Fantastic Four Debuts with $118 Million, But Superman Leads 2025 Comic Book Movie Openings

Marvel Studios’ latest film, ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps,’ opened to $118 million at the domestic box office, outperforming expectations by $8 million, as Disney had predicted $110 million for its opening weekend. This marks the highest-opening weekend for a Marvel film in 2025, surpassing ‘Thunderbolts” $74 million and ‘Captain America: Brave New World’s’ $80 million. However, the film’s performance is still considered modest compared to pre-pandemic Marvel blockbusters, which regularly earned close to $180 million on opening weekends. In the same year, DC’s new ‘Superman,’ starring David Corenswet and directed by James Gunn, achieved a stronger opening with $125 million domestically. This not only gives DC Studios a much-needed win as it attempts to reboot its cinematic universe but also makes ‘Superman’ the highest-grossing comic book movie opening of 2025. With no further DC or Marvel releases scheduled for the rest of the year, ‘Superman’ is expected to retain this title. The article provides context to these box office results, noting the shifting landscape of superhero films post-pandemic and highlighting audience reactions to both franchises’ new directions.