James Gunn opens up about the prior box office concerns surrounding Superman and its impact on the DC Universe. Following several years of being gone from the big screen, Krypton’s last son is about to enter a new era with Gunn’s Superman movie, which releases this week and features David Corenswet’s debut in the DCU franchise.

While Superman will be crucial for the DCU’s Chapter 1 slate, there have been a lot of varied discussions and estimations about what the film needs to make financially. As July is one of the biggest months of the summer season, its box office results will be a major deal, which has also seemingly impacted discussions about Superman itself.

In a new interview with GQ, Gunn addressed the box office expectations for Superman, while also getting candid about reports and concerns that it needs to be a certain number in order to be considered a hit. While there are stakes with Superman’s box office results, Gunn stressed that some people are blowing things out of proportion:

James Gunn: This is not the riskiest endeavor in the world. Is there something riding on it? Yeah, but it’s not as big as people make it out to be. They hear these numbers that the movie’s only going to be successful if it makes 700 million or something and it’s just complete and utter nonsense. It doesn’t need to be as big of a situation as people are saying.

What James Gunn’s Superman Box Office Comments Mean

While it’s evident that Superman needs to be a box office hit, it’s also crucial to take into account that a film can absolutely still be successful even if it doesn’t reach the billion-dollar milestone. With the DCU timeline having barely begun, it’s in a similar position to the Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 1, which didn’t have any movie hit $1 billion until The Avengers.

There have been reports on the Superman movie budget, but it has still not been fully confirmed exactly how much it cost to make the DCU installment, as Gunn and DC Studios haven’t commented on the expenses. But given Gunn’s recent comments, it’s clear that Superman may not necessarily have to hit the $700 million mark to be considered a win for DC Studios.

Our Take On James Gunn’s Superman Box Office Comments

It’s understandable that Gunn has these frustrations when it comes to the concerns around Superman’s box office, as they could see some label the film a failure when that might not reflect the reality of things. While it would obviously be incredible if Superman reaches $700 million or more, this is still a franchise that is being built from scratch.

What DC Studios needs outside of solid box office numbers is also good word of mouth about the DCU, as that will also be imperative to getting people to invest in this franchise. Hopefully, Superman will be able to garner a good reception as well as great numbers at the box office, while helping set the stage for the DCU’s future.

Source: GQ