson (Pierce Brosnan) is chosen to be Doctor Fate and wield incredible power.

Though the powers that the Helmet of Fate bestows upon those who wear it in the DCEU are also somewhat undefined, we know that the artifact grants the wearer superhuman strength, flight, superhuman longevity (Nelson was over 100 years old), and superior spell casting abilities. This allows Doctor Fate to generate duplicates of himself, teleport, project force fields, create illusions, and fire energy blasts, among other things. Through the helmet's power, Doctor Fate can even resurrect the dead — that's no small feat!

If you've paid any attention to the DCEU, then you've probably seen more than a handful of different tridents used by Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and those around him, but one of the most formidable is the Black Trident. In "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom," we learn of this weapon, born of dark magic and forged by Atlan's (Vincent Regan) brother Kordax (Pilou Asbæk). It is later discovered and used by Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) in his quest for revenge against Aquaman.

What makes this particular trident so frightening? Well, it can turn men into monsters and summon an undead army, for starters. No matter if you live above the sea or below, that's nothing to laugh at. Like Aquaman's trident, it can also enhance the power of others and, in the case of Black Manta, provide strength that rivals even the King of Atlantis'. The Black Trident can only be broken and destroyed by the Trident of Atlan, but even in a broken state, it's a formidable sea-blade in close combat.

Originally wielded by the Atlantean King Atlan (played by Graham McTavish in "Aquaman"), the Trident of Atlan was eventually found and reclaimed by his ancestor, Arthur Curry, who used it to unite Atlantis in the wake of his brother Orm's (Patrick Wilson) foolishness. Aside from being a faithful weapon in battle, the Trident of Atlan is known best for its ability to sense and also command the forces of the sea, allowing Aquaman to contact every one of the ocean's vast creatures and assemble them to his cause.

The trident, due to its mystical nature and unbreakable alloy, can magnify the abilities of the user and even summon lightning strikes underwater. In "Zack Snyder's Justice League," Atlan (played by Julian Lewis Jones) is shown to be a genuine match for even Darkseid (Ray Porter) while wielding his signature weapon, stunning the alien tyrant with a shockwave. Though most powerful in the sea, the Trident of Atlan is not something you'd want to mess with on land. It may not be able to raise the dead, but it can certainly defend the living.

Though they first appear in "Batman v Superman," we get a better understanding of Wonder Woman's (Gal Gadot) signature weapons in 2017's "Wonder Woman." The Bracelets of Submission, for example, are divinely blessed cuffs that prove much more than just a fashion statement. Not only can they deflect bullets and other incredible forces (including Kryptonian heat vision), but when forced together by Diana, they create a massive concussive shockwave that can knock even Superman off his feet.

As for the Lasso of Hestia (sometimes known as the Lasso of Truth), this unbreakable rope can not only hold down a Kryptonian, but it can compel the one bound to tell the complete truth. Though it can be manipulated by powerful gods like Ares (David Thewlis), it's impossible to escape the Lasso's grasp. In combat, it can even be used as a weapon, inflicting terrible damage on whoever is on the receiving end of Diana's wrath.

In "Batman v Superman," Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) uses the corpse of General Zod (Michael Shannon) to create a Kryptonian monster to kill Superman. As the creature grows and adapts to the Man of Steel's abilities, it continues to charge itself and emits a radioactive blast that easily wipes out an abandoned sector of Metropolis. If the monster had been allowed to continue to grow, there's no telling how large and destructive it could become.

Doomsday easily battles Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman all at once, using the full scope of its Kryptonian powers against them. Though it is ultimately killed by the Kryptonite lance, the creature, in turn, kills Superman, and is thus far the only movie villain to succeed in that task.

In "Man of Steel," General Zod hopes to terraform Earth into a New Krypton. To do this, he sends a Kryptonian World Engine to the Indian Ocean, connecting it with his scout ship, Black Zero, on the receiving end in Metropolis. But the World Engine is an immensely powerful machine, one that does more than just terraforming. The device also contains nanotech tentacles meant to annihilate its opponents, making it a clear match for Superman. Its concussive beam nearly crushes our hero under its weight.

But perhaps more interestingly, some have theorized that the whole reason Kryptonite exists in the DCEU at all is due to this machine. When Superman stopped it from completing its terraforming, radioactive minerals based on Krypton's own geology were generated as a result. This means that not only is the World Engine an immensely powerful device, but it may also have the ability to create Superman's greatest weakness.

