James Gunn’s ‘Superman’ Tops Domestic Box Office, Outearning All Previous DCEU Superman Films
James Gunn’s Superman has become the highest-grossing Superman movie ever in the U.S., beating Batman v Superman at the domestic box office. The movie opened strong worldwide with $217 million, including $122 million from the U.S. and $95 million from international markets.
According to Deadline, after five weeks, Superman has earned over $331 million in the U.S. This breaks Henry Cavill’s Warner Bros. record of $330 million for a Superman film. So far, the movie has made more than $569 million worldwide. This makes it the top superhero movie of 2025, surpassing Marvel’s Thunderbolts*, Captain America: The Brave New World, and The Fantastic Four.
The film might also end Marvel’s 17-year streak of leading the superhero box office. Even though Superman has done better than Batman v Superman in the U.S., it still needs to make over $300 million more globally to beat it worldwide. Right now, it’s the 11th highest-grossing Warner Bros. movie domestically, just below Aquaman, which earned $335 million in the U.S.
Critics and audiences are liking the film. On Rotten Tomatoes, 83% of 472 critics gave positive reviews. The site’s summary says, “Pulling off the heroic feat of fleshing out a dynamic new world while putting its champion’s big, beating heart front and center, this Superman flies high as a Man of Tomorrow grounded in the here and now.” On Metacritic, it scored 68 out of 100, meaning generally favorable reviews. Critics described the movie as fun and colorful, though some thought it had too many characters and ideas. T
he performances by David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, and Nicholas Hoult received praise. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave it an “A−,” the same grade as Man of Steel. PostTrak reported that 86% of viewers liked the film and 74% would recommend it.
Here you go: the #Superman trailer. Krypto, take us home.
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) December 19, 2024
Watch the teaser trailer now and ❤ this post to get updates from @superman before it hits theaters this July. pic.twitter.com/w77kiKef54
James Gunn wrote and directed the movie, which is the first film in the new DC Universe and a reboot of the Superman series. David Corenswet stars as Clark Kent, also known as Superman. The cast also includes Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult, Edi Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan, Nathan Fillion, and Isabela Merced.
The story follows Superman as he deals with the fallout of stopping an international conflict caused by billionaire Lex Luthor, played by Hoult. Superman works to regain public trust with help from a reporter and his superhero friends.
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