New Superman Film Projected to Open With $90–$125 Million in the U.S.

The new Superman movie, the first under the revamped DC Studios led by James Gunn and Peter Safran, is projected to open with a domestic box office range of $90 million to $125 million, according to distribution sources. Official tracking by NRG places the film higher, between $125 million and $145 million, but insiders believe a more conservative figure is realistic. While Superman shows strong brand recognition and achieved a 30 in unaided awareness—higher than ‘Top Gun: Maverick’—its ‘first choice’ numbers lag behind other post-pandemic superhero blockbusters such as ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’, ‘The Batman’, and ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’. This metric is considered more predictive of actual turnout.

Interestingly, ‘Captain America: Brave New World’ had a 71% higher ‘first choice’ score than ‘Superman’ at the same point in pre-release tracking, yet opened at just $88.8 million. However, Superman has set records in advance ticket sales during its first 24 hours, outperforming titles like ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’. Its Amazon Prime Early Access screenings on July 8 are generating buzz ahead of the July 11 wide release. Analysts emphasize that the movie’s final box office outcome will largely depend on word-of-mouth and critical reception.

Historically, Superman films have generated $2.56 billion globally, with past entries like ‘Batman v. Superman’ and ‘Man of Steel’ opening at $166M and $116.6M respectively. The new installment is considered a key test for the rebranded DC Universe.