“The Marvels” falls short with $47 million opening, marking Marvel’s lowest-performing film
“The Marvels” secured the top spot at the box office in its debut weekend but fell short of expectations with a domestic gross of just $47 million, marking Marvel’s lowest-performing film to date.
This performance is notably below 2008’s “The Incredible Hulk,” the previous record-holder with an opening of over $55 million.
Despite Marvel’s growth and a dedicated fan base, “The Marvels” is only the third Marvel movie to open with less than $60 million, the first being “Ant-Man” in 2015.
The industry sees this as a moment of reflection for the superhero genre, with analysts suggesting that it might be time to draw lessons from successful risk-taking superhero films like “Logan,” “Deadpool,” and “Joker,” which offered unique perspectives and achieved both critical and financial success.
The film attempts to leverage storylines and characters from Marvel’s Disney+ television offshoots like “WandaVision” and “Ms. Marvel,” but according to BoxOffice Pro’s Shawn Robbins, these shows may have backfired in expanding the brand.
The lackluster opening is seen as part of broader challenges facing studios, including mixed receptions for recent Marvel films and a saturated MCU, which has diminished the level of urgency among audiences.
Experts attribute the lukewarm performance to the oversaturation of the superhero genre and changing audience preferences.
Robbins noted that the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s own high standards contribute to rising audience expectations.
He also pointed out that recent Marvel films, combined with a delayed introduction to the multiverse storyline, have played a role in diminishing the sense of urgency that once surrounded the franchise.
Comparatively, last year’s Marvel offering, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” a sequel to an Infinity-Saga-era film, opened with nearly four times the domestic earnings of “The Marvels,” raking in over $181.3 million during its opening weekend.
The second-best performance at the box office this weekend was “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” earning $9 million in its second week and accumulating an estimated total of about $127 million.
However, the availability of the movie on the Peacock streaming service may have impacted its box office numbers.
As audiences today have numerous entertainment options on various screens, analysts suggest that people are seeking something unique, edgy, or exceptionally well-written to draw them to the theaters.
Source-CNN
