Disney (and others) at the Box Office - Current State of Affairs

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Thunderbolts on the other hand had very little and at least turned out to be good.

That would probably matter much more at the Sundance film festival

 

[BrianLo]

That would probably matter much more at the Sundance film festival

I mean it matters - because I at least enjoyed it. That’s all there was to my comment.

 

[Nevermore525]

Updated weekend numbers for Lilo and Stitch

$61.8M second weekend domestically (58% drop)

Global cume stands at $613.4M ($278.9M Dom/$334.5M Int)

Lilo & Stitch (2025) - Box Office and Financial Information

Financial analysis of Lilo & Stitch (2025) including production budget, domestic and international box office gross, DVD and Blu-ray sales reports.

www.the-numbers.com

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 4 Superman cost an alleged $225M. May need to get to around $700M+ to break even at the box office.

Can Warner's DC Studios Rise From the Ashes With 'Superman?' | Analysis

James Gunn's Superman reboot not only aims to restart the entire DC universe but is one of Warner Bros.' most crucial releases of the year

www.thewrap.com

Man of Steel made $670 million worldwide in 2013, which I believed WB considered a disappointment at the time

That movie also had a $225 million production budget

$225 million is actually less than the $270 million budget of Superman Returns, and that's not adjusting for 20 years of inflation!

 

[Nevermore525]

Man of Steel made $670 million worldwide in 2013, which I believed WB considered a disappointment at the time

That movie also had a $225 million production budget

$225 million is actually less than the $270 million budget of Superman Returns, and that's not adjusting for 20 years of inflation!

Well, guess we’ll see what James Gunn’s latest Team Up Super Hero Movie that happens to feature Superman can do.

 

[Disney Irish]

Man of Steel made $670 million worldwide in 2013, which I believed WB considered a disappointment at the time

That movie also had a $225 million production budget

$225 million is actually less than the $270 million budget of Superman Returns, and that's not adjusting for 20 years of inflation!

Yes, but that was the start of the DCEU and before all the troubles it had later on, especially with the SnyderBros and the #SnyderCut and all that drama. And not to mention now the third time rebooting the property on the large screen in the last 2 decades. And that doesn't even talk about the 2 other depictions of the character on TV during the same time, both of which we're beloved by fans.

In my opinion DC is in worse off shape than the MCU. And watching all the recent trailers I don't see them making any changes to make it better. For example when has Superman ever yelled at Lois in either the comics, on TV, or any previous movie as is shown in the latest trailers? He hasn't until Gunn got his hands on him and that doesn't bode well for the rest of the film to me. Not to mention the suit looks baggy on him and doesn't show him being all the muscular. So a bunch of negatives to me that general audiences won't like, but I guess we'll see.

Point is I think if they got $670M today they'd consider that a success, even if it didn't actually breakeven, given where the franchise has been the last decade.

 

[BrianLo]

In the sake of fairness, break even would be more like 560.

It’ll be one to watch closely. If it doesn’t land then I think we’ve reached the clear end of theatrical DCEU. I guess another crack at Batman?

Marvel has room to fall still. There’s still going to be demand for Spiderman, Deadpool, RDJ and the OG Avengers and maybe some iteration of X Men.

 

[DKampy]

Yes, but that was the start of the DCEU and before all the troubles it had later on, especially with the SnyderBros and the #SnyderCut and all that drama. And not to mention now the third time rebooting the property on the large screen in the last 2 decades. And that doesn't even talk about the 2 other depictions of the character on TV during the same time, both of which we're beloved by fans.

In my opinion DC is in worse off shape than the MCU. And watching all the recent trailers I don't see them making any changes to make it better. For example when has Superman ever yelled at Lois in either the comics, on TV, or any previous movie as is shown in the latest trailers? He hasn't until Gunn got his hands on him and that doesn't bode well for the rest of the film to me. Not to mention the suit looks baggy on him and doesn't show him being all the muscular. So a bunch of negatives to me that general audiences won't like, but I guess we'll see.

Point is I think if they got $670M today they'd consider that a success, even if it didn't actually breakeven, given where the franchise has been the last decade.

