Marvel’s ‘Fantastic Four’ Experiences Significant Decline
Marvel’s latest installment, “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” is struggling to maintain its box office momentum. Following a robust opening of $117.6 million, the film faced a staggering 66% drop in its second weekend, earning only $40 million from 4,125 theaters. Initial predictions had expected a decline of about 55% to 60%.
Despite favorable reviews and positive word-of-mouth, the film’s performance mirrored some of the steep second-weekend declines seen in other recent Marvel releases, such as “Captain America: Brave New World” (down 68%), “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” (down 70%), and “Thor: Love and Thunder” (down 67%). Currently, “The Fantastic Four” has amassed $198 million domestically and $368 million globally. Fortunately for Marvel, it is on track to surpass the box office performances of this year’s disappointments, including “Captain America: Brave New World” and “Thunderbolts,” which earned $415 million and $382 million globally, respectively.
New Releases and Their Performances
Three new films hit theaters over the weekend, none directly competing with “The Fantastic Four.”
‘The Bad Guys 2’ Tops New Releases
- Universal and DreamWorks Animation’s “The Bad Guys 2” debuted with $22.8 million from 3,852 venues. This opening is comparable to the original film, which opened at $23 million in 2022. The sequel has an $80 million production budget and follows reformed criminals on one last heist. Audience reception was strong, earning an “A” grade on CinemaScore.
- Box office analyst David A. Gross remarked, “This is a good opening for an animation sequel. With this kind of business, the movie is doing what it’s supposed to do.”
‘The Naked Gun’ Makes a Strong Entry
Paramount’s comedy “The Naked Gun” debuted at No. 3 with $17 million from 3,344 theaters, aligning with expectations. The film, featuring Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin Jr., received positive acclaim from both critics and audiences, obtaining an “A-” grade on CinemaScore and a 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Directed by Akiva Schaffer, the movie had a production budget of $42 million.
‘Together’ Earns Mixed Reviews
Neon’s horror film “Together” opened in sixth place, earning $6.8 million over the weekend and $10.8 million over its first five days. The film stars real-life couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie as a co-dependent pair affected by a mysterious force that induces horrifying physical transformations. Despite receiving a “C+” grade on CinemaScore, Neon leveraged the film’s unsettling themes by offering free couples therapy for viewers who attended its opening weekend. The company purchased the film for $17 million at Sundance, marking a historic deal.
Longer-Running Films
In terms of other contenders, “Superman” fell to fourth place with $13.9 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its domestic total to $316.2 million and $551.2 million globally. Universal’s “Jurassic World Rebirth” rounded out the top five, earning $8.4 million in its fifth weekend and reaching $317 million domestically and $766 million globally.
More updates will follow as the box office landscape continues to evolve.
