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Credit: Marvel StudiosMarvel’s latest movie hasn’t got off to a strong start.
As recently as four years ago, Marvel was a cinematic powerhouse. The release of Avengers: Endgame (2019) earned the studio $2.799 billion, briefly taking the title of the highest-earning movie in history.
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To date, 10 movies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe have passed the $1 billion mark at the box office. However, it’s been two years since an installment has reached this lofty goal, with the last title to do so being Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).
Unfortunately, the likelihood of another Marvel movie achieving such profitable success seems low right now. In the past few years, Marvel Studios has proved that not every franchise is infallible. The likes of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), and Eternals (2021) underperformed both financially and critically.
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The same is true of Marvel’s Disney+ projects. Earlier this year, Secret Invasion – the much-hyped character vehicle for Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury – took the unwanted title of Marvel’s worst-reviewed project ever. Its last episode, “Home,” scored just 7% on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics stating that “the series finale opts for a whimpering, wheezing final fight and boring repetition.”
What made these reviews especially disappointing was the fact that the finale had been teased as a lead-in to Marvel’s next cinematic entry: The Marvels (2023). Not only does this see the return of Nick Fury, but it will pick up with him on S.A.B.E.R. for a peace summit between the Kree and the Skrulls.
For those who haven’t watched Secret Invasion (which, judging by the viewing numbers, may be a lot of us), there’s the possibility that some loose plot threads may not make sense in the film. That’s one of the many reasons some Marvel fans have feared that The Marvels will flop – combined with the fact that there’s general superhero fatigue right now, and Brie Larson (Carol Danvers, AKA Captain Marvel) has proven herself to be a controversial figure in the Marvel fandom.
Initial reactions to the film have been mostly positive, with critics praising the chemistry between Iman Vellani (Kamala Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel) and the other leads – which includes Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau – in particular. Criticism has primarily focused on the jumbled plot and the film’s villain, Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton).
Related: Marvel Reveals Scrapped ‘Captain America’ Story
The Marvels is projected to have a $60 million opening weekend, making it one of the worst MCU debuts, ever. While there’s always the chance that the film may defy expectations à la Elemental (2023), early numbers suggest that The Marvels is, in fact, on track for disappointment.
According to Vertigo Research, the film – which was directed by Nia DaCosta – sold just 49,629 tickets in its opening day in France. By 2 p.m., it had sold just 884 tickets across Paris. Before The Marvels, the record low for Marvel was 1,824 tickets for The Incredible Hulk (2008). Even Morbius (2022) outsold The Marvels at 1,003 tickets.
This falls massively short of the film’s predecessor. Captain Marvel (2019) reportedly sold 212,199 tickets in the same timeframe in Paris (although it’s worth noting that the film was released fresh on the heels of Avengers: Infinity War (2018), which helped).
If numbers continue at this rate, the film will struggle to hit one million in France. In comparison, Captain Marvel sold 3,374,568 tickets during its run in French theaters.
While this is just reflective of one country’s audience, it does suggest that early predictions that The Marvels will flop weren’t far off the truth. We’ll have to wait and see how the film performs over its opening weekend worldwide, but if this is a sign of what’s to come, things aren’t looking good for Carol, Kamala, and Monica.
Do you think The Marvels will flop or will it rebound at the box office? Let us know in the comments!