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A record-low opening for the latest instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe should raise alarm bells at Disney headquarters following a series of subpar results.<\/p>\n
The worldwide weekend total of $US110 million ($173 million) included a disappointing $US47 million in North America and just $2.9 million in Australia – raising questions about whether audiences are getting worn out by too many superhero movies with sometimes confusingly interconnected streaming series.<\/p>\n
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Iman Vellani (left) as Ms Marvel, Brie Larson as Captain Marvel, and Teyonah Parris as Captain Monica Rambeau in The Marvels.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>Marvel<\/cite><\/p>\n According to Numero box office figures, The Marvels<\/em> opening weekend in Australia was the third lowest of 33 movies that Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has produced since 2008.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a list topped by Avengers: Endgame<\/em> (which opened with $34.1 million on the way to earning $84.2 million), Spider-Man: No Way Home<\/em> ($26.2 million), Avengers: Infinity War<\/em> ($21.2 million), Thor: Love and Thunder<\/em> ($15.8 million) and Avengers: Age of Ultron<\/em> ($15.7 million).<\/p>\n The only Marvel movies to have weaker opening weekends – without adjusting earnings for inflation – are 2021\u2019s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings<\/em> ($1.95 million) and 2008\u2019s The Incredible Hulk<\/em> ($2 million).<\/p>\n The Marvels<\/em> opening is especially disappointing for Marvel Studios – total box office more than $US30 billion – given some of the bold decisions behind the film.<\/em><\/p>\n It was the studio\u2019s first superhero film with three female lead characters, played by Brie Larson, Iman Vellani and Teyonah Parris, and Nia DaCosta (Candyman<\/em>) was the first Black woman to direct one of its movies.<\/p>\n For a $US200 million movie that would have cost another $US100 million to market, the result was widely seen as a disaster.<\/p>\n Opening just days after the end of the Hollywood actors\u2019 strike that prevented Larson and her co-stars from promoting it until almost opening day, worldwide box office was well down on the $US140 million that had been predicted.<\/p>\n The Marvels, <\/em>a reasonably well reviewed movie about three superheroines who have to unite to save the universe when their powers become entangled, is a sequel to 2019\u2019s Captain Marvel<\/em>, which starred Larson in the title role.<\/p>\n Brie Larson as Captain Marvel\/Carol Danvers in The Marvels.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>Marvel<\/cite><\/p>\n The first instalment was a hit that opened with $13.6 million in this country on the way to grossing $41.6 million.<\/p>\n The two other stars played the same characters in Disney + series: Vellani was Kamala Khan in Ms Marvel<\/em> and Parris was Monica Rambeau in WandaVision<\/em>.<\/p>\n Some box office analysts blamed superhero fatigue, pointing to disappointing results for DC Comics\u2019 The Flash<\/em>, Blue Beetle<\/em> and Shazam! Fury of the Gods<\/em> as well as Marvel\u2019s Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania<\/em> earlier this year.<\/p>\n Others noted it had two uninspiring trailers and suggested the lack of a strong marketing push showed Marvel did not have the same faith as it did for Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3<\/em> which was a hit earlier this year and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever<\/em>, which was both a hit and Oscars contender late last year.<\/p>\n Given it continued stories from two Disney + series, it seemed to lack the uniqueness that justifies paying for a movie.<\/p>\n Disney\u2019s executive vice president of theatrical distribution, Tony Chambers, told The New York Times<\/em> the results were \u201cdisappointing\u201d given Marvel\u2019s \u201cunparalleled batting average\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThere may have been a barrier to entry, with some people assuming they needed to have already watched the Disney + shows in order to know what was going on in the film,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Online entertainment site Deadline Hollywood<\/em> suggested The Marvels, <\/em>with its crossover streaming series, looked like \u201cit was built to be seen in homes, not to get audiences off the couch\u201d.<\/p>\n It added: \u201cExcellent superhero movies sell, and there was no pulse on The<\/em> Marvels<\/em> going back to San Diego Comic-Con [in July] … It\u2019s as though Disney knew this whipped-cream sequel was a dud and cut their losses.\u201d<\/p>\n The failure of The Marvels<\/em> is also a blow for cinemas, which were still recovering from the disruptions of the pandemic when the actors\u2019 strike pushed some major releases, including Dune: Part Two<\/em> and The Dry<\/em> sequel Force of Nature<\/em>, into next year so they could be promoted better.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n