Key Takeaways
Total 3-Day Weekend Gross:
$123,745,618 | -6.5% Last Week / -27.4% Weekend 31, 2024
Marvel took another ding to their armor this weekend as The Fantastic Four: First Steps failed to live up to what we’ve come to expect from the MCU franchise, earning only an estimated $40M in its sophomore frame. Two new middling sequel programmers (The Naked Gun, The Bad Guys 2) were not enough to compensate for the superhero underperformance, leading to yet another year-over-year drop from this frame in 2024 when the second weekend of Deadpool & Wolverine only fell -54.2% to deliver $96.8M.
- Top Title: The Fantastic Four: First Steps (Disney) | $40M / 4,125 Screens / $9,697 PSA | Week 2
- Top Opener: The Bad Guys 2 (Universal) | $22.2M / 3,852 Screens / $5,763 PSA | Week 1
- Best PSA: The Fantastic Four: First Steps (Disney) | $40M / 4,125 Screens / $9,697 PSA | Week 2
Highlights From the Weekend
1. The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Disney/Marvel Studios | Week 2
$40M 3-Day Domestic Weekend | $198.4M Domestic Total
$368.7M Global Total
“Clobbering time” took the form of harsh economic realities for Marvel Studios this weekend as The Fantastic Four: First Steps earned an estimated $40M across 4,125 locations, below low-end estimates and a -66% tumble from Frame 1. While Monday ($10.4M) and Tuesday ($14.18M) were strong, dailies fell below $10M until an $11.7M Friday (-80% down from the previous Friday debut) that shook analysts who expected more from the much liked superhero team-up. As of now the domestic total stands at $198.4M, well behind Superman‘s $236.2M Day 10 earnings.
Here’s how the 3-Day looked…
- Friday – $11.7M
- Saturday – $15.5M
- Sunday – $12.8M
Since First Steps has far outperformed the previous three FF movies and there are too many MCU films to compare it to, let’s hone in on the second frame of three other well-received Marvel entries that opened in the same ballpark as the new film…
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 (2023) – $62M Frame 2 (-48%)/$214.7M Day 10 total
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017) – $57M Frame 2 (-53%)/$212M Day 10 total
- Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) – $44.2M Frame 2 (-62%)/$207.27M Day 10 total
- The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) – $40M Frame 2 (-66%)/$198.4M Day 10 total
What we are seeing here is a definite post pandemic-era ceiling for any property that was not part of the old guard. That includes Deadpool & Wolverine, which featured the original performers of those two characters as opposed to the fourth new screen iteration of Fantastic Four. This is nostalgia taken to its logical extreme.
Another issue is foreign territories like China no longer providing an IV for purpose-built blockbusters. The Middle Kingdom, once a pillar for the MCU, has only delivered $5.5M to FF so far. Compare that to Spider-Man: Homecoming which snagged $118M of Chinese money in its webs. Overseas the new Fantastic Four kept pace with domestic at $39.6M from 52 markets, for a global total of $368.7M. At this same point last week Superman had earned $406.8M WW. Top 3 markets for FF are UK ($20.5M), Mexico ($20.4M), and France ($10.2M). IMAX screens earned $9.3M globally and $5.2M in North America, with the WW total for the large format at $43.9M.
2. The Bad Guys 2
Universal/DreamWorks | NEW
$22.2M 3-Day Domestic Opening Weekend | $44.5M Global Total
Universal and DreamWorks’ animated sequel The Bad Guys 2 opened on the low-end of our panel’s forecast with an estimated $22.2M on 3,852 screens for a Per Screen Average of $5,763. That’s an animal hair below the 2022 original’s $23.95M debut, and in the same ballpark as the studio’s middling openers like Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie ($23.85M) and Rise of the Guardians ($23.77M). If the studio was hoping for brand growth they did not get it this weekend.
Here’s how the 3-Day looked, including $2.3M in Thursday previews…
- Friday – $9.2M
- Saturday – $7.3M
- Sunday – $5.7M
Audiences were about evenly split at 53% female vs 47% male, with 34% of the audience predictably under age 12. Teens and under-24’s only accounted for 25% of ticket buyers, while the older demo barely showed up with 45+ accounting for 13%. Second biggest demo was parents age (35-44) at 19%, showing the movie has little appeal outside families.
Here’s how demographics looked…
- 38% caucasian
- 26% hispanic
- 17% Asian
- 11% black
- 8% NatAm/other
After a soft international opening last weekend in the UK/Ireland, Argentina, and Israel which yielded $2.9M, this weekend’s full Bad Guys 2 launch across 58 overseas markets brought $16.3M towards a current global total of $44.5M. Top 3 territories are UK & Ireland ($6.37M), France ($2.55M), and Mexico ($1.8M).
3. The Naked Gun
Paramount Pictures | NEW
$17M 3-Day Domestic Opening Weekend | $28.5M Global Total
Paramount’s legacy reboot of the spoofy Leslie Nielsen series The Naked Gun opened to $17M in 3,344 locations for a $5,084 PSA. That’s below our low-end estimates but enough to be the biggest live-action comedy debut of 2025, ahead of One of Them Days‘ $11.8M. It’s also star Liam Neeson’s biggest solo opener in a decade, since Taken 3‘s $39.2M.
Here’s how the 3-Day looked, including $1.6M from Thursday previews…
- Friday – $6.3M
- Saturday – $6M
- Sunday – $4.7M
Like the recent I Know What You Did Last Summer, the new Naked Gun managed to open below a decades-old entry (unadjusted)…
- The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear (1991) – $20.8M opening/$86.9M total
- The Naked Gun (2025) – $17M opening
- Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994) – $13.2M opening/$51M total
- The Naked Gun (1988) – $9.3M opening/$78M total
Critical on Rotten Tomatoes was 90% alongside an “A-” CinemaScore and 4 out of 5 stars on PostTrak, which could mean a strong hold next frame. Audiences leaned heavily male at 62% vs 38% female, while the largest age quadrant was 25-34 at 27% despite most of that grouping having not been alive when the previous movies came out.