There is definitely more pressure on Superman than F4…. As bad as some of the Marvel movies have been… they don’t come close to the stink of Shazam, Black Adam, The Aquaman sequel etc IMO…. In a sense DC is in a similar shape as Marvel…. As both it is more important to change the narrative then breaking the bank with profits… the only difference is if Superman fails Gunn’s DCEU is in jeopardy…where as Marvel still has some characters they can fall back on

 

[BrianLo]

I’ll log that expectations for Superman and Fantastic 4 are pretty similar. Even if the wheels don’t come off the MCU entirely in the same fashion.

600-700+ and they are pretty happy with solid franchise starters. 500 is workable but disappointing. 400 and they are at risk of being dumped for a decade. I can’t imagine either crashes and burns below 400.

 

[Disney Irish]

In the sake of fairness, break even would be more like 560.

It’ll be one to watch closely. If it doesn’t land then I think we’ve reached the clear end of theatrical DCEU. I guess another crack at Batman?

Marvel has room to fall still. There’s still going to be demand for Spiderman, Deadpool, RDJ and the OG Avengers and maybe some iteration of X Men.

To be fair to Gunn, while I don't like what he appears to be doing with Superman, this isn't the DCEU. That ended in 2023 with Aquaman 2. This is a reboot, now called just the DC Universe, or DCU, an even more obvious copy of the MCU, is starting with Superman and continuing with Supergirl next year..

The Batman is getting a sequel with Matt Reeves still writing/directing and Pattinson reprising his role as the Dark Knight, set to release in 2027. It is not officially part of the DCU, rather its its own universe.

But I believe you're right, the MCU has a lot more room to fall or continue to rise as the case maybe. They have been and continue to be in a better place than DC.

 

[celluloid]

And MCU or DCU, neither are helping each other when they don't have big standouts but nearby releases.

It is like if Blumhouse and A24 just started making only mid to low commercial budget horror that could not profit in theaters.

They would both hurt each other.

 

[Disney Irish]

And MCU or DCU, neither are helping each other when they don't have big standouts but nearby releases.

It is like if Blumhouse and A24 just started making only mid to low commercial budget horror that could not profit in theaters.

They would both hurt each other.

I think the difference there is that Blumhouse, A24, and I'll even throw Neon in there, never have had an expectation to make profit during theatrical, because traditionally their movies don't actually turn a profit during theatrical. Whereas Disney and WBD have traditionally expected profit during theatrical with the MCU and DCU, albeit likely have changed that expectation post-pandemic as has been discussed here.

 

[celluloid]

I think the difference there is that Blumhouse, A24, and I'll even throw Neon in there, never have had an expectation to make profit during theatrical, because traditionally their movies don't actually turn a profit during theatrical. Whereas Disney and WBD have traditionally expected profit during theatrical with the MCU and DCU, albeit likely have changed that expectation post-pandemic as has been discussed here.

Blumhouse has rarely had a flop. Blumhouse came out of the gate due to its founder's business sense on one of the biggest profit Margins of all time.
(Paranormal Activity)
Since then Blumhouse somehow has a magic touch of high concept that interests people enough to check it out with conservative delegated budget, even marketing.

Blumhouse's flop theatrical are more recent ones in the A24/neon world.

More to the point, regardless of their goals, the saturation of mediocrity hurts audience's trust.

 

[Disney Irish]

Blumhouse has rarely had a flop. Blumhouse came out of the gate due to its founder's business sense on one of the biggest profit Margins of all time.
(Paranormal Activity)
Since then Blumhouse somehow has a magic touch of high concept that interests people enough to check it out with conservative delegated budget, even marketing.

If you haven't noticed horror is starting to become the next genre that is getting over-saturated and thus audiences are starting to get fatigued by it. So Blumhouse better branch out to other genres (right now they are a one trick pony, they should get back to their roots of doing diverse films) or they'll end up in the same boat as other genres that got overexposed like superheros.

Also just because they haven't had a flop recently doesn't mean they aren't due. If you go back to the mid-2010s they had a string of them, so they do have a record of flops even on the lower budget fare.

 

[celluloid]

If you haven't noticed horror is starting to become the next genre that is getting over-saturated and thus audiences are starting to get fatigued by it. So Blumhouse better branch out to other genres (right now they are a one trick pony, they should get back to their roots of doing diverse films) or they'll end up in the same boat as other genres that got overexposed like superheros.

