“The Marvels,” the latest superhero instalment, marked its entry with the second-lowest opening day gross ever recorded at $21.5 million.
This figure narrowly edged out the 2008 release “The Incredible Hulk,” which still holds the record for the MCU’s lowest domestic opening day at $21.46 million. However, “The Marvels” lagged behind the inaugural film “Ant-Man” ($22.6 million), without adjusting for inflation. according to a report by Variety.
With a budget of $220 million, the action sci-fi film’s Friday performance reached $21.5 million across the 32 features in the MCU. From 4,030 venues, it garnered a modest $21.5 million, including $6.6 million from previews.
Projections for “The Marvels” suggest an opening weekend revenue between $47 million and $52 million, as reported by Deadline.
Competing with films like Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of The Flower Moon” and “Five Nights At Freddy’s,” the latter of which has enjoyed domestic earnings of $118.2 million, maintaining its No. 1 spot for the first two weekends, “The Marvels” faces a challenging box office landscape.
While the projected performance for “The Marvels” is not stellar, it could contribute to a rebound for the domestic box office, which experienced one of its weakest showings last weekend with a meager $63 million in earnings. This slump was partly attributed to the delayed release of “Dune: Part Two,” rescheduled for 2024.
Currently holding a 62% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes, “The Marvels” has garnered more favourable audience scores, standing at 85%. Some reviewers argue that the movie’s lacklustre box office numbers may not accurately reflect its quality, highlighting the divergence between critical assessments and audience reception.
What you should know
So far, in the past, Avengers: Endgame, the epic Marvel film, once claimed the throne as the highest-grossing movie of all time, surpassing Avatar’s longstanding record.
The movie’s debut weekend marked a historic achievement, breaking records for the highest box office earnings in history, with its opening day securing the top spot as the highest-grossing of all time.
Marvel Studios further fueled this success in 2019 by re-releasing Endgame in theatres, featuring additional footage, ultimately pushing its total earnings to $2.79 billion, surpassing James Cameron’s 2009 film Avatar, which earned $2.788 billion.
However, the landscape shifted after the pandemic, raising uncertainties about Marvel Studios replicating the box office success of Endgame.
Disney’s decision to release Black Widow simultaneously in theatres and on its streaming service, Disney+, may have impacted the film’s overall box office performance.
This strategy potentially influenced a dip in the gross earnings for Black Widow.
Notably, Scarlett Johansson took legal action against Disney, filing a lawsuit over the simultaneous release strategy.
Eventually, the two parties reached a settlement, concluding a legal dispute arising from the unique distribution approach during the pandemic.
