Supermanofficially passed $500 million at the worldwide box office, flying past an infamous Marvel Cinematic Universe flop in the process. Directed by James Gunn, the film sets up a rebooted version of the DC Universe franchise following the failure of the DCEU. It stars David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult, and Edi Gathegi, among others.
Since its opening,Supermanhas earned $502.7 million globally. The bulk of those ticket sales are domestic, with a gross of $289.5 million stateside. Alternatively, its international box office is weaker at $213.2 million. Nonetheless,Supermanhas proven itself a modest success for DC Studios, if only due tohow it stacks up against other modern superhero films.
For example, its three-week gross has surpassed the lifetime box office ofAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. The MCU film, which was generally considered a failure due to its critical reception,made $476 million overall, with a breakdown of $214.5 million domestically and $261.5 million internationally.
What The Superman Box Office Update Means
When comparing the respective performances ofAnt-Man and the Wasp: QuantumaniaandSuperman, an interesting note is that the former did better overseas.Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniaearned a whopping 54.9% of its box office outside the United States. Comparatively,Superman’sdomestic box office accounts for 57.6% of its gross, while international ticket sales only make up 42.4%.
The biggest hurdleSupermanfaces is the lack of worldwide enthusiasm for the film.Many of the best-performing movies, in the superhero genre or otherwise, are largely bolstered by international ticket sales. For example, ofAvengers: Endgame’s$2.79 billion run, $1.9 billion came from territories outside of the United States.
Regardless,Supermanhas made it past its breakeven point in terms of production budget, as its budget was $225 million and it needed to hit $450 million to not be a loss. However, factoring in market costs of $125 million, the DCU film will have to hit $600 million to truly recoup its budget.
Notably,Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniatechnically hit its production breakeven point based on its $476 million gross against a reported $200 million budget. This does not factor in the cost of marketing the film, though, which could still mean it resulted in a loss for Marvel Studios.
Our Take On Superman’s Box Office Update
Supermanisn’t performing above expectations, but it is safe from being considered a bomb.Aside from passingAnt-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniain box office sales, it received better reviews from critics and audiences alike. Moreover, it is likely to at least make back its overall marketing and production budget.
How successfulSupermanwill remain is a complicated question, with the release ofThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsproviding solid competition. It currently holds the title of top-grossing superhero film of 2025, but that could change in the span of a few weeks. Nonetheless, its generally positive reception and modest box office success establishSupermanas a worthy franchise kickstarter.
