Breaking Records for All the Wrong Reasons: Marvel’s Phase 5 Is Lowest Box Office Era in MCU History
Marvel’s Phase 5 is shaping up to be a tough chapter for the MCU. Not only has it left fans with a lot of unanswered questions and characters that seem forgotten, but according to the latest box office numbers, it also became the lowest-earning phase in the entire franchise.
Now that Phase 5 wrapped up with the release of Ironheart on Disney+, it’s a good time to look at how the movies did financially. Unfortunately, some didn’t meet expectations. Take Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, it was supposed to be a strong start for the phase but ended up disappointing both critics and audiences at the box office. Then there’s The Marvels, which performed even worse, pulling in just over $200 million worldwide. That makes it the biggest box office flop in MCU history.
Other films like Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts had better reviews and fans hoped for more, but ticket sales didn’t reflect that excitement. They simply didn’t capture the audience’s attention the way Marvel usually does.
| Movie | Opening Weekend | Domestic Box Office | Worldwide Box Office |
| Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania | $106,109,650 | $214,506,909 | $476,073,180 |
| Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 | $118,414,021 | $358,995,815 | $845,555,777 |
| The Marvels | $46,110,859 | $84,500,223 | $199,706,250 |
| Deadpool & Wolverine | $211,435,291 | $636,745,858 | $1,338,071,348 |
| Captain America: Brave New World | $88,842,603 | $200,500,001 | $413,640,021 |
| Thunderbolts* | $74,300,608 | $189,920,701 | $382,007,431 |
Still, it wasn’t all bad news. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was a bright spot — fans really connected with the emotional farewell to the team, and it earned over $845 million globally. Then came Deadpool & Wolverine, which has been the biggest hit of the phase so far, raking in a huge $1.34 billion and proving Marvel can still deliver blockbusters that excite fans.
Even with these wins, the overall average for Phase 5 is dragging down the MCU’s numbers. To put it in perspective, Phase 3 averaged a whopping $1.24 billion per movie. That was the peak of Marvel’s box office success, with hits like Black Panther, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Thor: Ragnarok, and Avengers: Endgame. Every release felt like a major event back then. Even Ant-Man and the Wasp, considered a smaller film, earned more than many Phase 5 movies.
Phase 2 wasn’t as huge but still did well, averaging about $876.9 million per film, thanks to blockbusters like Iron Man 3 and Avengers: Age of Ultron. Phase 4, which many see as the start of Marvel’s slowdown, still managed a solid average of $814.3 million. This was largely due to Spider-Man: No Way Home, which made nearly $2 billion worldwide, although most of that money went to Sony, not Disney.
Even the earliest Phase 1 films, while not huge earners individually, averaged more than Phase 5. Those movies set the stage for everything that followed. The Avengers in 2012 was the first true MCU blockbuster, making over $1.5 billion and changing how Hollywood approached franchises.
But now, the story is different. Marvel seems to be losing the momentum it once had. Too many releases, mixed reviews, and maybe even superhero fatigue appear to be catching up with the studio. Fans just aren’t flocking to theaters like before.
The next big hope is The Fantastic Four: First Steps. If it does well, it could kick off Phase 6 with a bang. For now, though, Phase 5 holds the unfortunate title of the MCU’s lowest-grossing phase, a reminder that even Marvel has to keep working hard to win back its audience.
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