Mister Fantastic and his family are back on the big screen, only this time under the rule of Marvel Studios instead of 20th Century Fox.
In a needed win for both Kevin Feige‘s Marvel and the franchise, Matt Shakman‘s Fantastic Four: First Steps rocketed to a franchise-best global opening of $218 million, including $118 million domestically and $100 million overseas, not adjusted for inflation. That’s almost on par with the recent $220 global box office debut of DC and Warner Bros.’ Superman, who, alongside Spider-Man and Batman, is one of the most famous comic book heroes of all time.
Fantastic Four opened ahead of tracking domestically, although on Saturday morning, many thought it could open to $120 million to $25 million based on a huge opening day gross of $57 million. However, slower-than-expected traffic on Saturday changed the landscape. Numbers could always shift again by Monday. (There’s no but that Superman is posing competition).
The overall early performance of Fantastic Four: First Steps, which is winning over critics and audiences, is welcome news for the Disney-owned Marvel, where Feige and his team are looking for redemption after a rough few years (Deadpool & Wolverine being the exception). Outside of Deadpool 3, the Fantastic Four reboot marks one of the best domestic openings for Marvel in several years.
It is also the 37th title in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to open in first place, as well as helping Disney become the first Hollywood studio to cross $3 billion in 2025 worldwide ticket sales.
The New York City-set First Steps, which is earning raves for its early 1960s retro-style, stars Pedro Pascal as scientific genius Reed Richards, who leads a space expedition with his wife, Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby); her brother, Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn); and piloted by their good friend Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). When their rocket ship encounters a cosmic storm, it alters their DNA, returning them to Earth with superpowers.
The new film picks up after the four have returned and have become become worldwide heroes. But there is no time to rest on their laurels. They must return to space when Earth is visited by the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner), who warns that the planet is about to be destroyed by a cosmic entity named Galactus.
In terms of the box office, the hope is that Fantastic Four will play to both families and fanboys/fangirls alike, which should help combat lingering superhero fatigue at the box office. It’s earning glowing responses from moviegoers, including an A- CinemaScore, stellar exits on PostTrak and a 93 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. (Superman has almost identical scores.)
“The pleasing back-to-basics feel in The Fantastic Four: First Steps suggests Marvel has learned valuable lessons from its recent box office underperformers. There’s a fresh willingness to prioritize character over the usual barrage of interchangeable CG action sequences that often overwhelm them, instead giving us relatable folks to invest in,” Hollywood Reporter chief film critic David Rooney writes in his review.
Elsewhere, Superman flew past the $500 million mark domestically in its third outing. It held in nicely despite losing Imax screens to Fantastic Four, grossing $24.9 million domestically and $19.8 million internationally to finish Sunday with a North American total of $289.5 million and $213.2 million overseas for worldwide haul of $502.7 million through Sunday.
Universal and Amblin’s Jurassic World: Rebirth is also celebrating. It earned $13 million in its fourth weekend to clear the $300 million domestically after clearing the $600 million milestone globally a week ago.
More to come.