Things aren't looking quite so fantastic for Marvel Studios' The Fantastic Four: First Steps at the North American box office.
As estimates suggested, the MCU reboot was hit with a sharp decline (an almost 80% drop from opening day) on Friday after taking in $11.7 million. Though this is far from a disastrous result (the movie is still performing better than both Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts*), it is a worrying sign that First Steps' debut was significantly front-loaded.
Despite positive reviews (86% on Rotten Tomatoes) and a warm reception from fans, the movie just doesn't seem to be connecting with general audiences in quite the same way, and word-of-mouth clearly hasn't been strong enough to make Marvel's latest the must-see event film the studio was hoping for.
First Steps is currently sitting at $170 million domestic, and should pass the $200 million mark by Tuesday. Was opening so soon after Superman a mistake? That seems to be the consensus online, but it's still very early days. We'll update when international numbers come in a little later on.
Though some feel it should be doing a little better (overseas numbers are not great), James Gunn's DCU reboot is still performing steadily overall, and is currently sitting at $534.1M worldwide.
First Steps stars Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us, The Mandalorian) as Reed Richards, aka Mr. Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby (Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning) as Sue Storm, aka the Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things, A Quiet Place Day One) as Johnny Storm, aka The Human Torch, Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Punisher, The Bear) as Ben Grimm, aka the Thing, and Julia Garner (Wolf Man, Ozark) as the Silver Surfer.
Ralph Ineson plays Galactus, and Natasha Lyonne and Paul Walter Hauser are also on board in undisclosed roles. John Malkovich's Red Ghost has been cut from the movie.
"Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel Studios' The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family—Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm/Invisible Woman (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm/Human Torch (Joseph Quinn) and Ben Grimm/The Thing (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) as they face their most daunting challenge yet.
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."
The Fantastic Four: First Steps is now in theaters.