As we approach 2025 and the end of the 21st century’s first quarter, we wanted to look back to see which actors, actresses, directors, and movies have stood the test of time. With that in mind, for the rest of the year, the Bitesize Top Five will be giving a consensus view on what we think are the Bests of everything since 2000. We are only looking at work released since January 1, 2000, so don’t get mad because your favourites of the 90s didn’t make it.
As always, each writer ranks his or her top 15 in the category. Those lists are then weighted on a reverse point system. After all the points are tallied up, the entries with the most total points make up the Bitesize Top Five.
5. THE PLANET OF THE APES FRANCHISE
If you told me a famed Batman director was going to make this list, my money would have been on Christopher Nolan. Instead, we get Matt Reeves, who is no less deserving. Reeves' Apes trilogy (now a quadrilogy with Wes Ball's continuation) is one of those series where everyone has a different favourite installment, and every opinion is justifiable. Rise tells a story of compassion from a human side, Dawn tells a story of compassion from a primate side, and War tells a story where neither side exhibits much compassion. These all come together to create one of the greatest origin tales we've seen in cinema. - Nick
4. THE WIZARDING WORLD
Like many, the Harry Potter films were a huge part of my childhood. The first film was released when I was a toddler, with the last one dropping when I was just shy of becoming a teenager, so the adventures of Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Hermione (Emma Watson), and Ron (Rupert Grint) had a significant impact on me, to the extent I feel like I grew up with the magical trio. Adapted from the immensely popular fantasy novels by J.K. Rowling, each film is impressively distinct, meticulously crafted, and a hit with audiences and critics alike. Let’s not forget the series boasts iconic performances from some of Britain's finest acting talent too. For more than a decade, the films brought witchcraft and wizardry to life in such captivating, creative, and exciting ways that it became one of the highest-grossing media franchises ever, behind the MCU and Star Wars, whilst having an unprecedented cultural impact, resonating with both children and adults. Plus, with a TV series destined for a 2026 release on Max, the Wizarding World still has more magic to conjure up. - Katie
3. THE MIDDLE EARTH SAGA
In terms of genre blockbuster franchises, it's my humble opinion that there's never going to be anything that tops The Lord of the Rings. Peter Jackson's original trilogy is not only a marvel for the time it was released, but it holds up incredibly well thanks to the magnificent crafts on display and storytelling that elevates these films into something special. The trilogy was an Oscar juggernaut, with Return of the King winning all 11 Oscars it was nominated for, including Best Picture, and it has only grown in influence. Our first foray into Middle Earth was followed up years later with The Hobbit trilogy, and while it didn't live up to the gargantuan standards of the original trilogy, they were still great films in their own right. Then you have the vastly underrated Prime series The Rings of Power. The Middle Earth Saga is beyond special to most film-lovers, and deservedly so. - Adriano
2. THE MISSION IMPOSSIBLE FRANCHISE
There aren’t many franchises that have had the same longevity and consistency as Mission: Impossible. Each movie operates with unique and distinct elements, following Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and the IMF team as they fight global threats all over the world, while simultaneously raising the stakes and somehow getting bigger and more action-packed with each installment. This is mainly due to Cruise’s appetite for doing his own stunts well into his 60s, which has made the action sequences the defining hallmark of the M:I movies, whether he’s dangling on ropes to break into a secure facility, scaling the Burj Khalifa, or literally hanging on to the side of a flying plane. Without question, after more than 20 years, this franchise remains one of the most ambitious and exciting spy sagas to ever appear on screen. - Paige
1. THE MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE
To quote former Bitesize writer Darryl, I unequivocally and irrevocably agree that “the MCU is absolutely wonderful.” It was when it started in 2008, and it still is to this day. There has been nothing in the history of cinema that has had the same impact. Yes, there are more impactful individual movies, but nothing that changed the landscape of cinematic language, franchises, and character work like these 11 years of connected movies that range from pretty good to all-time great. And that’s just the immaculate “Infinity Saga.” More importantly, though, the ability for a near-bankrupt movie division to become a full-blown movie studio with flops, blockbusters, Oscar nominations, movie stars, and iconic characters is something I’m not sure we will ever see again. No, superhero movies are not dead, and they will never die because the Marvel Cinematic Universe has a wealth of stories, characters, genres, and themes that will always resonate to a large number of people around the world. - Amarú
HONORABLE MENTIONS
THE JOHN WICK FRANCHISE
THE BREAKING BAD UNIVERSE
CHRISTOPHER NOLAN'S BATMAN TRILOGY
THE X-MEN UNIVERSE
THE OCEAN'S FRANCHISE