Disney and Marvel Studios’ much-anticipated movie, “The Marvels” has recently touched down movie screens. But the movie’s financial performance has failed to marvel its creators who were expecting another lucrative turnout.
After its first weekend on the road, it became clear that the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) had some thinking to do. The movie has only managed to bring in around $47 million at the box office, a far cry from popular expectations. The movie has broken the record for Marvel’s franchise-worst-ever performer.
Its overseas performance failed to save the day. With only $63.2 million to show beyond the country’s shores, it means that the movie has only brought in $110.2 million globally.
On a regular day, $110.2 million at the box office is a remarkable achievement, but not anymore, and certainly not for any project under the MCU. In any case, the success of any movie is hinged on one major deciding factor – the budget.
The budget for The Marvels stood very high at $220 to $250 million. Compare that with the turnout and the box office embarrassment becomes glaring. Add the $100 million marketing cost and it becomes a colossal disgrace.
A movie is only considered a box office success not by its high grossing, but by its return on investment. Take for instance The Wretched, the 2019 horror/drama movie with a budget of $66,000 which went on to attract over $65,000 at its first weekend and $4 million overall at the box office. Although grossing lower than The Marvels, it is miles ahead in terms of profitability and success.
For Disney and Marvel, one issue that should be on the drawing board is the sizes of its recent movie budgets. $200 million for a movie budget was once considered outrageous and still is, considering that there is no crystal ball to predict performance.
A massive budget will only be justifiable when it brings in massive profit. Take John Wick: Chapter 4 whose $100 million budget raised eyebrows during its time. The movie only succeeded in shutting up its budget critics after pooling $440 million worldwide.
Even though other Marvel movies such as Eternals, Black Panther, and Captain Marvel: Civil War all cost at least $200 million to put together, and did pretty well at the box office, the MCU shouldn’t get carried away with the $200 million craze.
Other factors that contributed to The Marvel’s unimpressive showing should have been considered. For one, the actor’s strike robbed the movie of so much promotion. Also, the pandemic shifted movie audiences to streaming and at-home watching, a behavior that continued even after the pandemic. By the time theaters were open again, audiences had too many MCU movies to catch up with beginning with 2021’s WandaVison.
Overall, there seems to be a comic book fatigue that has hit the MCU fan base over the years. As the franchise struggled to keep the momentum alive, it was unclear how long the magic would last. Nevertheless, The Marvels would have done a lot better with less overconfidence and a more thrifty budget.
