Variety has once again confirmed what has been said about James Gunn’s Superman all along.
In a new profile on Supergirl star Milly Alcock, Variety notes that superhero movies are no longer automatic box office slam dunks.
The trade also points out Marvel and DC have both been hit or miss since Avengers: Endgame, before turning to Gunn and Peter Safran’s DCU launch.
Superman Was Promising, But Not A Home Run
Variety writes that last summer’s Superman made more than $600 million at the box office, which was “considered a promising beginning, but not a home run.” The trade adds there is “a lot riding on Supergirl.”
That lines up with what has already been covered here. Superman may have been spun as a win for the new DCU, but the numbers told a more complicated story.
Box Office Mojo lists Superman with $618.7 million worldwide, including $354.2 million domestic and $264.5 million international.
The international number makes up only 42.7% of its total gross, which is soft for a major superhero movie built around one of the most iconic and recognizable characters in the world.
Superman Underperformed Compared To Previous DC Movies
The bigger problem is that Superman did not perform like a major reset for the DC brand.
Man of Steel made $670.1 million worldwide back in 2013, with $379.1 million coming from international markets. Adjusted for today’s dollars, that puts Zack Snyder’s Superman movie far ahead of Gunn’s reboot, at nearly a billion dollars.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice made even more, with Box Office Mojo listing $874.3 million worldwide. Adjusted for inflation, that would be well over $1.2 billion today.
So while James Gunn’s Superman cleared $600 million, it still made less than Man of Steel in raw dollars and far less when inflation is considered. More important, it brought in less tickets sales, which means fewer fans went to see it.
Not The Breakout DC Needed
The issue was never only whether Superman could avoid disaster. The issue was whether it could relaunch DC as a dominant theatrical brand.
Variety’s wording is important because it removes some of the spin. “Promising beginning” is not the same thing as a massive win. “Not a home run” is not the kind of language you want attached to the first official movie in a new cinematic universe.
This also follows the out reports about Superman not being financially successful amid a reported soaring budget and break-even concerns. The movie had to do more than simply survive. It had to prove the new DCU could compete at the highest level.
Following its’ release, Gunn also billed Peacemaker Season 2 as a direct sequel, which ended up losing nearly half its audience and has essentially been canceled by HBO.
Supergirl Now Has More Pressure
That brings everything back to Supergirl.
Variety says there is a lot riding on the movie, and that is exactly the point. If Superman was only a promising start, then Supergirl has to show the DCU can expand beyond Gunn’s first movie and bring in a larger audience.
Supergirl does not have Superman’s built-in box office ceiling, and the movie is already facing questions about its budget, its tone, and whether general audiences are interested in this version of Kara Zor-El.
DC Needs A Real Win
Superman was supposed to be the clean relaunch. Instead, even Variety is now framing it as a decent start, but not a true breakout.
For Gunn and Safran, that puts the pressure on Supergirl to deliver. DC does not need another movie that can be spun as “promising.” It needs a real hit.
