The Marvels Sets Another Abysmal Record For The MCU
The days of Marvel conquering the box office are over. The MCU’s latest superhero flick was released on November 10 and is competing against some tough competition for the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend. Unfortunately, it seems The Marvels will tie with the horror movie Thanksgiving in third place with the newest edition to The Hunger Games franchise, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, securing the majority of the holiday audience.
The Marvels Breaks Quantumania’s Embarrassing Record
According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Marvels is sinking the MCU down to historic lows, even worse than Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. The Paul Rudd-led feature, which was released last February, saw a 69 percent audience drop between its first and second week, becoming the worst drop ever in the MCU, until now. The newest superhero feature, starring Brie Larson, is estimated to face a 78 to 80 percent drop, taking over the abysmal record.
The Marvels Is The MCU’s 33rd Outing
Directed by Nia DaCosta, The Marvels serves as the sequel to the 2019 film Captain Marvel, a direct continuation of the television miniseries Ms. Marvel (2022), and stands as the 33rd installment in the expansive Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The film prominently features Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel, Monica Rambeau, and Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel, with Brie Larson reprising her role as Danvers, Teyonah Parris as Rambeau, and Iman Vellani portraying Khan. The ensemble cast also includes Zawe Ashton, Gary Lewis, Park Seo-joon, Zenobia Shroff, Mohan Kapur, Saagar Shaikh, and Samuel L. Jackson.
Holiday Weekend Box Office Expectations Low
While a cast like that would have guaranteed a top box office spot a few years ago, studios aren’t expecting much from The Marvels this upcoming weekend. Experts are guestimating the film will rake in a meager $9 million to $10 million over the holiday weekend, positioning it in a close race with Thanksgiving, a horror movie directed by Eli Roth. Although some are suggesting the new MCU feature might come out just ahead of Thanksgiving, which garnered $3.8 million on Friday and earned a B- CinemaScore.
Is There Any Chance The Marvels Will Turn A Profit?
The Marvels cost Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures $274.8 million to produce and has so far made back $117.7 million. It’s not impossible for the MCU feature to still come out in the green by the time it’s left the theaters, but with audience members dropping like flies, it seems unlikely.
However, Marvel’s last feature, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania still made a total of $476.1 million on a $200 million budget, even after the film saw what is now the second-to-worst audience drop in MCU history. At the end of its run, Quantumania wasn’t a total flop but didn’t bring in enough to meet the typical success the MCU is used to. With The Marvels already performing worse than Quantumania, it’s possible the feature could end up being the third-ever MCU film to end up in the red, joining the ranks of Black Widow and Eternals.
Does Marvel Need To Change Strategy?
The disappointment surrounding The Marvels raises questions about the future of Marvel’s cinematic universe and the sustainability of their recent endeavors. With the film’s performance slipping further, Marvel Studios may need to reassess its strategy and evaluate the factors contributing to this historic downturn.