Also just because they haven't had a flop recently doesn't mean they aren't due. If you go back to the mid-2010s they had a string of them, so they do have a record of flops even on the lower budget fare.

That branches from the point made into a different discussion.

I disagree with though. There are also objective facts that completely go against your thought. Sinners, this year's horror movie, not just the highest grossing horror movie in decades but also the highest grossing original story film of the decade. Wolfman totally flopped, Imaginary was meh, they have had flops recently.

M3gan 2.0, Black Phone, Five Nights all have films this year. All genre of horror but in subgenre very different ways. They diverse enough and are doing just fine and will have a strong year.

Family movies and horror are clearly king in this era.

 

[Disney Irish]

That branches from the point made into a different discussion.

I disagree with though. There are also objective facts that completely go against your thought. Sinners, this year's horror movie, not just the highest grossing horror movie in decades but also the highest grossing original story film of the decade. Wolfman totally flopped, Imaginary was meh, they have had flops recently.

M3gan 2.0, Black Phone, Five Nights all have films this year. All genre of horror but in subgenre very different ways. They diverse enough and are doing just fine and will have a strong year.

Family movies and horror are clearly king in this era.

We’ll see how those perform, of the 3 I think Black Phone 2 may flop.

The point I was trying to make is with over-saturation happening in horror its going to cause the same problems as every other genre that got over-saturated in the past, such as the superhero genre. Horror went through this same problem already in the 80s and early 90s. It’s a cycle, and I think we’ve hit its current peak, similar to others saying superhero’s peak was in 2018/2019. Just because there are examples of successes doesn’t mean it’s all sunshine and roses for the genre, you mentioned a few that haven’t been successful, so the dents in the armor is starting to show. As far as sub-genres, you can say that about every genre as they all have sub-genres that makes them all a bit different, doesn’t mean the general public sees that difference in any meaningful way.

To bring this back to Blumhouse on their recent films, Exorcist was considered a critical and audience flop even if it cleared its budget. So yeah it’s not all roses for them either.

 

[celluloid]

We’ll see how those perform, of the 3 I think Black Phone 2 may flop.

The point I was trying to make is with over-saturation happening in horror its going to cause the same problems as every other genre that got over-saturated in the past, such as the superhero genre. Horror went through this same problem already in the 80s and early 90s. It’s a cycle, and I think we’ve hit its current peak, similar to others saying superhero’s peak was in 2018/2019. Just because there are examples of successes doesn’t mean it’s all sunshine and roses for the genre, you mentioned a few that haven’t been successful, so the dents in the armor is starting to show. As far as sub-genres, you can say that about every genre as they all have sub-genres that makes them all a bit different, doesn’t mean the general public sees that difference in any meaningful way.

To bring this back to Blumhouse on their recent films, Exorcist was considered a critical and audience flop even if it cleared its budget. So yeah it’s not all roses for them either.

That was a long way to agree with exactly what I stated here.

And MCU or DCU, neither are helping each other when they don't have big standouts but nearby releases.

It is like if Blumhouse and A24 just started making only mid to low commercial budget horror that could not profit in theaters.

They would both hurt each other.

Which never said it could not have a flop to the genre, and then you went on some other argument that did not exist.

So if you see it happening, then you agree, but had to act like I said Blumhouse or the genre never has a flop?

 

[Disney Irish]

That was a long way to agree with exactly what I stated here.

In a way I guess yeah I'm agreeing with you a bit. Your original point was about the MCU/DCU hurting each other. And I'm saying that I see horror heading that way too due to its over-saturation. And honestly heading that way fast, in my opinion, because it seems every major studio right now is trying to pump out some type of horror film left and right.

then you went on some other argument that did not exist.

Its a discussion not an argument, and I'm discussing, I was expanding upon a point you made and including additional opinions to the topic by providing additional context.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

It’ll be one to watch closely. If it doesn’t land then I think we’ve reached the clear end of theatrical DCEU. I guess another crack at Batman?

We still have The Batman 2 before they try another reboot.

 

[Nevermore525]

I disagree with though. There are also objective facts that completely go against your thought. Sinners, this year's horror movie, not just the highest grossing horror movie in decades but also the highest grossing original story film of the decade.

If we’re just counting the 2020s, Sinners is the highest grossing original film domestically of the decade, not globally.

Elemental thus far would be the highest grossing original film globally.