After Victor Stone (Ray Fischer) was in a terrible accident, his father, Dr. Silas Stone (Joe Morton), took him to S.T.A.R. Labs to save his life. Instead, Victor's body was bound with not just human technology but alien tech as well. Created in part by a Mother Box, Cyborg's body is one of the most powerful objects in the DC Universe. While "Zack Snyder's Justice League" touches on some of his unique powers and abilities, there's a lot that Victor and the League still don't know about what he can do, and the potential is limitless.

Beyond his increased strength, speed, and durability, Cyborg can talk to machines, self-repair, and modify himself however he pleases. His ability to break into any cyber-connected server or device on our planet (potentially any planet) makes him a formidable opponent, and one not easily escapable. In an instant, he could set off the world's nuclear arsenal — or he could just change a red light to green. The choice is entirely up to him.

Sometimes called a Change Engine, a Mother Box is an ancient alien artifact (one of three in the DCEU) that can manipulate the world on a cellular level. As seen in "Zack Snyder's Justice League," one alone can raise the dead, open a Boom Tube, communicate across the galaxy, and even create living weapons such as Cyborg. But when brought together, these Apokoliptian boxes achieve "Unity," making them nearly unstoppable and able to destroy all of reality.

It took both a resurrected Superman and a supercharged Cyborg to separate them, but only after the Flash (Ezra Miller) first reversed time after the heroes' original failure (and sudden deaths). Since the Mother Boxes are also sentient beings, meaning they have wills of their own, the fact that they desire such destruction makes them especially dangerous on top of their already godlike power.

While 2011's "Green Lantern" might not have been the best movie, it did offer us our first look at what a Green Lantern power ring can do in live-action. We know that Hal Jordan's (Ryan Reynolds) ability to overcome fear is what ultimately drew the ring to him in the first place, and it's exactly why, with the ring's power, he was able to defeat Parallax (Clancy Brown) and save the world. But how does a Green Lantern power ring even work? Well, it's all based on willpower, and one's imagination is the limit.

Able to generate anything from a giant Hot Wheels car to an automatic weapon out of pure energy, a Green Lantern power ring can be used to either save the world or end it. Ultimately, these devices are only limited by the imagination of the one who wields them (well, that and their 24-hour power cycle, so don't forget to recharge), which may be a good thing in some cases. The ring also allows the wearer to fly, change their clothing at will, translate alien languages, and generate energy blasts, among other things.

Only appearing in the Zack Snyder directors cut of "Justice League," the Anti-Life Equation is what Darkseid has been after for centuries. Having carved it somewhere in the Earth 500 years ago, he seeks to use it to enslave everyone and everything in existence ever since. According to Steppenwolf, the Anti-Life Equation is "the key to controlling all life and all wills throughout the Multiverse." Described as the "ultimate weapon," Anti-Life would allow Darkseid to control the wills of others, turning everyone into a slave race.

We see glimpses of this in the DCEU through the "Knightmare" future that Batman dreams about. A dark premonition of what might happen if Darkseid found this weapon, it reveals that even Superman, in a moment of weakness, might succumb to Darkseid's control under Anti-Life, and could be used as his enforcer across the galaxy. The fact that this weapon can extend across the multiverse as well is especially notable, meaning it has the ability to control not just the DCEU, but every version of the DC Universe out there.

The Dreamstone from "Wonder Woman 1984" is arguably the most dangerous item in the entire live-action DC catalog. While not inherently a weapon, when used with ill intent, it becomes the most powerful item in existence. It's been linked to the destruction of countless civilizations over the centuries, as it gives the wisher anything their heart desires. In the film, Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal) at one point wishes that he himself could become the Dreamstone, offering him nearly unlimited power to grant wishes for good or for evil.

"Wonder Woman 1984" may not be the most popular film in the DCEU catalog, but it put Diana up against her toughest challenge yet. Only by revoking one's wish can the Dreamstone be stopped and the blessings-turned-curses be reversed. Given that her wish reunited her with Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), this was even harder for Diana to do. Even so, the role of a hero is a selfless one, and, putting humanity first, she forsakes her own happiness to help save the world.