Disney and Marvel‘s latest franchise entry The Marvels debuted with a disappointing $47 million USD in its opening weekend — marking the lowest opener in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
As per Variety, the superhero film didn’t meet the initial expectations of $60 million USD to $65 million USD, which was actually already decreased from projections of $75 million USD to $80 million USD. It also failed to hit the mark at the international box office; The Marvels earned $63.3 million USD from 51 territories for a global box office start of $110 million USD — $30 million USD lower than Disney’s forecast. The film cost approximately $220 million USD to produce and another $100 million USD to promote to global audiences.
The report adds that the film’s bad publicity and the lack of promotion due to the SAG strike didn’t help its opening weekend numbers. “This is an unprecedented Marvel box office collapse,” David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research said. “The strikes hurt the film’s marketing, but that’s not what’s driving these numbers.”
The Marvels is the direct sequel to 2019’s Captain Marvel and stars Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris and Iman Vellani, with Nia DaCosta helming the film.
Elsewhere in entertainment, the Las Vegas sphere has reportedly lost almost $100 million USD since its opening.
