Watching an entire film franchise is a big commitment, especially as the length of popular blockbusters has only increased in recent years. Major franchises, like the Harry Potter series, the expansive Star Wars films, and most notably, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, feature multiple installments necessary to understand critical canonical events.

Because these universes are vast, franchise films often face difficulty fitting clear world-building, countless characters, and an engaging series-driven plot into a typical 90-minute runtime. So, it makes sense that most popular modern blockbusters hit over the two-hour mark. But some stories are naturally more extensive than others. And while length doesn’t always equal critical acclaim, these ten films provide the most extended escape into viewers’ favorite fantasy worlds.

10 ‘Twilight: New Moon’ (2009)

Runtime: 2 hours and 10 minutes

Surprisingly, the longest film in the Twilight franchise is the one that Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) is in the least. In the series’ second installment, Edward leaves Bella (Kristen Stewart) in Forks, where, after falling into a deep depression, she grows closer to Jacob (Taylor Lautner) as he undergoes a mysterious transformation. With the Cullens primarily out of the picture, New Moon showcases other key fantasy elements – werewolves.

While it is interesting to learn about the longstanding tensions between the Cullens and the Quileute tribe, the lackluster story and slow pacing of New Moon make its length intensely felt. Yes, none of the Twilight films are cinematic marvels, but Twilight and Breaking Dawn: Part 2 are driven by exciting high-stakes and pure YA fantasy, making their installments much more rewarding. New Moon tries to sway viewers to Team Jacob, but its excess length and slow pacing serve as an incubation period to strengthen Bella and Edward’s love story over anything else.

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9 ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ (2016)

Runtime: 2 hours and 24 minutes

The hype leading into X-Men: Apocalypse was real, particularly after the highly successful and well-executed 2014 film X-Men: Days of Future Past. When Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac), the first-ever mutant, awakens with a plan to remake the world in his image, Professor X (James McAvoy) and Raven (Jennifer Lawrence) band together X-Men old and new, to defeat him. However, its final product was a franchise-killing mess that even great performances from Michael Fassbender as Magneto and Sophie Turner as Jean Grey could not save.

Although the film has the most extended runtime of any X-Men movie, it struggles to juggle its endless roster of characters, particularly new additions such as Jubilee (Lana Condor) and Young Storm (Alexandra Shipp). Magneto’s moral struggle and eventual redemption are compelling, but the weight of his storyline is lost amidst unfulfilling action sequences and poor pacing. And while Oscar Isaac’s casting as Apocalypse was a key draw for many, his talents are drowned out by overdone prosthetics that lead to a stiff and underwhelming performance.

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8 ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ (2017)

Runtime: 2 hours and 32 minutes

Written and directed by Rian Johnson, The Last Jedi is the iconic series’ longest and possibly most controversial film. Picking up where The Force Awakens left off, Rey (Daisy Ridley) continues to seek out Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in hopes that he will teach her the ways of The Force. As the resistance rallies against the First Order, Rey and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) uncover and explore a surprising connection. While the film is divisive among Star Wars fans, there is no doubt that Johnson’s unique direction pushed the series into an innovative and exciting new era.

The film may be lengthy, but it showcases some of the franchise’s most exciting fight sequences, such as Rey and Kylo’s joint attack against the Praetorian Guards in the now iconic throne room scene. Kylo’s character is also a major standout of the film, as its extended runtime allows for a deep and distinct arc highlighted by Adam Driver’s impressive performance. While he begins the movie in Darth Vader’s shadow, by the end of the story, he has transformed into a ruthless and genuinely menacing villain. Although the side resistance plot drags slightly, the film certainly earns its length due to its unexpected and exciting take on the classic series.

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7 ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ (2023)

Runtime: 2 hours and 34 minutes

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny sees Harrison Ford’s Indy back in action more than fifteen years after the last Indiana Jones installment. Featuring Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Indy’s morally ambiguous but spunky partner, Helena, and a menacing performance from Mads Mikkelsen as villain Jürgen Voller, expectations were high for Ford’s return as one of the most iconic action heroes of all time. This installment is notably the first not directed by Steven Spielberg due to a long and complicated development process resulting in director James Mangold taking the ropes for Indy’s final goodbye.

Despite being the fifth and final film in a world-renowned franchise, Dial of Destiny failed to perform at the box office. Indy may be a beloved character among older filmgoers, but its failures to capture the attention of younger audiences caused a significant slump in viewer turnout. And while it was indeed thrilling to see Ford back on the big screen, the film’s lengthy runtime would have benefited from a sharper and more contained plot akin to past installments. Viewers love Indiana Jones films for their thrilling action sequences reliant on practical effects. Still, Dial of Destiny’s uneven pacing and overreliance on CGI and de-aging technology make us miss the old days of Indy’s reign.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is available to stream on Disney+ in the U.S. starting December 1st.

6 ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes’ (2023)

Runtime: 2 hours and 38 minutes

Based on Suzanne Collins’ 2020 book of the same name, this long-awaited prequel gives viewers a look into the thorny early beginnings of President Snow (Donald Sutherland/Tom Blyth). Fans have been clamoring to see The Hunger Games universe revisited on screen since the original franchise ended with Mockingjay: Part 2 in 2015. The series is already hailed as one of the best YA adaptations of the 2010s, but The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes may be its best installment to date.

While the film’s runtime may be lengthy, director Francis Lawrence follows the book’s events to a near T, covering Lucy Gray’s (Rachel Ziegler) games and Snow’s time as a peacekeeper in District 12 without feeling rushed or overly bloated. The film could have been split into two parts, which worked in Mockingjay’s favor, but containing Snow’s character arc in one film makes his eventual spiral to villainy all the more rewarding. Also, the powerhouse performances from newcomers Blythe and Ziegler, alongside established actors such as Viola Davis and Peter Dinklage, make the film an engaging watch from start to finish. The original Hunger Games films will never be forgotten, but this exciting new installment earns its length and critical acclaim.

