Maze Runner Movies in Order: Release and Chronological

The Maze Runner movies in order of release are The Maze Runner (2014), Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (2015) and Maze Runner: The Death Cure (2018), all directed by Wes Ball with Dylan O'Brien as Thomas.

1. The Maze Runner 2014, released in the US on September 19, 2014, 113 minutes
2. Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials, released in the US on September 18, 2015, 131 minutes
3. Maze Runner: The Death Cure, released in the US on January 26, 2018, 143 minutes

The first film (directed by Wes Ball) introduces Thomas, who wakes up in a rising metal lift with no memory except his first name, and the Glade, a farm ringed by stone walls that open onto a giant maze each day. The second film moves the story into a facility run by a man named Janson and then out into the Scorch, a burned and ruined desert. The third film is the longest of the set, and it sends Thomas and his friends toward the Last City, which is the home base of the organization WCKD.

The gaps between releases were uneven. The first two films arrived almost exactly a year apart, while the third came about two years and four months after the second. If you are wondering how the same ensemble held together across that stretch, the answer is that the leads returned: Dylan O'Brien, Kaya Scodelario as Teresa Agnes, Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Newt and Ki Hong Lee as Minho appear in the top billing of all three films. For the full credits, see the Maze Runner cast page.

One caveat about the franchise as a whole: a fourth film has been reported but not scheduled. TheWrap reported on May 3, 2024 that 20th Century Studios is developing a new Maze Runner film, with Jack Paglen in talks to write and Wes Ball attached as a producer rather than as director. It was not an official studio announcement, and no release date or filming dates have been set. Follow the new Maze Runner movie page for any change.

Start with The Maze Runner (2014), because it is the shortest film at 113 minutes, it sets up the Glade and the maze, and the other two films assume you know both. In my opinion, there is no good reason to enter the trilogy anywhere else, and it could be argued that skipping the first film would leave the second feeling like it begins halfway through a conversation.

The full run is 387 minutes, which is 6 hours and 27 minutes. That is a comfortable weekend, or three evenings if you prefer. Perhaps the most useful way to pace it is to watch the first film on its own and decide from there: it is a self contained introduction to the Glade, the runners and the maze, and it will tell you quickly whether the tone suits you. If it does, the second and third films raise the budget (from $34 million to $61 million and then $62 million) and widen the world beyond the maze, though the worldwide takings fell from $348 million to $312 million and then $288 million, as the Maze Runner box office page shows.

If you are short on time, I would still not skip a film. Each one changes the setting so sharply that a summary does little for you: the first is the maze, the second is the Scorch, and the third is the Last City. For a quick sense of each film's strengths, Maze Runner movies ranked gives our verdicts, and the Maze Runner characters page is useful before you start if you want to know who Thomas, Newt, Minho and Teresa are.

On where to stream them, availability changes often, and it was last checked on November 3, 2026. In the UK and Australia, all three films were on Disney Plus. In the UK, Amazon Prime Video also carried The Maze Runner. In the US, the first two films were available to rent or buy, and The Death Cure was on HBO Max with a subscription. The where to watch Maze Runner page has the full table by country, so check it before you press play.