Traditionally, a movie is the kind of entertainment you can watch in an afternoon. Two, maybe three hours if it's an epic, and you're done. TV shows are more widely thought of as the kind of visual stories that can take weeks or months to finish - even when binging - and years if the show's watched while it's on the air. There are numerous films that buck tradition by being part of a wider series, though, with some series having multiple installments that are released over years or even decades.

Many of the longest of these give long-running TV shows a run for their money. The following are ranked from long to longest, but aren't objectively the longest movie series of all time; just among the longest. All are worth exploring for viewers who like getting immersed in a long-running, cinematic storyline. Additionally, because many of these film series' haven't concluded yet, the number of films within each always could change dramatically within the coming years or decades.

12 'Star Wars' (1977 - 2019)

12 films

The Star Wars series has had 12 feature films in roughly 40 years: three trilogies tied to the Skywalker family, two live-action anthology films, and one animated theatrical release in 2008. That barely cracks the surface of all things Star Wars, though, thanks to TV movies, video games, animated shows, live-action shows, and novels (some of which are canon; some aren't) that also contribute to the Star Wars world and its stories.

It's a gargantuan franchise, and even if a viewer were to only focus on the Star Wars films, 12 is still a pretty high number (and there are sure to be more in the coming years, whether they're related to the Skywalker family or not). It's one series where everyone is going to have disagreements over which Star Wars movies are the best, making it one of the most widely-discussed - and perhaps even contentious - film series of all time.

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11 'Gamera' (1965 - 2006)

12 films

As a series, Gamera stands in the shadow of the Godzilla series. This is partly due to it having fewer films, having started a decade after the Godzilla franchise made its debut (hence being seen as a copycat series by some), and also due to it having had its last film released in 2006, with no word on when (or even if) we'll be able to see our favorite giant flying turtle/guardian of Earth again on the big screen. On the other hand, Godzilla has had both American films and a Japanese film featuring him since 2006.

Gamera is a worthy series, though, and far from just a Godzilla knock-off. Most notably, three of the series' 12 films - all made in the 1990s, and comprising what's been called the Heisei Trilogy - are some of the best giant monster movies of all time, even if the titular monster isn't one of the most well-recognized.

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10 'Star Trek' (1979 - 2016)

13 films

Star Wars might be more popular than Star Trek overall, but the latter has the former beat when it comes to live-action movies. About a decade after the classic original series aired on TV in the late 1960s, Star Trek movies began being produced from 1979 onwards. At first, they focused on the cast of the original series, but later films have characters from Star Trek: The Next Generation, and the most recent trilogy (2009-2016) served as a reboot more than anything.

It's also a series that becomes much bigger when you take all the other various TV shows into account, but even without the TV side of things, 13 is still an impressive number of entries. Star Trek has easily become the second-most significant sci-fi series in cinema history with a title beginning with "Star," and that's got to count for something.

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9 'Spider-Man' (1977 - 2023)

17 films

It might be surprising to some, but Spider-Man's existence as a film series did not begin with Sam Raimi's trilogy in the early 2000s. That was the first blockbuster Spider-Man film, sure, but the comic book character had been in several far smaller live-action films before then, dating back to the late 1970s (there was also an official Japanese film featuring the character around this time, too).

Spider-Man's always been a popular comic book figure, but in the 21st century, he's become one of the most popular movie characters, too. With three Raimi-directed films, two Amazing Spider-Man films, three in the MCU, and an animated series based around the multiveverse-hopping Spider-Verse series, it's safe to assume the famed web-slinger isn't going anywhere anytime soon, and will continue to reign supreme at the box office.

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8 'The Mummy' (1932 - 2017)

19 films

The Mummy series might not have the most film entries at a still respectable 19, but it can count itself among the longest-running franchises. With 85 years between the very first Mummy film and the most recent one, it's unlikely that anyone who saw The Mummy in theaters in 1932 was also able to see 2017's The Mummy in theaters.

Maybe it's appropriate that a series about an ancient, undead, potentially immortal mummy will outlive us all. Still, 2017's notorious The Mummy film (starring the usually reliable Tom Cruise) has not only impacted the potential for more Mummy movies but the potential for more modern Universal Monster movies, as that film was supposed to kick off a brand new cinematic universe, had it been a success. As such, it's probably best to keep to the original The Mummy series, with various entries still holding up.

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7 'James Bond' (1962 - 2021)

27 films

The James Bond series has endured for six decades now and shows no sign of stopping any time soon. It's a cleverly devised series, as it maintains various tropes, characters, and formulas throughout all films, but has the freedom to cast a new actor in the lead role when needed, as well as the potential to push the series in various directions when it comes to tone and even genre. Regardless of tone, the Bond film series just about always delivers when it comes to action.

