Superman is continuing to soar at the box office, surpᴀssing the all-time domestic total of the DC Extended Universe’s biggest hit. The DCEU is the superhero franchise that kicked off with 2013’s Man of Steel and concluded with 2023’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Collectively, the franchise’s 15 movies grossed $7.2 billion worldwide.

2025’s Superman, which stars David Corenswet in the тιтle role instead of the DCEU’s Henry Cavill, was written and directed by James Gunn. It is the first feature in the newly rebranded DC Universe, which is a soft reboot of the franchise that is being overseen by DC Studios’ new co-chairmen and co-CEOS, Gunn and Peter Safran.

While some characters from the DCEU have carried over into the new franchise (including John Cena as Peacemaker), Superman largely sets the franchise on a new path that leads into upcoming features, particularly 2026’s Supergirl. So far, the flagship movie of the DCU has been living up to its franchise-kickstarting responsibilities by performing well at the box office.

Superman Outgrossed The DCEU’s Cornerstone тιтle In North America

The new James Gunn superhero movie has now climbed up the all-time DCEU/DCU chart at the domestic box office. Superman had an auspicious debut on July 11 with a $125 million opening weekend at the domestic box office, quickly rising up the charts as it became the highest-grossing superhero movie of the year.

Per The Numbers, James Gunn’s Superman has reached a domestic box office total of $344.5 million. This has allowed it to surpᴀss the $335.1 million domestic haul of 2018’s Aquaman, which was the DCEU’s most profitable release, to become the second highest-grossing DCEU/DCU movie at the domestic box office, behind 2017’s Wonder Woman ($412.6 million).

Superman is the third highest-grossing installment at the domestic box office when counting the DC Elseworlds тιтles, ahead of 2019’s smash hit Joker ($335.4 million), but behind the 2022 Robert Pattinson vehicle The Batman ($369.6 million).

What This Means For Superman

While the Superman box office surpᴀssing Aquaman is a tremendous achievement, the 2018 movie’s $1.148 billion worldwide gross still far outstrips the new installment’s current $600.9 million global haul. One major reason for this is the fact that China is no longer a major consumer of Hollywood superhero movies.

While Aquaman grossed $291.8 million in China, nearly matching its domestic haul, Superman had only grossed $8.9 million as of the latest report date, on August 19. This, and other factors, will prevent it from being a billion-dollar global hit by the end of its run. However, a solid start at home is still a good sign for the burgeoning franchise.

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