All 8 MCU Movies Fantastic Four: First Steps Has Defeated at the Box Office

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By Sunday, August 10, my personal favorite flick, “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” had raked in an impressive $230.7 million domestically and $204.6 million internationally, making a grand total of $435.3 million globally. It’s got a few more weeks left on the big screen before it makes its digital debut, following the pattern set by “Captain America: Brave New World” (a two-month gap between cinema release and digital retailer premiere). Nevertheless, even with this extra time, “First Steps” might fall short of Disney’s and the creators’ initial expectations. However, it’s not quite the lowest earner in the Marvel Cinematic Universe yet. In fact, at this stage, it has surpassed eight other titles in terms of worldwide gross. But there are 28 other films that have earned more than it so far.

We plan to review all eight films, yet the question arises: Could it become the top earner among them? Definitely yes for both questions. As for the films it could surpass, it seems plausible that it might outdo Thor’s $449.3 million and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’s $476 million. Regarding Ant-Man’s $519.3 million and Iron Man’s $585.8 million, it’s possible but not guaranteed.

The original sentence might be a bit too formal or technical for general conversation, so I tried to simplify the language while keeping the meaning intact.

1) The Marvels

In 2019, the movie Captain Marvel generated an impressive revenue of $1.1 billion with a production budget of just $160 million. That very year, Brie Larson’s character Carol Danvers was also featured in Avengers: Endgame, which became a true cultural phenomenon.

Four years have passed since “The Marvels” was released, making history as the first MCU film that failed to surpass $100 million domestically. This poor performance wasn’t confined to domestic box offices, as it also struggled overseas. In total, it managed only $206 million globally. Tragically, its production cost was nearly double that of “Captain Marvel”, and may have been even higher. Without a doubt, this will go down as the MCU’s largest financial flop. It’s disappointing, given that it’s one of the MCU’s less recognized productions.

2) The Incredible Hulk

The Universal Pictures-produced film, “The Incredible Hulk,” demonstrated that the growing Marvel Cinematic Universe wasn’t invincible. It failed to double its initial $150 million investment, generating only $265.6 million in revenue. Notably, this earnings were barely higher than Ang Lee’s “Hulk” from five years before. Until the release of “The Marvels,” it seemed that this entertaining yet shallow movie would hold the title as the lowest-grossing MCU film. Interestingly, it doesn’t quite fit into the broader narrative saga, despite efforts over time to seamlessly integrate it.

3) Captain America: The First Avenger

Among all the popular characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain America struggles most to attract foreign audiences. This was particularly evident with the first movie, “Captain America: The First Avenger,” which despite being one of the top-tier films in the series, had a harder time appealing to international viewers.

In 2014, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” earned an impressive $714.4 million on a production budget of approximately $170 million. This success can be attributed to the fact that “The Avengers” in 2012 laid the groundwork for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), making any film under this banner an anticipated event, regardless of whether the character’s name included “America” or not. For example, “The Avengers” introduced many people to Captain America who hadn’t encountered him in his initial movie a year prior.

“Captain America: Civil War” was equally an “Avengers” film as it was a solo venture for Captain America, leading to its massive box office take of nearly $1.2 billion against a production cost of $250 million.

On the other hand, “The First Avenger,” released before the “Avengers”, introduced a character that had not been featured in mainstream cinema previously. Additionally, being a period piece presented certain challenges. Despite its importance to Phase One of the MCU, it wasn’t particularly profitable, earning only $370.6 million against a budget exceeding $216.7 million.

4) Thunderbolts*

As a die-hard Marvel fan, I must admit that among the three MCU movies of 2025, it’s regrettably Thunderbolts that fell short of expectations. Initially, it seemed promising as its drop from the first weekend to the second was lighter than Captain America: Brave New World. However, it didn’t open as high as Brave New World, and the final box office total of $382.4 million against a typical MCU budget of $180 million is certainly disappointing.

I find myself scratching my head trying to figure out why this happened. On one hand, the mixed reviews didn’t seem to have as much impact as they should have. On the other, I doubt that the title change post-release caused any significant confusion among fans. Nonetheless, it’s a lesson for future projects – we all want Marvel movies to shine!

