Few anime have reached the monumental success of Dragon Ball, with the work of Akira Toriyama inspiring many people all over the world. Toriyama told the story of Goku, one of the last remaining Saiyans from Planet Vegeta who crash-landed on Earth. Over the years, he goes on to fight multiple enemies, continuously raising his power level every time he defeats someone.
Due to its success, Toei Animation decided to expand the Dragon Ball universe by releasing movies. As of now, the studio has made over 20 Dragon Ball movies that tell many new narratives about the Z Fighters. However, the development and nature of these movies put their canonical status into question.
For most of the movies, Akira Toriyama had no involvement with the production. This allowed Toei Animation to create their own original stories with the Dragon Ball characters, regardless of the original continuity. Therefore, the timeline placement of the Dragon Ball movies can be somewhat confusing, or they simply don’t fit at all.
If you want to watch the relevant films, then here’s a complete list of the canon and non-canon Dragon Ball movies.
Dragon Ball Canon Movies
– Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods (2013)
– Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’ (2015)
– Dragon Ball Super: Broly (2018)
– Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (2022)
Dragon Ball Non-Canon Movies
– Dragon Ball: Curse of the Blood Rubies (1986)
– Dragon Ball: Sleeping Princess in Devil’s Castle (1987)
– Dragon Ball: Mystical Adventure (1988)
– Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone (1989)
– Dragon Ball Z: The World’s Strongest (1990)
– Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might (1990)
– Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug (1991)
– Dragon Ball Z: Cooler’s Revenge (1991)
– Dragon Ball Z: The Return of Cooler (1992)
– Dragon Ball Z: Super Android 13! (1992)
– Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan (1993)
– Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound (1993)
– Dragon Ball Z: Broly – Second Coming (1994)
– Dragon Ball Z: Bio-Broly (1994)
– Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn (1995)
– Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon (1995)
– Dragon Ball: The Path to Power (1996)
Only a few Dragon Ball movies are canon to the original story. The first official canon movie where Akira Toriyama was directly involved with development was Battle of Gods. It was eventually followed by a sequel titled Resurrection ‘F’ back in 2015. Eventually, the two movies were adapted into story arcs in Dragon Ball Super. After Dragon Ball Super’s Tournament of Power, the story continues in the movies Broly and Super Hero.
Other than those movies, the others are considered non-canon. However, people argue that some movies can easily fit into the original timeline. For instance, the Dead Zone movie happens between the end of Dragon Ball and the start of Dragon Ball Z. Meanwhile, Cooler’s Revenge can take place between Goku’s return and the Androids’ arrival. And finally, Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan could have happened while waiting for the Cell Games to start, while Bojack Unbound occurs after the Cell Games. Even though these movies don’t contradict any events, they’re not canon because they have no bearing on the overall story.
The Dragon Ball movies may be mostly non-canon, but they’re enjoyable to watch. With Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero releasing in theaters, now’s a perfect time to immerse yourself in the world of Dragon Ball. If you crave more Dragon Ball content, then watching the movies is a great way to satisfy those cravings.
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