8 Amazing Superhero Movie Crossovers

6) The Punisher – Spider-Man 2

Sometimes superhero crossovers are all the better because you have to hunt for them. A great example of this is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo from none other than The Punisher in Spider-Man 2. It occurs when Mary Jane runs away from her wedding to be with Peter. As she does so, she passes a serious-looking guy in a trench coat.

The film’s DVD commentary confirms this is intended to be Frank Castle, who also starred in his own movie in 2004. The intention was for that film’s star, Thomas Jane to appear here, but contract issues precluded this. Instead, Jane’s stunt double filled in for him. Not that you would notice the difference though, as they look a hell of a lot alike.

5) Tony’s Putting A Team Together – The Incredible Hulk

Post-credits scenes in superhero movies have become the home of extra fan-pleasing nuggets, which often feature little crossovers. For example, Mark Ruffalo turning up at the end of Iron Man 3.

But one of the first, and still most thrilling, is Tony Stark’s cameo at the end of The Incredible Hulk. Only the second movie in the then-infant MCU, it meant a lot at the time that Robert Downey Jr. had crossed over onto the Jade Giant’s movie. We just hadn’t seen anything like it on the big screen before.

Sure, the scene doesn’t quite gel perfectly with later developments (why is Tony trying to recruit General Ross into The Avengers?), but that doesn’t diminish the excitement we all felt when watching it for the first time. In retrospect, it’s responsible for opening the door for all subsequent Marvel crossovers.