The Fantastic Four: First Stepshas crossed a poetic milestone that holds significant importance for the MCU as a franchise. As far as the quality of the MCU film goes,First Stepsis easily thebestFantastic Fourmovieever made. This was abundantly clear by the time ofThe Fantastic Four: First Steps’ending, for many different reasons.
For one, thecast ofFantastic Four: First Stepswas excellent and truly showcased the chemistry and familial connections that the source material is known for. Then there was the beautiful design of Earth-828 and its retrofuturistic setting, not to mention the inclusion of several Fantastic Four villains from the comics. All of this proved how great the movie was.
That said, this did not necessarily translate to box office receipts.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps’box officehas been a big talking point thanks to the overall state of the MCU of late. The franchise’s last true success came four movies ago withDeadpool & Wolverine.DespiteFantastic Four: First Stepsnot reaching these heights, it has achieved a poetic box office milestone that includes some positives for the MCU.
The Fantastic Four: First Steps Is The First Movie In The Franchise To Cross $400m Worldwide
In the movie’s third weekend,The Fantastic Four: First Stepscrossed $400 million at the worldwide box office. The MCU flick currently holds a worldwide total of $434 million, rendering it the first time anyFantastic Fourmovie has crossed the $400 million milestone. Previous installments massively underperformed, proving the MCU iteration to be an outlier.
$100,000,000
$178,839,854
$154,696,080
$333,535,934
$130,000,000
$169,991,393
$131,921,738
$301,913,131
$155,000,000
$111,765,333
$56,117,548
$167,882,881
$200,000,000
$203,800,000
$230,412,709
$434,212,709
This is a somewhat poetic haul given the film’s obvious links to the number four. The fourth attempt at a mainstream, big-budgetFantastic Fourmovie just so happens to be the best-reviewed by fans and critics alike, the most successful at the worldwide box office, and the first to cross $400 million.
While the movie may not be the massively profitable venture that Marvel Studios was likely hoping for, there are some positives to glean from this total. Of course, this is without taking into account any further box office returns the film will earn in the coming weeks.
Fantastic Four: First Steps Puts A More Positive Spin On Recent MCU Box Office Issues
Where recent conversations about the MCU’s box office totals are concerned, it is often argued that the franchise may not have the pull it once did. TheMCU’s box officein the last few years has been underwhelming, with only two of the last seven movies released turning a guaranteed profit:Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3andDeadpool & Wolverine.
Movies likeAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,The Marvels, Captain America: Brave New World,andThunderbolts*were all considered box office failures to differing extents. For the most part,The Fantastic Four: First Stepshas been considered the same. That said, its new $434 million total does highlight some positives, especially when comparing it to pastFantastic Fourmovies.
If anything,Fantastic Four: First Stepsbecoming the first film in the franchise to cross $400 million proves the MCU still has more box office pull than other studios. All three formerFantastic Fourmovies were made by 20th Century Fox and failed to live up to expectations, critically and commercially.The Fantastic Four: First Stepshas, especially in the former metric.
Its box office could have been better, but it still outperformed the efforts of 20th Century Fox. This sheds a bit more of a positive light on the MCU’s recent box office woes by proving that Marvel Studios still has some pull.
Over the years, there have been other instances of this, too. The success ofMarvel Studios’Spider-Manmoviesin comparison to the failure of the Sony Spider-Man Universe is one such example. Moreover,Deadpool & Wolverinebecame the firstX-Menmovie to earn over $1 billion at the box office, with a lot of that driven by the excitement of merging the franchise with the MCU.
Two Upcoming MCU Movies Will Benefit From The Fantastic Four’s MCU Success
With this reality in mind, that the MCU has a bigger pull than the likes of 20th Century Fox, two otherupcoming Marvel moviescould benefit. Those movies in question areBladeand Marvel’sX-Menproject. TheX-Menmovie is admittedly further along than the struggling development ofBlade, yet both are still in the minds of higher-ups at Marvel Studios.
As with the predecessors toDeadpool & WolverineandThe Fantastic Four: First Steps, the priorX-Menmovies and Wesley Snipes’Bladetrilogy were not produced by Marvel Studios. TheX-Menmovies were part of Fox, likeFantastic Four, while theBlademovies were made by New Line Cinema. Having both properties back under Marvel Studios' umbrella is proving very exciting for many.
If the trend established bySpider-Man,which also had its first $1 billion movie under Marvel Studios' leadership,Deadpool & Wolverine, andThe Fantastic Four: First Stepscontinues withBladeandX-Men, they could outperform their previous iterations.
Although it does remain to be seen if the overall box office of the MCU will improve,The Fantastic Four: First Stepsis at least proving that Marvel Comics properties that were previously part of other franchises can thrive in a way they haven’t before under the Marvel Studios banner.
