The main Pokémon films are listed here in the order they came out. There are 23 numbered animated films, from 1998 to 2020, and one live-action film, Detective Pikachu, in 2019. The dates are Japanese release dates. Wikipedia's list and a spot check of three film pages agree, and Serebii's list has the same films.
Films reached other countries later. Pokémon 4Ever came out in Japan in July 2001 and in the United States in October 2002, and Hoopa and the Clash of Ages reached US television in December 2015. This page is about the order, not where to watch. For that, see where to watch Pokémon.
The animated films
| No. | Film | Japanese release | Pokémon named in the title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pokémon: The First Movie – Mewtwo Strikes Back | 18 July 1998 | Mewtwo |
| 2 | Pokémon the Movie 2000: The Power of One | 17 July 1999 | – |
| 3 | Pokémon 3: The Movie – Spell of the Unown | 8 July 2000 | Unown |
| 4 | Pokémon 4Ever: Celebi – Voice of the Forest | 7 July 2001 | Celebi |
| 5 | Pokémon Heroes: Latios and Latias | 13 July 2002 | Latios, Latias |
| 6 | Pokémon: Jirachi, Wish Maker | 19 July 2003 | Jirachi |
| 7 | Pokémon: Destiny Deoxys | 17 July 2004 | Deoxys |
| 8 | Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew | 16 July 2005 | Lucario, Mew |
| 9 | Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea | 15 July 2006 | – |
| 10 | Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai | 14 July 2007 | Darkrai |
| 11 | Pokémon: Giratina & the Sky Warrior | 19 July 2008 | Giratina |
| 12 | Pokémon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life | 18 July 2009 | Arceus |
| 13 | Pokémon: Zoroark: Master of Illusions | 10 July 2010 | Zoroark |
| 14 | Pokémon the Movie: Black – Victini and Reshiram | 16 July 2011 | Victini, Reshiram |
| 14 | Pokémon the Movie: White – Victini and Zekrom | 16 July 2011 | Victini, Zekrom |
| 15 | Pokémon the Movie: Kyurem vs. the Sword of Justice | 14 July 2012 | Kyurem |
| 16 | Pokémon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened | 13 July 2013 | Genesect |
| 17 | Pokémon the Movie: Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction | 19 July 2014 | Diancie |
| 18 | Pokémon the Movie: Hoopa and the Clash of Ages | 18 July 2015 | Hoopa |
| 19 | Pokémon the Movie: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel | 16 July 2016 | Volcanion |
| 20 | Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! | 15 July 2017 | – |
| 21 | Pokémon the Movie: The Power of Us | 13 July 2018 | – |
| 22 | Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back – Evolution | 12 July 2019 | Mewtwo |
| 23 | Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle | 25 December 2020 | – |
A film came out in every year from 1998 to 2020. The only year with two was 2011, when Black and White came out in Japan on the same day as a pair, with a different Legendary Pokémon in each. That is why 23 numbered films make 24 releases. Outside Japan the pair arrived separately: Wikipedia's film page says White had a short US cinema run in December 2011 and Black went straight to television.
Short films and TV specials are separate, so this list does not count them.
Which films retell a story
Two of the films go back over earlier ground. Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back - Evolution (2019) is a computer-animated remake of the first film. Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! (2017) is not a remake. Wikipedia describes it as an original story in an alternate timeline, loosely based on the first episode of the TV series.
Detective Pikachu
Detective Pikachu is the franchise's first live-action film. It came out in Japan on 3 May 2019 and in the United States on 10 May 2019. Rob Letterman directed it, Pikachu is played by Ryan Reynolds through voice and motion capture, and Wikipedia lists a PG rating. It has its own story and is separate from the animated series. A parent should preview it first, like any film.
Who is in the titles
In all, 22 different Pokémon are named in the titles above or in Detective Pikachu. Here is each one with its class from the pokee.si data.
| Pokémon | Type | Generation | Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mewtwo | Psychic | 1 | Legendary |
| Unown | Psychic | 2 | Neither |
| Celebi | Psychic/Grass | 2 | Mythical |
| Latios | Dragon/Psychic | 3 | Legendary |
| Latias | Dragon/Psychic | 3 | Legendary |
| Jirachi | Steel/Psychic | 3 | Mythical |
| Deoxys | Psychic | 3 | Mythical |
| Lucario | Fighting/Steel | 4 | Neither |
| Mew | Psychic | 1 | Mythical |
| Darkrai | Dark | 4 | Mythical |
| Giratina | Ghost/Dragon | 4 | Legendary |
| Arceus | Normal | 4 | Mythical |
| Zoroark | Dark | 5 | Neither |
| Victini | Psychic/Fire | 5 | Mythical |
| Reshiram | Dragon/Fire | 5 | Legendary |
| Zekrom | Dragon/Electric | 5 | Legendary |
| Kyurem | Dragon/Ice | 5 | Legendary |
| Genesect | Bug/Steel | 5 | Mythical |
| Diancie | Rock/Fairy | 6 | Mythical |
| Hoopa | Psychic/Ghost | 6 | Mythical |
| Volcanion | Fire/Water | 6 | Mythical |
| Pikachu | Electric | 1 | Neither |
18 of the 22 are Legendary or Mythical (7 Legendary and 11 Mythical). The rest are Unown, Lucario, Zoroark, Pikachu. If you want to know what those classes mean, read Legendary versus Mythical.
The last film on the list, Secrets of the Jungle, does not name a Pokémon in its title. Serebii's page for it names Zarude and Celebi.
A film we are not counting
A film called Pokémon: Wild Card appears on both Wikipedia and Serebii. Wikipedia lists it as scheduled for 2027. Serebii describes it as a film by CLoverworks about a card-game player and his partner Mimikyu, but gives no date we could read. We found no confirmed release, so it is not in the table.
For parents
We did not check the age rating of each animated film, so look at the rating where you watch. If you have questions about the series, games and cards, a parent's guide to Pokémon is a good place to start.