Understanding the Box Office Underperformance of The Marvels

The Marvels has made history as the first MCU movie to experience a disappointing opening weekend, as it earned a domestic total of $47 million. Led by Brie Larson, this superhero film has firmly cemented its position as a franchise flop.

The Marvels struggled at the box office, failing to surpass $50 million domestically, which led to it being labeled as one of the year's largest failures. The film faced numerous challenges, including negative reviews upon release, limited promotion from its main actors due to the SAG-AFTRA strike that had just ended, and claims of audience fatigue with the superhero genre. However, Disney executives will ultimately question why The Marvels failed, and to clarify, it is not due to the film's quality.

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Overly critical scores sunk The Marvels

The Marvels premiered with one of the lowest critical ratings in the history of MCU films, receiving mid-50s scores on Rotten Tomatoes initially. However, there was a slight improvement over the weekend, reaching a 62% rating. These low critical scores do not necessarily reflect the movie's quality but rather highlight a broader trend in critics' opinion of the MCU.

In the aftermath of Endgame, critics have significantly heightened their scrutiny towards superhero films, especially those from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), as compared to general audiences.

During the initial phases of the MCU, both critics and audiences generally shared similar views regarding the excellence of Marvel's movies. However, in Phases 4 and 5, there has been a substantial divergence in how these projects are perceived by critics compared to the audience.

For example, Iron Man 2, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and Thor: The Dark World – all considered to be among the most-maligned projects of the first three phases – received relatively low critical ratings on Rotten Tomatoes according to the standards set by the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is worth noting that these films also received low audience ratings on the platform.

Rotten Tomatoes

However, when it comes to the least successful MCU projects in Phases 4 and 5, including Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Thor: Love & Thunder, Eternals, and The Marvels, audience scores have remained relatively steady while critic ratings have significantly plummeted.

Since the release of Endgame, the divergence between how audiences perceive these movies compared to critics has expanded, with films that audiences enjoy just as much, if not more, than the earlier MCU films that were considered the worst. However, these movies are now receiving severe criticism from reviewers.

Concerning these seven movies, even though audiences consider them equally good, the reason behind the earlier movies receiving significantly more critical acclaim than the later ones remains unclear.

Although it is often said that audiences are more accepting of lower-quality MCU movies, this did not hold true for Love & Thunder, Eternals, or Quantumania. Surprisingly, it was The Marvels that faced criticism, despite being preferred by audiences.

Rather, it appears that there is a mounting unease about Marvel's impact on the overall film industry, as well as a sense of superhero fatigue among movie reviewers. Additionally, the unrealistic expectations following Endgame have led to less favorable critical responses towards films that are comparable in quality to earlier MCU movies.

Disney+

An indictment on the state of the MCU

That being said, there is no doubt that the general perception is that the MCU is currently experiencing a decline in its franchise.

A significant number of negative reviews primarily addressed the film's overall influence on the MCU. It was criticized for feeling like a small part of a larger puzzle that is gradually losing its charm, rather than solely focusing on its own merit as a standalone movie.

This is a valid criticism as projects such as She-Hulk and Quantumania received extensive criticism regarding their CGI. In addition, Thor: Love & Thunder was often labeled as overly comedic, and Secret Invasion was unfavorably reviewed by both critics and audiences (it is currently the only MCU project with scores below 50% from both groups).

Moreover, the close resemblance between The Marvels and Secret Invasion, both featuring Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury and the Skrulls, further undermined the audience's confidence in the quality improvement of the upcoming feature film.

Critics argue that the negative reception can be attributed to the overwhelming abundance of MCU material, which is a result of declining quality due to the burden on MCU leadership and the diminishing impact of each new release.

Marvel has announced its plans to address this concern by reducing the frequency of future releases in order to uphold the superior standards that fans have come to expect. Currently, the only scheduled movie release for 2024 is Deadpool 3.

And while “superhero fatigue” is often bandied as a reason for the decline of the MCU and The Marvels’ bombing, it’s only one piece to the puzzle.

Marvel

The role of the strikes on The Marvels

The SAG-AFTRA strike is used as a crutch as to why the movie bombed, but it is also dismissed as being inconsequential.