In a surprising twist, the unveiling of the film as “The New Avengers” might have led to a smaller decrease in ticket sales from the first weekend to the second. However, the main reason for this drop appears to be that none of its characters were continuations of beloved predecessors. Generally speaking, Black Widow was deemed acceptable, making up three out of six team members (albeit one had a brief screen time). Additionally, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier failed to captivate most Disney+ subscribers, Ant-Man and the Wasp premiered in theaters seven years before Thunderbolts, and Winter Soldier has consistently been on the lower end of Marvel Cinematic Universe’s top tier. To make matters worse, while promotional materials suggested it was a major MCU event film, the actual content is more focused on character depth rather than action, which may not have aligned with audiences’ expectations during the early summer movie season.

5) Black Widow

It’s quite clear how poorly Thunderbolts performed, financially speaking, when you consider it only narrowly surpassed Black Widow in global box office earnings. The difference between their grosses is minimal, given that they are both high-budget films with hundreds of millions earned worldwide.

Keep in mind that “Black Widow” premiered in June 2021, a time when concerns about COVID-19 were preventing people from going to cinemas. As it was the only Marvel Cinematic Universe film released both in theaters and on Disney+ (with Premier Access), its global earnings took a significant hit compared to other films. Despite having an unusually high production budget of $288.5 million, “Black Widow” managed to earn just $379.8 million. Therefore, at least the upcoming film “Thunderbolts” will have a much more affordable budget.

* Thunderbolts is a hypothetical Marvel Cinematic Universe team that has not been announced for production yet.

6) Eternals

Credit where credit’s due to Chloé Zhao for tackling the challenge of bringing “The Eternals” to the big screen. Unlike James Gunn with “Guardians of the Galaxy,” who had a more lighthearted and engaging material, Zhao dealt with characters that were not as quirky or endearing. The final product, unfortunately, feels quite dry. Despite initial excitement suggesting this could be the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s second major Oscar contender, early reviews upon release tell a different story.

In Phase Four, viewer engagement started to significantly dip, and it appears that “The Eternals” might have been the turning point for many remaining viewers who chose to exit. Ironically, criticism towards the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) nowadays revolves around its tendency to rehash what has worked before. However, “The Eternals” was a more unexpected twist than a repetition; unfortunately, it wasn’t quite the right surprise. For a superhero movie, it was rather disheartening in terms of audience reception. By the end of its box office run, it managed to gather $402 million but cost an impressive $236.2 million to produce.

7) Captain America: Brave New World

As a dedicated film enthusiast, I must admit that Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson was already a familiar face in films like “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and various “Avengers” movies. However, stepping into the world of “Brave New World,” it felt as though I was encountering a brand-new character on screen. Don’t get me wrong; it didn’t reach the same heights as “Winter Soldier” or “Civil War.” Yet, considering its outstanding predecessors, one would expect “Brave New World” to gather more than $415.1 million at the box office-a figure that pales in comparison to its production budget of $180 million.

Previously stated, Mackie held a significant role in the MCU, however, Red Hulk’s entrance was also introduced. Regrettably, the generally mediocre reception didn’t boost its popularity much. The consensus being that there wasn’t anything new or exceptional compared to previous MCU productions. More so, it seemed like an extension of “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” and “The Incredible Hulk,” rather than a full-fledged Captain America series. Notably, one was a relatively unpopular Disney+ series, while the other was a movie released 17 years ago. It appeared as though it was meant to be a filler film instead of a major event, and this sentiment seemed accurate during its cinema release.

8) Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Marvel has generally achieved good results in introducing lesser-known characters on the big screen and sparking audience interest. Although it didn’t reach the same level of success as Guardians of the Galaxy, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings performed admirably.

Shang-Chi outperformed Eternals in the box office, with a more entertaining overall experience compared to Eternals, which was heavily promoted as an event film rather than a fun movie. As a result, Shang-Chi became the highest-grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film of 2021, surpassing both Eternals and Black Widow, earning $432.2 million worldwide compared to at most $200 million for its competitors.

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2025-08-14 02:46