Marvel’s latest superhero film Thunderbolts, now officially being called The New Avengers, had a decent start at the box office. But things took a turn on Monday. The film has now recorded one of the lowest first Monday earnings in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
The movie features a big ensemble cast and focuses on an emotional storyline. While critics and many fans have praised the film, it still hasn’t managed to perform strongly in theaters. Surprisingly, its first Monday collection is even lower than 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. However, it still did better than The Marvels and Eternals, two of the most disappointing MCU films in recent years.
According to trade expert Luiz Fernando, Thunderbolts (now referred to as The New Avengers) earned just $5 million on its first Monday. This marks a 71.9% drop from its Sunday earnings. In comparison, The Incredible Hulk made $6 million and Thor earned $5.4 million on their respective first Mondays. But Thunderbolts did surpass Eternals ($4.3 million) and The Marvels ($2.4 million).
The total domestic box office collection for The New Avengers now stands at $79.3 million. It’s getting close to beating The Marvels, which ended its US run with $84.5 million. On the international front, Thunderbolts has earned $86.2 million so far. That brings the global total to $165.5 million.
Even though the movie is receiving good feedback, with an A- CinemaScore and solid ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s still struggling to build strong momentum at the box office. This may be due to the declining trust that audiences have in Marvel films. Over the past few years, Marvel has released several movies that didn’t meet fan expectations. In 2023 alone, the studio delivered two major flops: Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and The Marvels.
One major challenge Marvel faces now is that audiences aren’t easily accepting new characters or team line-ups. The upcoming Fantastic Four movie, which features an entirely new cast, may face the same problem. Many longtime fans are finding it hard to connect with the newer direction Marvel is taking.
The movie’s title, Thunderbolts, comes with an asterisk because of a major reveal at the end of the film. The team of antiheroes gets a new identity: The New Avengers. This twist explains the shift in the film’s name and may set the stage for future MCU stories.
Thunderbolts (or The New Avengers) was released in theaters on May 2. While it has received positive word-of-mouth, it still has a long way to go before it can be considered a true comeback for Marvel Studios.
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