In addition to surpassing box office milestones all on its own, Deadpool & Wolverine has also propelled the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) to a new box office achievement. The MCU is now the first film franchise to gross $30 billion at the worldwide box office, and the achievement was announced during Marvel’s Hall H presentation at Comic-Con over the weekend.
Of course, part of the reason for the MCU’s remarkable box office success is that the studio has put out 34 films over the course of 15 years, including enormous hits like Avengers: Endgame, which is still one of the highest grossing movies of all time.
The studio has been on a bit of a downslope since the release of Endgame, with movies like Eternals and The Marvels underperforming by the studio’s lofty standards. Because these movies often have budgets that are more than $200 million, though, grosses that may be otherwise qualified as hits still lose the studio money. Thanks to an opening weekend north of $200 million for Deadpool & Wolverine, though, as well as the buzz around the return of Robert Downey Jr. to the MCU, may signal a turning point for Marvel where they can right the ship.
While Marvel is now north of $30 billion, no other franchise has crossed $20 or even $15 billion. Sony’s Spider-Man franchise currently sits at $10.6 billion across 10 films, while Star Wars sits at $10.3 billion across 11 films, Harry Potter has grossed $9.6 billion across 11 films and James Bond has grossed $7.8 billion across 25 films. It’s safe to say that none of these franchises will be catching Marvel anytime soon, and the franchise may be poised to extend its run of dominance in the years to come.
