The box office is important for any theatrically released film, but if Superman‘s budget is as mᴀssive as reports suggest, it needs to be a box office hit. After a less-than-stellar run for the DCEU, James Gunn’s revamped DCU is set to have its first theatrical release, coming out in July 2025. And while this movie was already foundational in their slate due to being the first тιтle released on the big screen, it also needs to be a high earner.

In a landscape of films where people are constantly highlighting superhero fatigue, Superman has a tremendous uphill battle to climb. With so much riding on this тιтle alone, it would be sensible to predict that DC Studios is playing it safe with their first release. However, if reports are to be believed regarding the production budget for the film, this may actually be a much bigger gamble than anyone anticipated.

Superman’s Box Office Could Set The Tone For The DC Universe

Superman Is Leading The Charge For The Entire DCU

When looking at the MCU, the first тιтle released under that label was Iron Man. Despite making a somewhat lesser-known hero the focus of the film, the movie managed to earn a whopping $584 million on a production budget of $186 million (via The Numbers). While nowhere close to the multiple billions that later тιтles would earn in the MCU, it proved that there was a hunger for these stories, and one that the MCU was able to tap into, improving with many other big releases.

The DCU is now about to break ground on their new franchise, and it’s equally important that Superman comes out of the box office with a big result. If the movie flops after putting its biggest name on display, then it doesn’t bode well for the rest of the franchise. However, if the movie is able to make a profit at the box office, the DCU could have a bigger and brighter future with plenty of stories to build it out.

Superman’s Reported Budget Makes It One Of The Most Expensive Movies Of All Time

Before Release, Superman Is Deep In The Red

However, the budget that the movie requires to make the film in the first place is an important factor when looking at box office results. The production budget sets a baseline for what the movie needs to make in order to be profitable, and it is not the only number that the movie needs to make up for when it is released. On top of the production budget, studios and distributors spend tens or even hundreds of millions marketing their movies to get people into the theaters.

Source: The Numbers

With Superman being such a pivotal release, it’s likely that the studios will be supporting it in a big way in terms of marketing, but the reported movie budget for Superman is also set at approximately $363 million, making it one of the most expensive movies ever made. If that’s the case, then the movie will have a hefty sum to make before it can turn a profit, never mind multiplying the initial budget at the box office.

Superman’s Box Office Success Chances Explained

Early Projections Are Looking Positive For Superman

Now, Superman has always been a popular property, and one of the most popular superheros of all time. This obviously works in favor of the movie being a success, but with such a high bar to cross before the movie is even released, it is not making it easy on itself. But looking ahead to projections, which are founded in pre-sale tickets and general polling around the movie, it does seem like Superman is setting up to have a strong box office both on a domestic and global scale.

At present, Superman’s box office projections position it as earning between $140-185 million for its opening box office weekend domestically. That would potentially put it above the DCEU’s highest opening box office weekend for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which earned $166 million in the opening weekend. However, the projections tend to become clearer closer to the date of release, and with Superman already racking up an extraordinary bill in production and marketing costs, it will need to hit big to ensure the future of the DCU.