James Gunn’s ‘Superman’ Will Likely Achieve What No DC Film Has Since the MCU Began

James Gunn’s Superman will likely finish its theatrical run doing something no other DC movie has managed to pull off since Marvel kicked off its cinematic universe back in 2008. The film opened to strong reviews and a big box office debut, even after facing a few controversies before release.

According to figures reported on August 3, 2025, Superman has made $316.3 million in the United States and Canada, plus another $235 million overseas. That brings the worldwide total to $551.3 million so far.

The movie was number one at the box office for its first two weekends. It brought in $57 million during its second weekend, which was a 54% drop from opening weekend. Analysts say that’s actually better than what other superhero movies this year have seen. Captain America: Brave New World dropped 68% in its second weekend, and Thunderbolts* fell 56%, The Fantastic Four: First Steps saw an 80% drop, the worst in the MCU So far.

On its third weekend, Superman finally slipped to second place when The Fantastic Four: First Steps opened. Even then, it still made $24.9 million, a 57% drop, which is considered decent for a superhero movie’s third week. The movie has now become the first DC film since The Batman to make over $300 million in the U.S. and Canada.

And it’s not stopping there. Excluding the pandemic year of 2020, Superman is on track to become the first DC movie since The Dark Knight in 2008 to end the year as the highest-grossing comic book film. If it happens, it would break Marvel’s long streak of dominating that title every year since the MCU began.

One big reason for this is that Marvel’s 2025 releases haven’t been doing so well. The Fantastic Four: First Steps started strong but stumbled quickly. It has earned $198.4 million domestically and $170.3 million internationally for a $368.7 million total. But on its second Friday, the movie saw a huge 80% drop in ticket sales, the worst drop for any comic book movie this year.

Captain America: Brave New World also flopped. It finished its run with $200.5 million in the U.S. and Canada and $214.6 million overseas, totaling $415.1 million. Critics and audiences were lukewarm on it from the start. Meanwhile, Thunderbolts* earned even less, ending with $190.3 million domestically and $192.2 million internationally, for $382.4 million worldwide. Variety reported it would have needed to make about $425 million just to break even.

For DC, this is a huge turnaround. After years of struggling to compete with Marvel’s box office hits, Superman is proving that the studio can still deliver a massive blockbuster. If the numbers hold, it will be DC’s biggest win in years and the first time in nearly two decades that they’ve topped the yearly superhero charts.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!