Disney and Marvel executives had hoped that last month’s May 2nd release of THUNDERBOLTS* would resonate with audiences and revitalize the superhero genre after years of sub-par performances from most movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Disney CEO Bob Iger had made a point to dial back on the number of new MCU releases, both its movies in theatre and TV series on Disney+, so that production teams could spend more time improving the quality of the content. An indeed, most critics and fans who saw THUNDERBOLTS* were happy with the end product. However, the film has underperformed at the global box office, leading to more uncertainty about the future of the MCU.
Over the past 6 weeks, THUNDERBOLTS* has grossed slightly more than $375 million worldwide, among the lowest earnings of all MCU titles and even lower than February’s release of CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD. The MCU titles that have succeeded in the post-pandemic era have been sequels to better-known MCU headliners such as SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME, DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE, and GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3.
Others point to the inherent financial challenges presented by oversized production budgets for MCU movies, and an evolving preference for family films such as A MINECRAFT MOVIE and LILO & STITCH. The box office results of the next Marvel movie, FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS, which opens on July 21st, will provide another key data point on the future of Disney’s long-running and highest-grossing franchise in the current theatrical marketplace.
