Summary
The Marvelsreleased to a lackluster opening weekend, bringing in $47 million domestically and $110 million worldwide. Thanks to the film’s reported budget of $275 million, it may surprise readers how much the production must make to break even.
Its predecessor,Captain Marvel, was released in 2019 when the MCU was riding a massive wave started byThe Avengersseries.Captain Marvelperformed exceptionally at the box office and brought in $455 million on its opening weekend, leading to a total gross of over $1.1 billion. However, partly due to oversaturation caused by Disney’s aggressive approach to expanding the MCU universe, new releases from the franchise are seeing much more inconsistent results, includingCaptain Marvel 2.
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Puckreported that after production costs, marketing expenses, and the cut taken by exhibitors,The Marvelsmust gross about $700 million before it sees any profits. Now that opening weekend has come and gone, it’s almost inevitable thatThe Marvels' box office results will not come close to that number. With tough competition coming later this month from Ridley Scott’sNapoleonandThe Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,it’s unlikely thatThe Marvelswill see any box office revival.
Recent MCU films likeGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3andDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessperformed just fine at the box office and were well-received by critics and audience members. Despite this,The Marvels' high-profile flop could lead Disney and Marvel Studios executives to rethink their future approach to the franchise.The Marvelsstruggled with critics, receiving a B rating on CinemaScore, which ties a record low for the franchise.
The film did have a substantial disadvantage due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. Its stars, such as Brie Larson, couldn’t promote the film until the day before its release. However, its actors being allowed to participate in marketing circuits likely wouldn’t have had enough effect to turn the film’s box office fate around. Many predictedThe Marvelswould struggle at the box office, and fans are disappointed to see this come true.
Disney CEO Bob Igerdeserves a fair bit of blame for the MCU’s recent downturn. Iger was the one who introduced plans to aggressively expand the MCU franchise, calling for three Marvel movies a year plus multiple shows. It didn’t help that fans had to watch all of these to fully understand each release’s story and context, which led to many casual fans being turned off from the franchise. This oversaturation was also seen in theStar Warsfranchise, where Iger similarly pushed for oneStar Warsmovie every year, plus its television shows.
The Marvelsis now playing in theaters.
The Marvels
Carol Danvers teams up with Monica Rambeau and Kamala Khan in The Marvels. As the three heroes find their powers entangled, they must work together to stop Dar-Benn from enacting her evil plan.
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