The superhero genre continues to be a powerful force in the entertainment industry, and the MCU is showing no signs of slowing down. The next upcoming Marvel movie hitting theaters is Nia DaCosta’s The Marvels, which will arrive in less than a month’s time. The movie will serve as a sequel to a number of projects: Captain Marvel, WandaVision, and Ms. Marvel. But how much will The Marvels make on opening weekend? Estimates are out now and they’re… not great.
The MCU has had some notable struggles over the last few years, with projects like Thor: Love and Thunder and Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania bringing disappointing box office numbers. Early estimates for the opening of The Marvels have arrived via Box Office Pro, which claim that Brie Larson’s blockbuster will bring in just $50-75 million on its opening weekend in theaters. If it shakes out on the lower side of that range, the movie could end up having the weakest MCU opening weekend of all time.
Currently that dishonor goes to The Incredible Hulk, which earned just $57 million on its opening weekend. And even if The Marvels ends up in the $75 million range, it would still make less than Black Widow did in theaters– and that movie also dropped simultaneously on Disney+. While there’s still a month for hype to build for the next MCU movie, these early estimates aren’t exactly looking good for Nia DaCosta and company.
If this all plays out as anticipated, it seemingly highlights a growing problem that the MCU has been facing. Specifically, a lack of interest from the fans who were clamoring for each new movie in the age of Avengers: Endgame. Back in July, Bob Iger placed blame on Disney+ content for “diluting focus” on the MCU. The Marvels is the movie with the most connection to those small screen projects, so it very well might prove his theory correct.
The burgeoning franchise has had some notable struggles before. While Captain Marvel made money at the box office, it didn’t fare well critically. In fact, Brie Larson’s movie was review-bombed on Rotten Tomatoes, with the Oscar winning actress also taking some flak online. Carol Danvers ended up being badass in Avengers: Endgame, but it’s unclear if that helped interest for those of us who have spent years watching the Marvel movies in order.
Still, fans could turn around and help make The Marvels a success. The movie is also arriving over a holiday weekend which has the potential to help its box office haul. And if the ongoing strikes end and the actors end up doing press for the blockbuster, perhaps it could help put them over the edge. Only time will tell.
The Marvels will hit theaters on November 10th. In the meantime, check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.