The Fantastic Four: First Steps is facing trouble at the international box office as a key market is not warming up to the Marvel Cinematic Universe movie. Marvel’s First Family has finally joined the franchise, with the new film doing a solid job of exploring another universe and even setting up Avengers: Doomsday through The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ post-credits scene.
To help its box office, the MCU’s first Fantastic Four movie has positive reviews on its side. The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ Rotten Tomatoes debut stood at 88% with critics. Now the film’s initial audience score has been revealed, and the final 2025 MCU movie stands at 92% with fans at the time of writing. However, not all markets are responding.
On Twitter, @GlobalBoxOff noted how The Fantastic Four: First Steps had the worst pre-sales of an MCU movie in over a decade in China.
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After the domestic box office, China is the next most important market for any Hollywood blockbuster looking to go on a solid box office run. The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ pre-sales in China added up to a measly $611K, which is lower than both Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts*, which scored $1.61M and $824K, respectively.
What The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Box Office Results Mean For The MCU Movie
The MCU Will Have To Make Up For It Elsewhere
With the poor pre-sales in China, any remaining chances of the movie getting near the $1 billion mark are gone. The MCU’s latest movie to gross over $1 billion was ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, which ended its theatrical run in China with $59.7 million, which was already a step-down from what previous films in the franchise had been able to accomplish.
There also seems to be a downward trend forming in relation to superhero movies in China this year. Thunderbolts* went on to gross $16.1M in China, while Captain America: Brave New World had a total of $14.4M. Recently, James Gunn’s Superman movie, which has had incredible word-of-mouth and a solid performance in the United States, has only grossed over $8.5M.
|
Fantastic Four Movie |
Rotten Tomatoes Critics’ Score |
|---|---|
|
Fantastic Four (2005) |
27% |
|
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer |
37% |
|
Fantastic Four (2015) |
9% |
|
The Fantastic Four: First Steps |
88% (could change) |
The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ pre-sales figures in China and the overall downward trend of superhero movies’ performance in the country make it clear that the genre can no longer count on the key market always delivering. With China not thrilled about the debut of Marvel’s First Family, the Fantastic Four will need to make up for it in other international markets.
Our Take On The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Box Office Results
The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ initial box office results in China are disappointing. However, they are not unexpected, as all the signs were there that this year is not a good one for superhero movies in the country. Thankfully, based on the overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics and fans alike, The Fantastic Four: First Steps should still have a solid run worldwide.
Source: @GlobalBoxOff/Twitter