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5 ‘Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets’ (2002)

Runtime: 2 hours and 41 minutes

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is not only the longest installment in the eight-part Harry Potter series, but it also manages to fit a majority of the book’s events into this nearly three-hour adaptation. The second and last Potter film to be directed by Chris Columbus builds on the expert world-building of the first movie and proves just how crucial Columbus’ direction was to their success. From Harry’s (Daniel Radcliffe) escape from Privet Drive to his later confrontation with Tom Riddle and the deadly Basilisk in the Chamber, viewers are expertly reintroduced to the Wizarding World while also exploring the dark tonal shift that is to come for Harry, Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson).

Although the commitment to remaining loyal to the book is admirable, the film’s length works to its detriment when ranking it against the other Harry Potter movies. Potter films are notably plot-dense, but Chamber of Secrets is the most laborious to watch, requiring viewers to track multiple intersecting story elements that take some time to reach a climatic payoff. However, Chamber of Secrets strikes an even tonal line between humor, magic, and bleakness, making it a prime example of the charm that made the early Potter installments special.

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4 ‘No Time to Die’ (2021)

Runtime: 2 hours 43 minutes

After fifteen years, No Time to Die saw Daniel Craig bid farewell to the character of James Bond in the series’ longest film yet. Director Cary Fukunaga handles Bond’s final hurrah with great care, all while delivering sleek and memorable action sequences. But, while iterations of Bond have varied throughout the years, No Time to Die complicates the film’s successful formula too much, yielding a cramped plot and bloated story that falters an otherwise exciting sendoff.

Although Craig’s portrayal of Bond remains top-notch, the film fails to earn its runtime, cramming loads of unclear plot devices into a single Bond story. Exciting moments such as Bond’s team-up with Paloma (Ana De Armas) feel more like minuscule touchstones rather than individual moments coming together to service a tight plot. Rami Malik’s portrayal of villain Lyutsifer Safin may not be the most menacing, but is bolstered by a hauntingly unique introduction to his character that distinguishes him from previous Bond evils. The film may not be perfect and suffers from its meandering runtime. However, it is still a touching sendoff to Craig’s iconic portrayalone of the film’s favorite secret agent.

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3 ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One’ (2023)

Runtime: 2 hours and 43 minutes

The Mission: Impossible films have become hallmarks of the action genre due to Tom Cruise’s commitment to capturing wild and boundary-pushing practical stunts on screen. While a two-part story is a gamble for an action franchise, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One manages to capture the character-driven edge-of-your-seat action that has made the franchise so beloved while managing to tell a self-contained story despite being a ‘part one’ of a two-part narrative.

A nearly three-hour runtime is undoubtedly a lengthy one. Still, director Christopher Mcquarrie and longtime partner Cruise have become experts at creating exciting action sequences that keep audiences entertained from start to finish. Dead Reckoning Part One may not be as tight with the narrative as franchise standout Mission: Impossible Fallout and could have done without Ethan’s (Tom Cruise) early mission to find Ilsa (Rebecca Ferguson) in the desert, but it excels in its ability to introduce new standout characters such as Grace (Hayley Atwell) and Paris (Pom Klementieff) with ease. And while the choice to center the movie’s big bad around an omnipresent AI villain is a bit abstract for a Mission film, McQuarrie effectively uses its long runtime to convey the threat of The Entity as clearly as possible. With exciting action sequences blended with humor and real emotional stakes, Dead Reckoning not only earns its length but keeps us eager to discover what is around the corner come part two.

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2 ‘Avengers: Endgame’ (2019)

Runtime: 3 hours and 2 minutes

This list would be incomplete without Avengers: Endgame, which, aside from being one of the most expensive films ever made, is objectively one of the best comic book movies of the 2010s. As if ​​​​​Avengers: Infinity War‘s 2 hour and 29-minute runtime wasn’t enough, Endgame is undoubtedly a beast to sit through. But the Russo Brothers‘ ability to conclude over ten years of Marvel filmmaking in one epic three-hour conclusion is genuinely admirable and has made Endgame the undeniable peak of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Endgame will always be viewed as an iconic cultural and cinematic moment, but its length slightly deters its rewatchability and highlights its flaws. Carving out three hours dedicated to the MCU is no easy feat, mainly because the endless barrage of film and TV content Marvel fans are expected to keep up with them these days. Plot points such as “Bro Thor” and the underwhelming use of Hulk’s (Mark Ruffalo) character do not hold up upon multiple viewings, feeling like a waste of time that could have been much better service for an essential sendoff to such vital characters. Yet, Endgame’s three hours are well deserved and crucial to nailing such a pivotal finale to a decade of iconic Hollywood filmmaking.

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1 ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King’ (2003)

Runtime: 3 hours and 30 minutes

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is the longest franchise film of all time and a masterclass in fantasy filmmaking. This whopping three-and-a-half-hour finale sees Frodo (Elijah Wood) and the Fellowship band together to destroy the One Ring once and for all. And while the runtime may be lofty, director Peter Jackson expertly uses every second of the film to deliver a must-watch emotional and action-packed conclusion to the beloved Lord of the Rings series.

Most importantly, the film’s runtime develops impactful and intricate character arcs that result in a rewarding watch. Add on the use of jaw-dropping practical sets combined with top-notch world-building, and it makes sense that this was the first fantasy film to win Best Picture at the Oscars. Every second keeps viewers engaged in this epic conclusion, proving that The Return of the King is more than a franchise film; it’s a true marvel in cinema history.

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NEXT: ’20 Best Movies That Are Over Three Hours Long, Ranked’