It's why the often silly Roger Moore films can stand alongside the grittier, Jason Bourne-esque Daniel Craig movies. It's accepted that both approaches are James Bond, but each represents a different flavor of the series, in a way. While it's led to some pretty bad James Bond movies and a few creative misfires, it at least always has a way to bounce back or redefine itself as a series, which might be the key to its enduring legacy and popularity over numerous generations.

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6 'Zatoichi' (1962 - 2010)

28 films

The Zatoichi series follows a blind masseuse who's also a skilled swordsman and his various adventures in Japan during the first half of the 1800s. 26 films starred Shintaro Katsu, with two films made in 2003 and 2010, each respectively featuring a different actor in the lead role (Katsu was so great that neither felt quite right).

On top of that, there was also a Zatoichi TV show starring Katsu that went for about 100 episodes, so the character is a hugely popular, influential, and prolific one. What's amazing about the film series at least is how it generally stays so engaging whilst also having each movie follow a relatively distinct formula. There's always good action, well-executed comedic relief, Katsu's charisma, and beautiful Japanese scenery to fall back on, even in the series' lesser entries. As far as long-running samurai series go, it's hard to top the numerous and largely great Zatoichi movies.

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5 'The Marvel Cinematic Universe' (2008 - 2023)

33 films

With 33 films in just 15 years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the fastest-growing (and the most popular) film series at this moment in time. Burnout and audience fatigue could well be on the horizon, but if not, it's possible that within a decade or so, the MCU might end up the biggest film series of all time, at least at its current rate of growth. It's inconsistent as a franchise, sure, but the MCU's best entries make up some of the best superhero movies of all time.

This isn't even factoring in the numerous TV shows that are being released to Disney+, starting in 2021. There's a lot to watch, and given the MCU is much younger than many comparably-sized film series', it already feels like a behemoth that just keeps growing. Still, the first decade of the MCU was concluded excellently with Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, so hopefully, there are things on the horizon that the series as a whole is currently working towards.

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4 'Godzilla' (1954 - 2023)

37 films

Funnily enough, the Godzilla series can be compared to the James Bond series, when exploring why each is so successful. Like James Bond, the Godzilla series has room to change, grow, and mix up various tones and storylines within the one series, whilst retaining similar characters, plots, and various tropes and trademarks that fans would expect to see.

In each franchise, some Godzilla movies are silly and more comedic, and others get a little more violent, dark, and intense. It's easy to call some very underrated and underappreciated, too. With Godzilla specifically, some films prioritize fantasy, some are science-fiction heavy, some are horror movies, some focus on action, and some are a little bit of everything. It's also been a longer-running film series and has more entries than James Bond, so yes, Godzilla could definitely defeat James Bond in a one-on-one fight; no question. Forget Godzilla Vs. Kong; give us Godzilla Vs. Bond!

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3 'Doraemon' (1980 - 2023)

42 films

While the Godzilla franchise is likely the most famous long-running film series produced by Toho, it's not the one with the most entries. This is because it's beaten out by the Doraemon movie franchise, which is a family-friendly sci-fi/fantasy/comedy/anime series - some of these animated movies being better than others - that follows a robotic cat from the future, and the way he helps - and goes on adventures with - a young boy and his friends.

It only has a cult following outside Japan, though the title character is iconic and likely recognizable to those who aren't familiar with the films. In Japan, it's a huge series, and similarly well-known is the long-running manga series that originated the character, as well as various anime series that have aired on TV over the past decades. Doraemon is a huge franchise, and so even watching all 42 films is still arguably only scratching the surface...

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2 'Otoko wa Tsurai yo' (1969 - 2019)

50 films

The Otoko wa Tsurai yo (or It's Tough Being a Man) series stands as the rare film series that reached the milestone of 50 movies. And impressively, it did so over 50 years, too, with all but the final film featuring Kiyoshi Atsumi as the unlucky lead character, Tora-san, a lovable yet flawed bachelor who could never properly settle down with a romantic partner, no matter how hard he tried.

He sadly passed away in the late 1990s, leaving the series without a proper conclusion. But for the 50th anniversary of the first film, a final, 50th film was made in 2019, and it's one of the best Japanese films in recent memory. Serving as a tribute for both Atsumi and his character, it celebrates the monumental, funny, sad, consistently entertaining Japanese film series that's unfortunately criminally underrated outside of Japan. It's a great comedy series, and a greatly lengthy one.

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1 'Wong Fei-hung' (1949 - 2018)

123 films

The Wong Fei-hung series is likely the longest movie franchise of all time, with a staggering 123 films belonging to a series that's been running for seven decades now. By no means is it a series that has a single creator or actor behind it, due to its longevity, but each film in the series revolves around the same central character.

That figure is the titular Wong Fei-hung, a Chinese martial artist and folk hero who lived throughout the back half of the 1800s and passed away in the 1920s. He's been immortalized in over 100 films to date, with the most famous of those likely being the movies in the Once Upon a Time in China series, where he's played by superstar martial arts actor Jet Li (in four out of the six entries). Those are probably the best places to start for those wanting to explore this character's cinematic history.

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