‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps' Notches $118 Million Opening Weekend—Just Trailing ‘Superman' Opening
Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn, Pedro Pascal and Vanessa Kirby attend a launch event for "The ... More Fantastic Four: First Steps" in Berlin. Getty Images
The new adaptation of the iconic Marvel superhero team starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bacharach and Joseph Quinn received positive reviews from critics and audiences alike, according to Rotten Tomatoes, propelling the film globally to a $218 million opening weekend after factoring in another $100 million overseas.
The Matt Shakman-directed Marvel film boasted the year's second-highest opening day, grossing $57 million at the domestic box office Friday—placing it behind only 'A Minecraft Movie,' which opened with $57.11 million in April.
The film met projections from Box Office Pro, who estimated it could gross in the $115 million–$135 million range—but fell behind some bullish predictions from insiders who saw the first night sales, Deadline reported.
The ticket sales propelled it to the fourth-highest opening weekend of the year, behind 'A Minecraft Movie' ($162 million), 'Lilo & Stitch' ($146 million), and 'Superman' ($125 million).
'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' marks the biggest hit for Marvel Studios at the box office this year. The studio that enjoyed outsized success with big budget superhero movies in an interconnected cinematic universe was off to a slower start in 2025 than it was used to. 'Captain America: Brave New World' opened with $88 million, while 'Thunderbolts*' opened with only $74.3 million. 'Thunderbolts*,' which opened in May, ended up grossing over $382 million at the box office, but was still among the lowest earning Marvel Cinematic Universe films released since the project began. Surprising Fact
Although the Fantastic Four comics have been around since 1961, the past attempts to adapt the Marvel mainstays have mostly underperformed at the box office. 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' has now had the best opening weekend of any of the past three adaptations. 'Fantastic Four,' the first adaptation in 2005, starring Jessica Alba, Ioan Gruffudd, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis, opened with $56 million before finishing at around $333.5 million worldwide by the end of its run in theaters. The sequel, 'Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer,' opened with $58 million at the domestic box office in 2007, but ended up grossing less than the first installment, with $301.9 million worldwide. The 2015 reboot 'Fantastic Four,' directed by Josh Trank and starring Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan, Kate Mara and Jamie Bell mostly flopped, opening with only $25 million at the domestic box office and grossing $167.9 million worldwide.
Big hits from the previous weeks rounded out the rest of the box office charts over the weekend, with 'Superman' grossing about $25 million for second place. 'Jurassic World Rebirth' remained in third place with a $13 million weekend, and 'F1' hung on after debuting in June to gross about $6 million, according to early figures reported by Hollywood trade publications.
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