Marvel reportedly plans to move forward with a Fantastic Four sequel, even though First Steps is on pace to be another MCU financial disappointment, which follows Disney confirming both Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts as big busts.
Marvel Betting on Avengers Crossovers
According to insider Jeff Sneider, Marvel still wants to move ahead with a sequel, with director Matt Shakman likely returning. According to the report, the thinking is that the studio hopes that the team’s upcoming appearances in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars will boost their profile enough to help a second movie perform better:
The box office wasn’t great this weekend, with The Fantastic Four: First Steps suffering a huge drop en route to a second weekend of $40 million, indicating that it will likely come in under Superman. I’ve heard that Matt Shakman will likely return to direct a sequel, which Marvel execs think will perform better once its First Family appears in the two-part Avengers finale.
So far, there’s been no official announcement from Disney or Marvel Studios, though Disney CEO Bob Iger did speak positively about Fantastic Four in its recent investor call.
Fantastic Four Suffers Huge Drop
The rumor comes on the heels of Fantastic Four: First Steps taking a major 67% hit in its second weekend, dropping to $38M domestic after opening at $117.6M. It now trails James Gunn’s Superman, which only dipped 53% in its second weekend and is flying past $550M globally.
As of Tuesday, Fantastic Four is at $378.3M globally.
Despite a 91% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes and an A- on CinemaScore, Fantastic Four isn’t connecting beyond hardcore Marvel fans.
The Wrap called the second weekend collapse “a bad omen for Marvel’s future.” The report notes the film was expected to hold below a 60% drop, which could’ve kept it on track for a $300M domestic and $500M worldwide run. But that now seems unlikely and the box office is being questioned.
Lacking the “X” Factor
Critics and analysts agree that Fantastic Four didn’t offer anything that got people talking. Unlike Superman—which generated buzz around characters like Krypto and Mr. Terrific—exactly as I said, First Steps played it safe. There were no breakout moments or cameos, no major tie-ins to the wider MCU.
Even with strong visuals and positive word of mouth, it failed to capture interest outside the core fanbase. The movie gave audiences exactly what was expected—and nothing more.
Film critic Aaron Neuwirth filled in The Wrap: “Fantastic Four, which I did like, didn’t have that by comparison. There wasn’t anything specific that made people go, ‘Oh, you have to go see this film right this second!’”
Box Office Outlook Not Great
Fantastic Four is now facing a tougher box office battle heading into its third weekend. New competition like Freakier Friday, Weapons, and The Bad Guys 2 is expected to pull away key demographics, particularly families and general audiences.
Opening weekend data already showed a skewed audience: around 70% male, with the percentage of families that went to see Marvel’s Fantastic Four low at 17% (compared to Superman‘s 31%).
“Fantastic Four was already pretty heavy on fanboys and light on families,” a theatrical insider told The Wrap. “Competing with The Bad Guys 2 in the second weekend probably ended up being a bigger hurdle than expected.”
Can the Avengers Save the Franchise?
Marvel is clearly hoping that by the time Fantastic Four appears in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars, the team will finally catch fire. But expectations have dropped, according to The Wrap. The site offers that both Secret Wars and Doomsday aren’t likely to reach the $2B highs of Infinity War and Endgame, not without the same build-up, fan investment, and hype.
And unless something changes, Marvel may not attempt to launch another new character until after 2028. There’s still no word about Shang-Chi 2.
The MCU going forward
In that recent Marvel press event, similar to what Iger has said, Kevin Feige confirmed the MCU will be scaling back on content.
“From the first Iron Man in 2008 through Endgame in 2019, Marvel produced around 50 hours of screen storytelling. In the six years since Endgame, the number jumped to an astounding 102 hours of movies and television. 127 hours if you include animation. That’s too much,” he said.
