Like clockwork, the annual summer slate would always invite competition between tentpole titles, with this year’s focusing on James Gunn’s Superman and Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four: First Steps. But it’s only one of the two battles being waged, as fans are reigniting a deep-seated rivalry by pitting the former against 2013’s Man of Steel.
As the DC Universe (DCU) film enters its seventh week in theatres, the result is clear: both are box-office victors in their own right. Superman now sits at US$594.5 million globally after earning an additional US$8.4 million over the weekend, which puts it behind the Man of Steel‘s US$670.1 million haul by a fair bit. However, it overtook the latter in domestic gross with US$331 million versus US$291 million, not adjusted for inflation.
It’s unlikely that Gunn’s latest outing will outperform Zack Snyder’s grittier, more mature take on the Last Son of Krypton, given that its climb to US$600 million has slowed to a crawl. Still, the gamble has paid off for DC Studios, as it’s the first DC movie to surpass the domestic tally of US$300 million in three years.
On the flip side, its Marvel counterpart isn’t in the best shape. While The Fantastic Four: First Steps enjoyed a strong global opening, it registered a sharp fall in the subsequent weeks and now stands at US$468.7 million after four weekends, of which US$247 million came from the domestic box office.
The launchpad to Chapter One of the rebooted DCU, Superman stars David Corenswet (Pearl) as Clark Kent aka the titular superhero, Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult (Nosferatu) as Lex Luthor, Isabela Merced (Alien: Romulus) as Hawkgirl, Nathan Fillion (The Rookie) as Guy Gardner, Edi Gathegi (StartUp) as Mr. Terrific, and Anthony Carrigan (Barry) as Metamorpho. It also sets the stage for Supergirl’s upcoming solo film in 2026, with Craig Gillespie (Cruella, I, Tonya) serving as director.
Meanwhile, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is directed by WandaVision‘s Matt Shakman and serves as the 37th title in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). It stars Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us) as Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby (The Crown) as Sue Storm / Invisible Woman, Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Bear) as Ben Grimm / The Thing, and Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things 4) as Johnny Storm / Human Torch, eschewing their origin stories for a new adventure in the retro-futuristic setting of an alternate universe known as Earth-828.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Ting Wei
