Dragon Ball premiered originally in 1986, and since then, it has accumulated a huge fan base. However, it was the Z universe that truly made the franchise popular enough to stay alive for years. It has given us several video games, anime series, and movies to date. But, not every movie holds a place in its canon world, so it’s natural for fans to wonder which ones are a part of the main storyline. Well, this article reveals which movies are official canon to Dragon Ball Z’s story.
Dragon Ball Z Canon Movies
The Dragon Ball franchise has blessed the community with several movies. Well, not all of them have a connection to the main saga. So, below is the table that reveals which are the canon movies play a crucial role in the core story:
| Movie | Details |
|---|---|
| Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods | Release Date: March 30, 2013 Runtime: 1 Hour 45 Minutes Streaming Platform: Netflix, Crunchyroll |
| Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’ | Release Date: April 18, 2015 Runtime: 1 Hour 33 Minutes Streaming Platform: Crunchyroll |
| Dragon Ball Super: Broly | Release Date: December 14, 2018 Runtime: 1 Hour 40 Minutes Streaming Platform: Netflix, Crunchyroll, Hulu |
| Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero | Release Date: June 11, 2022 Runtime: 1 Hour 40 Minutes Streaming Platform: Prime Video, Crunchyroll |
Dragon Ball Z Movies That Are Canon
Now, without any further ado, let’s dive deep into the main part of the list, where we have discussed the four canon films of Dragon Ball Z.
Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods
Dragon Ball Z: God of Destruction is a special movie as it was the first one to receive supervision from Akira Toriyama after the conclusion of the Z saga. After staying away from the big screens, this film marked the official return of the franchise to the theatres. Taking place after the Kid Buu Saga, God of Destruction introduces us to Beerus and his guide angel attendant, Whis.
The film sees Beerus waking up after decades of sleep and going to Earth in search of the Super Saiyan God following a prophetic dream. After crossing paths with Goku and getting involved in a fight, Beerus defeated the opponent just by using a small fraction of his powers. Moving on, after achieving the divine transformation as Super Saiyan God, Goku still loses to the God of Destruction.
Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’
Written by Akira Toriyama, Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’ is the second canon film that takes the story forward directly following the events of Battle of Gods. It basically plays a pivotal role in expanding the lore of Dragon Ball. The story sees Frieza revived by his loyal followers using the mystical Dragon Balls. After getting resurrected, Frieza trains harder to surpass his older self and achieve the transformation known as Golden Frieza.
Frieza, in his strongest form, heads to Earth to track down Goku and Vegeta, who have been training under Whis, and they eventually unleashes the Super Saiyan Blue transformation.
Dragon Ball Super: Broly
The third canon film, Dragon Ball Super: Broly, is one of the most important entries in the franchise. It finally positions the super pivotal character Broly into the main Dragon Ball saga. It also re-familiarizes us with the origin story of the Saiyans, including Goku, Vegeta, and Broly. The film’s events were set after the Tournament of Power, which also brings Gogeta into the canon world.
Broly was a powerful kid, and when King Vegeta learned of it, he forced Broly and his father into exile on a remote island. Years later, Frieza manipulates Broly into fighting Goku and Vegeta.
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero shifts focus from Goku and Vegeta, giving importance to Piccolo and Gohan. Goku defeated the Red Ribbon Army when he was a kid, and in this film, the criminal organization returns seeking revenge. They create two deadly androids, Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, to knock down the mighty defenders of the Earth. Goku and Vegeta are somewhere busy in training, so Gohan and Piccolo step forward for the confrontation.
During the clash, Gohan receives the Beast Gohan transformation, and Piccolo achieves a transformation known as Orange Piccolo.
Well, that’s about every movie that is truly canon to the overall Dragon Ball universe. Of course, there are several other Dragon Ball movies, but over time, they were thrown out of the Canon boat. As of now, these are the only movies that stay canon to the ongoing DB universe.
