Will James Gunn's Superman Make More Than Man Of Steel In Its Box Office Debut?

One of the biggest films of the year is just around the corner, as director James Gunn's "Superman" is getting ready to soar into theaters. This isn't just any other superhero movie; this is truly the beginning of the new DC Universe being put together at Warner Bros. (all due respect to "Creature Commandos"). Gunn, known best as the director of Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy" trilogy, is heading up DC Studios alongside producer Peter Safran. The question is, can this reboot of DC's golden boy get the revamped DCU off to a better start than the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) got over a decade ago?

As of this writing, "Superman" is expected to pull in between $130 and $171 million domestically when it opens next weekend, per Box Office Theory. Those numbers are just ever so slightly down from early projections, which had Gunn's film pulling in anywhere between $90 and $185 million, depending on who you talked to. Meanwhile, mid-June tracking had the blockbuster pulling in over/under $135 million, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Warner Bros. previously launched its first shared live-action DC cinematic universe, aka the DCEU, with director Zack Snyder's "Man of Steel" in 2013, just one year after Christopher Nolan's "The Dark Knight Rises" wrapped up his Batman trilogy. Snyder's take on Superman, which starred Henry Cavill, opened to $116.9 million domestically, which was, by 2013 standards, a solid launch.

"Man of Steel" finished its run at the box office with $668 million worldwide against a reported $225 million budget. Interestingly enough, Gunn's "Superman" is said to carry a very similar production budget. What's interesting is that, unadjusted for inflation, if pre-sales cool down and this movie opens even a little below current projections, it could have a near-identical opening to Snyder's divisive take on the titular character. 12 years later and yet so much remains the same.

Broader plot details for "Superman" have surprisingly been kept mostly under wraps. The trailers have made it clear that it's not an origin story and that there will be several villains for Supes to contend with. Among those joining David Corenswet (Clark Kent/Superman) in the cast are Rachel Brosnahan (Lois Lane), Nicholas Hoult (Lex Luthor), Isabela Merced (Hawkgirl), Nathan Fillion (Guy Gardner), and Edi Gathegi (Mister Terrific).

The problem largely is that box office tracking has become far less reliable of late. Recently, for example, "M3GAN 2.0" was on course to earn $30 million weeks before it opened to a mere $10 million. On the flip side, there are movies that blow past projections like "A Minecraft Movie," which has had the biggest domestic opening of 2025 so far with $162.7 million. Critical buzz could be the X factor here. If critics and early audiences love Gunn's "Superman," an opening closer to $150 million could be in the cards. But if buzz cools as the weekend nears? $100 million might seem more realistic.

To be clear, only two films — "A Minecraft Movie" and "Lilo & Stitch" — have opened to more than $100 million domestically so far in 2025. So, anything north of $100 million would be a huge deal for WB. That's also just one part of the equation, as international audiences are going to play a major factor here. "Man of Steel" made nearly 57% of its money overseas. But pre-sales in China have been soft for "Superman," with competition from the likes of "Jurassic World Rebirth" being a consideration.

For WB, Gunn, and Safran, this is about more than one movie. They have lofty plans, with "Supergirl" and "Clayface" slated to hit theaters next year, along with "Lanterns" on HBO Max. That means "Superman" has to help get audiences on board with a new DC Universe. But that doesn't have to mean $1 billion at the box office. "Iron Man" made $585 million, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe was built on its back. The pressure is certainly on, but let's also not burden this movie with unreasonable expectations either.

"Superman" hits theaters on July 11, 2025.