It was arguably one of the more crucial weekends in the history of the Marvel Comic Universe. For two decades these storied entertainment brands have been joined at the hip to produce a litany of reinvigorated and novel reasons both to schlep out to the movies and to plunk down a monthly fee to rewatch them and all of their conjoint iterations on Disney Plus. Their problems began when they made such doubling down practically mandatory to be able to follow the flow chart of all that was going on Universe-wise, which ultimately alienated a significant portion of its more casual fans. A category I wholeheartedly ascribe to being in myself.
But even though heading out to my cineplex this weekend wasn’t an affordable option for moi, it was tantalizing enough for a few million in better fiscal shape, as THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER’s Pamela McClintock reported yesterday:
In a needed for win for both Kevin Feige’s Marvel and the franchise, Matt Shakman‘s Fantastic Four: First Steps rocketed to a franchise-best global opening of $218 million, including $118 million domestically and $100 million overseas, not adjusted for inflation. That’s almost on par with the recent $220 global box office debut of DC’s Superman, who, alongside Spider-Man and Batman, is one of the most famous comic book heroes of all time.
Keeping pace with the likes of SUPERMAN was significant in its own right, as USA TODAY’s Brendan Morrow observed that they are kindred spirit in more than just this summer’s box office strategies:
Released just two weeks apart, “Fantastic Four” and “Superman” have a lot in common, as both are new interpretations of iconic superhero characters whose recent cinematic renditions were poorly received. The last Fantastic Four movie was the critically reviled 2015 bomb “Fantastic Four,” which opened to just $25 million domestically. Superman, meanwhile, was coming off a series of movies from director Zack Snyder, whose darker vision for the character was divisive.
Perhaps even more crucially, FIRST STEPS kept pace with its own team’s offerings, both current and future, as McLintock and Morrow elaborated. Per the former:
The early performance of Fantastic Four: First Steps, which is winning over critics and audiences, is welcome news for the Disney-owned Marvel, where Feige and his team are looking for redemption after a rough few years (Deadpool & Wolverine being the exception). Outside of Deadpool 3 – the Fantastic Four reboot marks one of the best domestic openings for Marvel in several years outside of Deadpool.
It is also the 37th title in the Marvel Cinematic Universal to open in first-place, as well as helping Disney became the first Hollywood studio to cross $3 billion in 2025 worldwide ticket sales.
And the latter:
The two movies were also similarly crucial for the future of their respective franchises. The stars of “Fantastic Four: First Steps” will return in “Avengers: Doomsday” (expected Dec. 18, 2026), a major event film for Marvel, meaning the group’s debut movie performing poorly would have spelled trouble for Disney. The same could be said for DC, given that “Superman” is the first film in a relaunched cinematic universe that has numerous more entries on the way, including next summer’s “Supergirl” (June 26, 2026), starring Milly Alcock.
The lighter domestic touches, coupled with the undeniable chemistry of the ubiquitous Pascal and the alluring Vanessa Kirby as Reed Richards and Sue Storm, produced broader appeal than the typical superhero escapist fare. Per the meticulous scorecard curated by THE ANKLER’s Sean McNulty, 30% of the audience was female and 71% were 35 and under. It was also ethnically diverse: 34% White, 31% Latino, Black 19% and Asian 11%. And down the line, having two-thirds of your audience being something other than white will help drive both renewal and engagement with Disney Plus–and at a time when ESPN is reimagining itself as a stand-alone entity, that’s all the more desired by Bob AIger and team.
I’m intrigued by those leads, not to mention the other magnetic poles that McClintock noted:
The New York City-set First Steps, which is earning raves for its early 1960s retro-style,…picks up after the four have returned and have become become worldwide heroes. But there is no time to rest on their laurels. They must return to space when Earth is visited by the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner), who warns that the planet is about to be destroyed by a cosmic entity named Galactus.
A few years later, I was a New York City kid who loved comic books. At that time, the DC brands were far more prevalent–SUPERMAN and BATMAN reruns and animated reboots were on six days a week, and the likes of FANTASTIC FOUR were distant memories from the failed syndication checkerboard effort that a far less powerful version of Marvel failed with during my younger years. I never did reconnect with the franchise, even when my onetime colleague Michael Chiklis took up the role of “clobberin’ time” Ben Grimm–a.k.a. The Thing–on a summer SHIELD sabbatical.
But based on these and other gushing reviews I’ve seen and heard, it sure seems like it’s time to make that a priority, especially when my next influx of needed extra $ comes through. I probably won’t become an MCU junkie, but I’ll at least be that much more likely to see DOOMSDAY. Baby steps, you know.
Until next time…