THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS Hit With Steep Decline At Domestic Box Office After $11.7M Friday

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS Hit With Steep Decline At Domestic Box Office After $11.7M Friday

It looks like Marvel Studios' The Fantastic Four: First Steps might be facing a tough time of it at the North American box office after a steep 79% drop from opening weekend...

By MarkCassidy - Aug 02, 2025 11:08 AM EST
Filed Under: Fantastic Four

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.

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS Faces A Steep Decline At The North American Box Office This Weekend
Related:

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS Faces A Steep Decline At The North American Box Office This Weekend

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS TV Spot Reveals First Official Look At Galactus As More Box Office Updates Hit
Recommended For You:

THE FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS TV Spot Reveals First Official Look At Galactus As More Box Office Updates Hit

DISCLAIMER: As a user generated site and platform, ComicBookMovie.com is protected under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions.

This post was submitted by a user who has agreed to our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. ComicBookMovie.com will disable users who knowingly commit plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. Please CONTACT US for expeditious removal of copyrighted/trademarked content. CLICK HERE to learn more about our copyright and trademark policies.

Note that ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.

1 2 3 4
Monkeyballs2
Monkeyballs2 - 8/2/2025, 12:00 PM
D’oh!
Malatrova15
Malatrova15 - 8/2/2025, 12:55 PM
@Monkeyballs2 - exactly ..More like Last Steps lol
bobevanz
bobevanz - 8/2/2025, 12:01 PM
The drop was expected since the internal multiplier was Thor 4 levels of crap.
Everyone thought Superman was going to have its legs cut off, but instead it ate into F4's demographic and you know families have to pick and choose which movie to see. No 300m domestic for F4, it seemed like a slam dunk. Instead Supes is still going despite the snyder bros malding. It is what it is. Idc I enjoyed it. Disney doesn't care either, zootopia is another Billie at least, and Avatar will make everything better. Studios can take all the shots they want when you have heavy hitters to finish the year
dragon316
dragon316 - 8/2/2025, 1:39 PM
@bobevanz - has nothing do what movie is better to what fans think general audiance see movies what looks more for fun and entertaining to them need remember they don’t buy read comics they like have fun maybe comedy is fun for them instead slow and serious
lazlodaytona
lazlodaytona - 8/2/2025, 2:06 PM
@dragon316 - I think I might agree with you ....? somewhere in that intentional run-on of a statement 🤷🏻‍♂️🤓
Lucasberg
Lucasberg - 8/2/2025, 2:09 PM
@bobevanz - I’m going to be wrong for the third time in predicting that Avatar 3 is going to suck at the box office finally.
FASELI
FASELI - 8/2/2025, 2:49 PM
@bobevanz - Loads of the kids go back to school Monday, that's why. all the malls and outlets are packed with parents buying school kit.
Mongrol
Mongrol - 8/2/2025, 12:04 PM


Should've released in November.

TheShellyMan
TheShellyMan - 8/2/2025, 12:06 PM
@Mongrol - I agree.
Oberlin4Prez
Oberlin4Prez - 8/2/2025, 12:11 PM
@Mongrol - then it would have been cut off at the knees by Zootopia 2

August would have been a better release. But in either case it may have been a delaying of the inevitable. I guess we'll never know.
Mongrol
Mongrol - 8/2/2025, 12:18 PM
@Oberlin4Prez -

Superman is greater competition than Zootopia 2.

Oberlin4Prez
Oberlin4Prez - 8/2/2025, 12:36 PM
@Mongrol - first Zootopia made almost a billion.
Mongrol
Mongrol - 8/2/2025, 1:04 PM
@Oberlin4Prez -

But Superman is direct competition being another superhero film.

Zootopia also skews younge which is why it get a greater audience range.
Malatrova15
Malatrova15 - 8/2/2025, 1:26 PM
@Mongrol - clearly not ...whats the last Superman movie that got clóser to one billion ?
dragon316
dragon316 - 8/2/2025, 1:40 PM
@Mongrol - zootopia two will make more than Superman
dragon316
dragon316 - 8/2/2025, 1:40 PM
@Malatrova15 - same with fantastic four
Mongrol
Mongrol - 8/2/2025, 1:44 PM
@Malatrova15 -


Clearly yes. There is a smaller pool of people going to superhero films. Having 2 within a month is bad for business. Making a billion is irrelevant.



Mongrol
Mongrol - 8/2/2025, 1:46 PM
@dragon316 -

Which is irrelevant. Superman eats into F4's business more than Zootopia.