Had the cast of The Marvels been given the opportunity to promote the film, it wouldn't have completely turned things around. Nonetheless, it could have potentially prevented The Marvels from becoming the MCU's most significant commercial failure. Despite skeptics downplaying the impact of appearances by Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson on late night talk shows and internet interviews, it is crucial to acknowledge that this movie confronted unique challenges unlike other entries in the MCU.

The movie's plot was mainly a continuation of the well-received Disney+ show, Ms. Marvel, although it wasn't one of the most-watched MCU shows. Kamala Khan, portrayed by Iman Vellani, wasn't widely recognized prior to the movie's release, so the pre-release press tour would have been a great chance for fans to become acquainted with her.

The widespread acclaim for Vellani's portrayal in The Marvels, combined with her established fandom for the franchise, lends additional credibility to her performance. Her enthusiastic persona has undoubtedly generated considerable online interest and excitement.

Disney/Marvel

Furthermore, the press tour for The Marvels provided an opportunity for general audiences to witness the dynamic chemistry between the three main leads, Vellani, Larson, and Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau. Regrettably, the absence of this on-screen chemistry undoubtedly had a negative impact on The Marvels.

Furthermore, it is important to recognize the distinctive challenge faced by The Marvels, being one of the few superhero productions driven by female protagonists. Consequently, it has become a subject of criticism and negative backlash. Notably, both Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel were victims of review-bombing prior to their premieres, and it appears that The Marvels has also fallen victim to this trend, with a significant 20% of its ratings on IMDb being awarded just one star.

The absence of stars during the press tour contributed to the unchecked growth of negativity. Moreover, the SAG-AFTRA strikes further deteriorated the perception of Disney and the MCU.

Fan sentiment strongly favored the actors and writers during the strike. News about Disney CEO Bob Iger's remarks and the company's proposed implementation of AI and labor practices had a negative impact on fans' perception of the company as a whole. As the strikes ended just a week prior to the premiere of The Marvels, it is evident that a portion of the general audience boycotted the movie due to their perception of Disney as a corporation.

Disney/Marvel

Is The Marvels flopping the end of the MCU?

Despite The Marvels being considered a massive flop by some, the notion that it symbolizes the demise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is far from true. It is important to note that a disappointing opening weekend does not necessarily seal the fate of a film, as demonstrated by the success of another Disney production, Elemental, which gradually gained momentum over subsequent weeks.

While The Marvels is predicted to be a disappointment, it's important to keep in mind that this film doesn't revolve around a revered hero from the MCU or the comics' biggest icons. The presence of forthcoming movies featuring beloved characters like Spider-Man and the Hulk, along with the potential introduction of the X-Men and Fantastic Four, indicates that the Marvel franchise will continue thriving despite one failed endeavor.

The disappointing performance of The Marvels serves as a wake-up call for Disney and Marvel, signaling that they cannot rely on every release to achieve massive financial success. It is crucial for them to redirect their focus towards enhancing their writing, special effects, direction, and marketing efforts.

Nevertheless, for those who believe that this marks the lowest point for the most significant franchise worldwide, it may be necessary to readjust your expectations.

Editor's P/S

As an enthusiastic fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), I am deeply saddened by the box office underperformance of "The Marvels." This is the first time in the history of the MCU that a film has failed to surpass $50 million domestically, making it one of the year's biggest failures. The film faced numerous challenges, including negative reviews upon release, limited promotion from its main actors due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, and claims of audience fatigue with the superhero genre. However, I believe that the film's quality is not to blame for its poor performance.

Despite receiving one of the lowest critical ratings in the history of MCU films, "The Marvels" still managed to reach a 62% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. While this score may not reflect the film's true quality, it highlights a broader trend in critics' opinions of the MCU. Since the release of "Endgame," critics have significantly heightened their scrutiny towards superhero films, especially those from the MCU. This divergence in opinion between critics and audiences has become increasingly apparent in Phases 4 and 5 of the MCU. While audiences have continued to enjoy these films just as much as, if not more than, the earlier MCU films, critics have become more severe in their criticism.