Superman Just Hit Two Box Office Milestones That Make It Look Great And Make Black Adam And Thunderbolts* Look Less Than Optimal

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2 days ago

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The box office can be a pretty exciting horse race to follow, even if you're just focusing on the here and now. So far on the 2025 movie schedule, we've seen two weekends of Superman's box office deliver #1 finishes, nabbing a handful of milestones along the way. Two more notable thresholds can now be added to Big Blue's trophy case, as comparing James Gunn's reboot to both Thunderbolts* and Black Adam shows a rather interesting pattern, while also pointing out a frontier where Supes still falls behind.
Superman Has Blazed Past Thunderbolts* Domestic Haul
According to the same report that revealed DC's attempt to steal Kevin Feige from Marvel, the brass at Warner Bros. have set Superman's worldwide financial goal post at a cool $500 million. That doesn't look impossible, when looking at the $416.2 million haul, reported at the time of writing by Box Office Mojo.
However, it's the domestic front that seems to be doing Clark Kent a lot of good, especially since the film has now surpassed Marvel's Thunderbolts* in homegrown grosses. What was secretly a *The New Avengers picture all along only raked in around $190 million in the U.S., while Metropolis' protector has now brought in $243.1 million - so far.
That's good news for truth, justice, and the American Way, to be certain. However, if we look back at one of the last DCEU movies to tangentially connect to the Man of Steel, there's another interesting tale to tell.
You Can Also Add Black Adam's Domestic Grosses To The List Of Casualties
While 2023's The Flash was the last movie to feature the Last Son of Krypton, and his many incarnations, 2022's Black Adam was supposed to change DC's 'hierarchy of power.' Dwayne Johnson's DCEU picture also went as far as bringing Henry Cavill's Superman back for a post-credits cameo that went exactly…nowhere. Which brings us to how Black Adam only brought in $168.1 million domestically, absolutely paling in comparison to David Corenswet's Superman take at the moment.
Respectfully, the recognizable faces in this cinematic kickoff for DCU Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters aren't at the level of blockbuster clout The Rock is. That's not even supposed to be a knock on Dwayne Johnson himself, but rather it's another interesting point of comparison that also applies to Thunderbolts*.
In the interest of fairness, I have to bring up one last front that Superman actually hasn't conquered when compared to both of these pictures. Considering this weekend will see the DC Comics hit facing off against The Fantastic Four: First Steps, this last one is going to be super important.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps Could Pose Superman's Ultimate Box Office Challenge
At the moment, the international box office hasn't been the best for Superman. You're probably asking, 'But Mike, how difficult of a climb has it really been?' right about now. Well, check out the numbers below, and see for yourself:
Black Adam: $225.3 million
Thunderbolts*: $192.2 million
Superman: $173.1 million
Box Office for Dummies 101 clearly tells us that if you really want to make a splash with your picture, you really want both sides of the house to be humming. Unfortunately, that's where Superman hasn't even caught up with Black Adam. As the upcoming Marvel movie threatens to end DC's reign at the top of the domestic box office, our latest Fantastic Four reboot might have both halves of the equation to dominate the box office phenomenon known as 'SuperFantastic.'
In any case, should the $500 million figure hold true as Warner Bros.' monetary sweet spot, Superman looks like it has a good chance at surpassing that benchmark. Of course, only time will tell - and this next weekend at the box office will be a further indication on just how far our hero can fly.
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