Here’s how demographics looked…
- 70% caucasian
- 15% hispanic
- 6% Asian
- 5% black
- 4% NatAm/other
Overseas The Naked Gun managed an estimated $11.5M from 46 markets, which represents only 73% of the international footprint, with 15 further territories to open including France, Brazil Australia, and Spain. The biggest three markets were the UK ($2.3M), Germany ($2.3M), and Mexico ($674K).
Other Notable Performances
WB’s Superman took in another $13.9M towards $316.2M domestic, which was good for fourth place and nearly caught up to Jurassic World Rebirth ($317.6M). In terms of its position in the DC Comics pantheon, it will soon overtake Suicide Squad‘s $325.1M, BvS‘s $330.36M, and Aquaman/Joker‘s $335M. It’s unclear if it can leg it out long enough to beat The Batman‘s $369.3M, but that would be the apex for its stateside performance. Global is at $551.2M and will ultimately pass the $600M mark soon which is a solid benchmark for success.
After shelling out $17M for the negative pickup rights to the body-horror movie at Sundance, Neon’s Together opened at #6 with $6.8M for the 3-day and $10.85M since opening Wednesday. That’s enough to place it as the #9 all-time Neon performer domestically, already outgrossing 2025 releases like Presence and The Life of Chuck. Starring Dave Franco and Alison Brie, the movie earned a sterling 91% from RT critics but a more mixed “C+” CinemaScore.
Next Weekend
The upcoming frame gives us something old and something new. Disney provides a legacy sequel in Freakier Friday, featuring stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsey Lohan of the remake based on the 1977 original. The 2003 remake made $110.2M domestic. Meanwhile WB continues auteur building by letting Barbarian filmmaker Zach Cregger deliver Weapons, an original creep out revolving around missing children with heavy hitter leads Josh Brolin and Julia Garner. Rotten Tomatoes critical on this mysterious terrifier is currently at 100%.
Sunday Studio Estimates | Weekend 31 – 2025
Total 3-Day Domestic Gross: $123,745,618 | (-27.4% vs 2024)
| Title | Weekend Estimate | % Change | Locations | Location Change | PSA | Domestic Total | Week | Distributor |
| The Fantastic Four: First Steps | $40,000,000 | -66% | 4,125 | n/c | $9,697 | 198,427,635 | 2 | Walt Disney |
| The Bad Guys 2 | $22,200,000 | 3,852 | $5,763 | 22,200,000 | 1 | Universal | ||
| The Naked Gun | $17,000,000 | 3,344 | $5,084 | 17,000,000 | 1 | Paramount Pi… | ||
| Superman | $13,855,000 | -44% | 3,537 | -393 | $3,917 | 316,211,000 | 4 | Warner Bros. |
| Jurassic World Rebirth | $8,700,000 | -34% | 3,240 | -310 | $2,685 | 317,606,000 | 5 | Universal |
| Together | $6,802,000 | 2,302 | $2,955 | 10,858,502 | 1 | Neon | ||
| F1: The Movie | $4,100,000 | -35% | 2,024 | -591 | $2,026 | 173,291,000 | 6 | Warner Bros. |
| I Know What You Did Last Summer | $2,650,000 | -49% | 2,303 | -903 | $1,151 | 29,352,000 | 3 | Sony Pictures |
| Smurfs | $1,770,000 | -68% | 2,295 | -1,209 | $771 | 28,502,000 | 3 | Paramount Pi… |
| How to Train Your Dragon | $1,350,000 | -53% | 1,459 | -887 | $925 | 260,409,000 | 8 | Universal |
| Eddington | $496,691 | -70% | 565 | -1,500 | $879 | 9,509,266 | 3 | A24 |
| CatVideoFest 2025 | $460,219 | 199 | $2,313 | 460,219 | 1 | Oscilloscope… | ||
| Lilo & Stitch | $448,000 | -51% | 450 | -335 | $996 | 421,239,071 | 11 | Walt Disney |
| Elio | $365,000 | -63% | 575 | -465 | $635 | 72,540,673 | 7 | Walt Disney |
| Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning | $245,000 | -36% | 181 | -122 | $1,354 | 197,119,000 | 11 | Paramount Pi… |
| Sorry, Baby | $184,538 | -55% | 251 | -87 | $735 | 2,085,190 | 6 | A24 |
| Oh, Hi! | $175,000 | -85% | 323 | -543 | $542 | 1,782,000 | 2 | Sony Picture… |
| 28 Years Later | $135,000 | -76% | 178 | -339 | $758 | 70,368,000 | 7 | Sony Pictures |
| Cloud | $82,700 | 272% | 36 | 33 | $2,297 | 157,075 | 3 | Janus Films |
| Thunderbolts* | $60,000 | -64% | 20 | -25 | $3,000 | 190,253,709 | 14 | Walt Disney |
| Architecton | $58,495 | 107 | $547 | 58,495 | 1 | A24 | ||
| Materialists | $42,480 | -67% | 45 | -87 | $944 | 36,429,912 | 8 | A24 |
| Blue Sun Palace | $2,143 | n/c | 1 | n/c | $2,143 | 83,351 | 15 | Dekanalog |
| Drowning Dry | $159 | n/c | 1 | n/c | $159 | 9,827 | 3 | Dekanalog |
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