Superman‘s new box office milestone is the perfect showcase of how a DC Universe sequel makes absolute sense. James Gunn’s Superman movie had a challenging task. It is the first movie in the DCU’s Chapter One, and as such, it was expected to deliver, both in terms of reception and box office. Thankfully, the DC movie has managed to find success.

When it comes to critics and fans, Superman‘s reviews have been predominantly positive. At the time of writing, the DCU’s first movie holds an impressive 91% Rotten Tomatoes score from fans, while its critics’ score is at a respectable 83%. As for its box office, Superman has proven itself to be a strong performer domestically, though it has not had the same success internationally.

Still, Superman is where DC and Gunn needed it to be. Superman‘s reported budget landed at the $225 million mark. Based on that, the DCU movie needed to finish its worldwide run between $450 million and $562.5 million to break even. At the moment, David Corenswet’s Superman debut has comfortably pᴀssed that range, and Superman just flew past a key MCU movie.

Superman Will End 2025 As The Highest-Grossing Superhero Movie

Superman‘s box office will shatter a 17-year MCU record. While DC only had one movie released in theaters in 2025, Marvel Studios put out three new additions to its shared universe: Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts*, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Of the three MCU movies released in 2025, only the latter could theoretically surpᴀss Superman‘s worldwide total.

Captain America: Brave New World‘s box office suffered without Chris Evans, as was said by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, ending at $415.1 million. Despite its New Avengers twist and rebranding right after its opening weekend, Thunderbolts* also underperformed, finishing its theatrical run even lower than the Captain America movie, with just $382.4 million worldwide.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is the MCU’s highest-grossing 2025 movie. However, it is still quite a bit behind Superman‘s current total of $585 million. The MCU Fantastic Four movie’s worldwide total is at $439.6 million. However, based on projections, it will not do much above $500 million, with Superman winning at the 2025 box office despite already releasing on digital.

Superman Has Pᴀssed The Box Office Of James Gunn’s Most Important MCU Movie

Superman continues to fly past superhero movies on both the Marvel and DC sides. When it comes to the latter, the DC Universe’s first movie has become the highest-grossing movie to star Superman ever at the domestic box office. Superman‘s performance in North America has been very exciting for the future of the DCU, breaking some impressive records.

Recently, Superman‘s box office surpᴀssed James Gunn’s most important MCU movie. With its current haul of $334.7 million domestically, Superman has left Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy behind. The Marvel Studios film finished its domestic run with $333.7 million, which I believe was quite the sum for a production based on obscure characters from the comics. Gunn made the team world-famous.

Gunn directed a Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and a Holiday Special for Marvel. However, as the first film in the franchise and the one responsible for making or breaking it for the MCU team, 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy was undoubtedly the most important entry in the cosmic franchise. Superman‘s box office surpᴀssing the MCU movie is quite interesting.

Superman’s New Box Office Milestone Makes It Look Like An Even Better Franchise Starter

On social media, it is easy to find comments about how Superman has yet to pᴀss Man of Steel‘s worldwide box office. That movie also had the task of starting a cinematic universe, but what some do not understand is how it did not have to deal with the baggage of multiple controversial releases, unlike Gunn’s Superman with the DCEU.

Since Superman is already releasing on digital, its worldwide box office is unlikely to match or surpᴀss Man of Steel‘s. However, the fact that it has crossed a James Gunn box office milestone is positive for the film and the DCU. The first Guardians of the Galaxy was the Marvel trilogy’s lowest-grossing movie, finishing its global run at $772.8 million.

After Guardians of the Galaxy established the team and the MCU’s cosmic corner, both of its sequels went on to end their global runs in the $800-$900 million range. The same could happen for Superman, which leaned heavier domestically than internationally. If DC can work out how to balance that for the future, the Superman franchise can build on its success.

James Gunn Is Already Making Sure Superman’s Story Continues

While Superman‘s worldwide box office might not be where some thought it would have ended up, the DC movie shows promising signs as a franchise starter. Like Guardians of the Galaxy, all the elements are there for Gunn to produce even bigger sequels, and the director seems to be wasting no time. Gunn previously revealed he was working on Superman‘s sequel.

However, the project would not be a direct sequel to the Man of Steel movie, though David Corenswet’s Superman was said to play a major role in the story. Recently, that film started to take a more concrete shape. According to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, Gunn was writing the next movie for the “Super family.” That sparked crossover rumors.

After all, Milly Alcock’s Supergirl debuted in the Superman movie’s ending. Now, Gunn reveals he has written the treatment for the next entry in the Superman Saga. Adding to that, the director hopes to begin shooting the project soon. With Superman‘s box office success, the next movie in the character’s DCU corner is already lined up, which is perfect.