Credit: Marvel StudiosMarvel Studios, a studio under The Walt Disney Company and the creator of the widely popular Avengers films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), has experienced a slight decline in both box office revenue and public reception in recent times. The MCU’s Phase Four films, such as Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), which marked the beginning of Phase Five, have not received the same level of positive feedback as earlier Marvel productions. Nevertheless, despite the ongoing controversy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 seems poised to become a fan favorite, even setting world records in the film industry.
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On May 5th, 2023, the highly anticipated Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, directed by James Gunn, premiered as the conclusion to the original Guardians of the Galaxy team’s story. Based on the Marvel Comics of the same name and featuring John Murphy’s score, the space-roving superhero squad had previously appeared in Marvel films such as Thor: Love and Thunder, Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2019) as part of the Infinity Saga. Fans were treated to The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, a well-received Marvel Studios Special Presentation that premiered on Disney+ ahead of the film’s release.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the latest addition to the MCU
This is the final adventure for the Guardians of the Galaxy, led by Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), a former half-Celestial, ex-Ravager, and charismatic rogue. The team consists of Gamora (Zoe Saldaña) and Nebula (Karen Gillan), who are the daughters of Thanos, Groot (Vin Diesel), a tree-like alien, Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper), a talking raccoon with deadly skills, Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista), a vengeful warrior, Mantis (Pom Klementieff), an empathic alien, Kraglin Obfonteri (Sean Gunn) and Stakar Ogord (Sylvester Stallone), both Ravagers, and a new addition to the team, Cosmo the Spacedog (Maria Bakalova).
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The movie introduces Will Poulter as Adam Warlock and Elizabeth Debicki as Ayesha, who is his “mother”. Chukwudi Iwuji plays the nefarious geneticist, the High Evolutionary, with Nico Santos portraying his assistant, Theel. Daniela Melchior assumes the role of Ura, and Kai Zen plays Phyla-Vell. Additionally, the cast includes Linda Cardellini as Lylla the Otter, Asim Chaudhry as Teefs the Walrus, and Mikaela Hoover as Floor the Bunny, all of whom are former friends and cellmates of Rocket Raccoon.
How Guardians 3 is changing the game
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is smashing box office records and proving to be a massive hit for Marvel Studios. According to The Cine Geek, the movie has raked in an impressive $60.5 million in its second weekend alone, with just a 49% drop, marking the best hold for any comic book movie since the pandemic began. The domestic total for the film currently stands at a staggering $213.2 million, and it is set to cross the $500 million mark worldwide. This is largely amounting to the fact that the new Guardians movie has not only received positive reviews from critics but has also been embraced by fans, who are excited to see the final chapter of the beloved Guardians’ story.
James Gunn himself corroborated these astonishing numbers, tweeting in thanks to “all who came out for Mother’s Day”, and those who “have seen the film multiple times”:
Thanks to all who came out for Mother’s Day & all who have seen the film multiple times & pushed us way over what was expected. $62.6 million 2nd weekend. Only a 47% drop from 1st week, which puts #GotGVol3 as the best 2nd weekend hold for any MCU sequel & in the top 2 or 3 of all MCU films. 🙏
Thanks to all who came out for Mother’s Day & all who have seen the film multiple times & pushed us way over what was expected. $62.6 million 2nd weekend. Only a 47% drop from 1st week, which puts #GotGVol3 as the best 2nd weekend hold for any MCU sequel & in the top 2 or 3 of… https://t.co/GYOcxqkZWK
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) May 15, 2023
Following that, The Cine Geek shared even more impressive news — that Guardians 3 has grossed $91.9 million internationally on the second weekend since its release, bringing its total to $315.6 million internationally, plus $213.2 million domestically.
Why is this important? Because this has already beaten Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania‘s (2023) entire global run, bringing the James Gunn-directed finale to a whopping $850-950 million predicted global taking — which is shockingly close to the $1 billion mark!
#GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol3 has grossed a spectacular $91.9M in its 2nd weekend Internationally!
The Intrnl total stands at $315.6M now, with $213.2M Domestic, for a massive global total of $528.8M, beating #Quantumania’s total global run.
Predicted Total Global run: $850-950 M! pic.twitter.com/HWFV4MA4Sp
— The Cine Geek (@CineGeekNews) May 14, 2023
So far, this prediction brings Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 close to beating Sam Raimi-directed Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) which made around $955 million. Guardians Vol. 3 could potentially beat out Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) and Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), which both landed in the $850-900 million range.
Overall, it’s seems clear that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is benefitting significantly from Gunn’s last ride — with public perception of the MCU turning more positive with the sheer amount of heart and character Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 had. Too bad that Gunn is leaving (or has already left) to head Warner Bros. Discovery’s DC Studios, rebooting their flagging DC Extended Universe (DCEU) into the new DC Universe (DCU) — which has been
Marvel Studios definitely have to step their game up in the years to come!
What do you think about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 breaking records, both within Marvel and the larger film industry? Share your thoughts in the comments below!