The Ip Man movies represent some of the most fun you can have with the martial arts genre. The franchise is loosely based on the life of the real-life Ip Man (or Yip Man), a Chinese martial arts grandmaster who specialized in the art of Wing Chun, whose most famous student was Bruce Lee. star of the amazing martial arts action film Enter the Dragon. The main films in the property are directed by Wilson Yip and starring Donnie Yen. Yen played Ip Man for over a decade in between giving us one of the best Star Wars characters ever in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story's Chirut Imwe, as well as one of the best fights in the John Wick movies.

As far as martial arts cinema goes, it rarely gets better than the Ip Man films, which actually manage to build tension despite the audience knowing full well that Ip Man will never completely lose any particular fight. In addition to its phenomenal action scenes and stunts, it's also a franchise known for being refreshingly character-driven, in addition to having some interesting depictions of the Second Sino-Japanese War and British colonialism in Hong Kong. They're not just plot-wrapped fight scenes, but movies with real stories to tell, featuring great action scenes to boot.

With a fifth Ip Man movie reportedly on the way, it's never a bad time to check out the property. Whether it's been a minute since you've seen these movies or you've never had the pleasure of watching Ip Man destroy 10 dudes in a fight and you're wondering where to start, here's your guide to the best order to watch for " IP Man” franchise.

The correct order to watch the Ip Man movies is simply to go by release order. While the movies have a pretty clear naming convention, there is the exception of a spin-off movie that takes place within the movies' timeline, making it important to just go by release date, like this:

• Ip Man (2008)
• Ip Man 2 (2010)
• Ip Man 3 (2015)
• Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018)
• Ip Man 4: The Finale (2019)

This order also follows the thematic line of the franchise, with each film focusing on a different theme. The first film is about Ip Man trying to survive in the face of oppression, while the second is about adapting to a new reality and trying to make a living. Also, the spin-off movie and the fourth movie are about the legacy. As far as the third film in the franchise goes, it really is about Ip Man fighting Mike Tyson while a young Bruce Lee looks on.

Going in this order allows you to experience a complete story with a beginning, middle and end. Or at least it was until 2023. That's because it was announced that a new Ip Man movie, titled Ip Man 5, is in development by Mandarin Motion Pictures, and Donnie Yen is involved in at least the part of sharing a teaser poster on Instagram at the time. How and whether Yen will actually reprise his role is a very interesting question given the finality of the character's story in the very aptly titled Ip Man 4: The Finale.

Still, it's hard not to get excited at the prospect of more "Ip Man". These films are nationalist propaganda at its bestand a chance for China to prove its superiority to the world through the funniest and most advanced martial arts showdowns.