The superhero movie genre has proven itself one of the most consistently popular and successful in modern cinema. Big franchises and comic book inspiration might seem to be at the core of the genre’s success, but really, all of its stories boil down to the strengths and weaknesses of their characters. The best superhero movies are usually those with the most compelling, complex, and charismatic characters, with heroes, villains, and everyone in between all being given a role to play. While the main hero and villain always receive the most attention, there are often supporting heroes that are equally as interesting.
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In fact, in some cases, the sidekick is actually a better character than the hero. There are many examples of sidekicks who could easily support their own solo movie, standing out as exciting movie superheroes in their own right. Each of the following is an example of a sidekick that either did all the heavy lifting or was otherwise an incredibly interesting character that simply deserved their own story, proving that sometimes the sidekicks are just as good — or even better — than the heroes they fight alongside.
5) Hit-Girl (Kick-Ass)
First introduced in Kick-Ass, Hit-Girl is the alter-ego of Mindy Macready, the daughter of Damon Macready, also known as the vigilante Big Daddy. After her father’s death, Hit-Girl becomes the de facto sidekick of Kick-Ass, despite being a far better and more qualified crimefighter than the movie’s eponymous hero. Chloë Grace Moretz plays Hit-Girl in both 2010’s Kick-Ass and its 2013 sequel, Kick-Ass 2. Known for her foul mouth and brutal fighting style despite her young age, Hit-Girl is an incredibly memorable character.
As well as delivering some of the most brutal superhero movie takedowns of all time, Hit-Girl serves as much as a mentor to Kick-Ass as she does a sidekick. Even so, the movies paint her very much as the supporting character, and that’s something that feels like a missed opportunity. Chloë Grace Moretz’s incredible performance in the role outlines just how great a Hit-Girl solo movie could be, perfectly combining comedy and brutal violence. While she was never supposed to be the focus of the Kick-Ass movies, she easily could serve as the lead in her own superhero movies.
4) Kato (The Green Hornet)
In all fairness, the whole point of the Green Hornet has long been that his sidekick, Kato, is far superior to the titular character. It was true of the 1960s TV show, and it remained a key part of the 2011 movie reboot. The Green Hornet follows the eponymous vigilante, who is by day a wealthy young newspaper publisher named Britt Reid, and his sidekick, Kato, who is a master of martial arts and an expert engineer.
While the 2011 adaptation might not have been a superhero movie flop, it was widely dismissed by critics and has since been largely forgotten. In fact, Kato is perhaps the only truly memorable aspect of the film, as he stands out as the only character with the charisma and action chops to actually lead a superhero story. In almost every conceivable way, The Green Hornet paints Kato as a far more interesting character than the titular vigilante, and it seems all too clear that he probably deserved a movie following his own solo exploits as a crimefighter.
3) Robin (Batman Forever)
While both Batman Foreverand its sequel, Batman & Robin, are remembered as bad superhero movies, they do possess a certain wacky, garish charm. They also delivered the only big-screen iteration of Robin to date, with Batman taking the Boy Wonder under his wing as a ward and crime-fighting sidekick. While many fans disregard Chris O’Donnell’s performance as Robin as being as poor as the movies themselves are perceived to be, he’s actually a far better character than he gets credit for.
Over the course of his two movie appearances, O’Donnell’s Robin proves to be a capable hero in his own right, and he’s a character we could easily get behind. Had another director opted to give him a solo story, he’d easily have commanded enough screen presence to make it work, provided it was written with some care for thee been great, but there’s no denying that Robin is a great movie sidekick
2) X-23 (Logan)
Logan is one of the few Marvel movies that truly live up to the hype, giving its titular character a visceral and emotional story that stands out as a remarkable piece of superhero cinema. Its story sees an aging Wolverine discover his biological daughter, X-23, and follows him as he sets out to protect her from forces seeking to exploit her abilities. Logan’s daughter, also known as Laura, effectively serves as his young sidekick throughout the movie, fighting alongside him with her own bone claws and animalistic fighting style.
The fact that she so perfectly matches Wolverine’s own character makes her a great sidekick, but also a great successor to his hero mantle. She’s an excellent character who boasts a similar yet crucially distinct origin to her father, but with enough key differences to make her an incredibly compelling young hero. There are many who hope to see X-23 return again in the MCU after her appearance in Deadpool & Wolverine, proving that she more than deserves her own solo movie.
1) Judge Anderson (Dredd)
If ever there was a superhero movie that built a great universe out of its comic bookanguishing in development hell, the adaptation of the 2000 AD character of the same name has earned itself a cult following, with Karl Urban’s portrayal of the stony-faced titular lawman earning considerable praise. However, the movie also introduced his sidekick of sorts, Judge Anderson, who is an equally storied 2000 AD character
For all of Judge Dredd’s hard-edged cynicism, Anderson is a more human and compassionate figure with telepathic and precognitive abilities. She’s a hugely intriguing character with a rich comic book history of her own, making her seem an obvious contender for a superhero movie sidekick that deserves her own star vehicle. There are a number of iconic Judge Anderson stories in 2000 AD history, and any one of them would be easy to adapt into a compelling solo story for the character introduced in Dredd.
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