Malatrova15
Malatrova15 - 8/2/2025, 2:44 PM
@Mongrol - seems kinda relevante for Saslav and Iger since one put an obvious hold on Gunn projects AND the other order Feige to stop vomiting so much slop on Disney plus
MarkCassidy
MarkCassidy - 8/2/2025, 12:07 PM
@V - Yep... we're Marvel/Disney shills. They pay us to be more positive about their movies in articles.
V
V - 8/2/2025, 12:49 PM
@MarkCassidy - That's amazing if true, pretty cool if Marvel directly paid you guys, make that paper Mark and Josh! But just saying how it felt prior to release of Superman, nonetheless I hope you guys continue to hype these movies up the same way.
MarkCassidy
MarkCassidy - 8/2/2025, 1:03 PM
@V - I couldn't give a damn about the Marvel vs DC nonsense... I report the news, and you guys are free to spin it any way you like.
V
V - 8/2/2025, 1:17 PM
@MarkCassidy - and we appreciate what y'all do! Probably hasn't been said enough, really been a blast being informed about the genre we love, whatever and however y'all report we tune in. The controversy just feeds the beast
Ryguy88
Ryguy88 - 8/2/2025, 2:04 PM
@MarkCassidy - thats cool, what is it that Josh does then?
Lucasberg
Lucasberg - 8/2/2025, 2:13 PM
@MarkCassidy - just to be clear, Josh gives the signs of Disney shilling. I’ve been here forever and have appreciated your perspective throughout the years. Your reporting has consistently felt honest. I enjoy Josh but I just can’t lie that he seems helplessly biased for Disney haha
MarkCassidy
MarkCassidy - 8/2/2025, 2:18 PM
@Ryguy88 - the same? I can only speak for myself but the Marvel/DC bias some people seem to think the site shows in general just doesn't exist. The numbers come in, we report them. Now obviously within that you might get an occasional sessationilzed headline or whatever, but that's just the business we're in.
Nolanite
Nolanite - 8/2/2025, 2:29 PM
@Ryguy88 -

Joshua Wilder does nothing but start flame wars between us on this site.

He's a load of garbage 🗑️ and I don't take him seriously especially when he posts and article stating numbers or his opinions.

Nolanite out
CreateNowSlpL8r
CreateNowSlpL8r - 8/2/2025, 12:07 PM
The mistake they made had nothing to do with Superman. It was casting Pedro and gender swapping Silver Surfer. I told you guys they really underestimated how much this would put people off. FF is a weird property to begin with. They needed to give it all the help they could.

Marvel needs to cater to the nerds again, like they did in the beginning. That is your word of mouth. Thats how things take off. The best people had to say is SS didnt ruin the movie and it was an ok movie. That isn't going to send messages that you need to see this.
EskimoJ
EskimoJ - 8/2/2025, 12:11 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - You're trying desperately, but the consensus has been this looked and felt like Kirby's F4... the general audience has stated the movie feels empty, overly safe, or even boring. Simply changing the actors you've incessantly targeted won't change any of that.
F4ntasticClunge
F4ntasticClunge - 8/2/2025, 12:12 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - we are truly living in fragile times.

God forbid marvel use a different version of their own charcters 😮‍💨

CreateNowSlpL8r
CreateNowSlpL8r - 8/2/2025, 12:20 PM
@F4ntasticClunge - I dont know why you guys kill the messenger. First of all, I wrote a mostly positive review on this site.

https://comicbookmovie.com/fantastic-four/the-fantastic-four-first-steps-what-could-have-been-spoilers-a223014

Second, for some weird reason, if we point out what wasn't the right decision or be critical of any part of the project, we get replies like this. I told you guys all year this was going to be hurt by this decision and heard nothing but nonsense from my take. I told you guys all three of these movies had bomb potential and when it happens, you STILL dont want to hear it.

You dont gender swap a charcter as big as SS. Hes got 57 years of history an as opposed to Ms Marvel, Captain Marvel, Sam Wilson Cap, hes had multiple successful comic runs.

It was a stupid decision. Thats all. We dont need to moral high ground fragile times nonsense. People are fans of the character, and FF has always been more of a nerdy property.

They werent supporting this. Thats it. Thats the answer. The studio has THREE bombs and its the fans fault. Even that idiot Feige came out and say Cap4 failed because it didnt have Evans. Yeah, Feige. A Captain America movie failed because it didn't have Captain America.

@EskimoJ
F4ntasticClunge
F4ntasticClunge - 8/2/2025, 12:28 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - you are not the whole of north America sir! My comment wasn't a jab at you 😮‍💨
KaptainKhaos
KaptainKhaos - 8/2/2025, 12:54 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - except they didn't gender Swap Norrin Radd, this movie takes place on an alternate earth in the Multiverse where Shaka ball became the herald of Galactus. I'm still not sure why that's so hard to understand
KaptainKhaos
KaptainKhaos - 8/2/2025, 12:56 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - it has nothing to do with the moral high ground, it's an alternate reality in the Multiverse.
V
V - 8/2/2025, 1:02 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - I don't think Pedro being a diversity hire was a reason the movie hit a steep decline. However, Pedro was always a TV show actor, he is totally unproven as a leading man and I think they put too much stock into what he brings to the table.
Irregular
Irregular - 8/2/2025, 1:08 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - "You dont gender swap a charcter as big as SS."

I guess this is a perfect example of your moral high ground fragile times nonsense" you referred to huh?

regularmovieguy
regularmovieguy - 8/2/2025, 1:27 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r

The movie got an A- cinemascore. By all means the people that saw it opening weekend really liked it. This goes way deeper than a gender swapped Silver Surfer (who sounds like a highlight of the actual movie) or Pedro Pascal’s casting.
Ryguy88
Ryguy88 - 8/2/2025, 2:05 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - Silver Surfer is a borderline A-list marvel hero, he defitely would have had a certain level of draw.
Ryguy88
Ryguy88 - 8/2/2025, 2:06 PM
@F4ntasticClunge - they can gender swap at their own peril, it seems.
Lucasberg
Lucasberg - 8/2/2025, 2:19 PM
@CreateNowSlpL8r - everything you’re saying here is just the obvious reality of things.

I will add though while casting Pedro was a mistake, I thought he did freakin great. I’m genuinely looking forward to seeing him engage the broader MCU.
1 2 3 4

Please log in to post comments.

Don't have an account?
Please Register.

View Recorder