'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' Is Tracking Towards a $45 Million Second Weekend

The Fantastic Four First Steps Characters Marvel

After the disappointing box office performances of Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts*, Marvel Studios returned to theaters last weekend with the highly anticipated The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

“Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ introduces Marvel’s First Family—Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ben Grimm/The Thing as they face their most daunting challenge yet,” the film’s synopsis reads.

Marvel

“Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, they must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus (Ralph Ineson) and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer (Julia Garner). And if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal.”

A Strong Debut

After years of waiting for Marvel’s first family to enter the MCU, fans finally got their wish, and they turned out in droves last weekend to see First Steps. By the time the dust had settled, The Fantastic Four had wracked up $118 million domestically, and another $100 million overseas for a global debut of $218 million.

Photo: Disney

The question was how the film would hold up week-over-week.

The hope was that strong critical reviews and an A- CinemaScore would propel The Fantastic Four to a strong second weekend and an extended box office run.

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Unfortunately, the numbers do not look ideal.

The Film’s Second Week Drop

According to a report from Deadline, The Fantastic Four: First Steps is tracking towards a $45 million to $52 million second weekend. A total in that range would be a drop of between 55% and 60% versus its opening weekend.

Photo: Disney

While such a decline indicates that The Fantastic Four was front-loaded, it is an improvement over Captain America 4 (68% drop) and in line with Thunderbolts* (55% decline). It is also on par with 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine, which saw a 54% decline in its second weekend.

It is important to note that Marvel films are notoriously front-loaded, making The Fantastic Four’s second-weekend drop unsurprising. With that being said, the film’s soft international opening and significant second-weekend decline likely mean that First Steps will fall short of optimistic expectations.