James Gunn’s ‘Superman’ Cracks $300 Million At Domestic Box Office

“Superman” partial poster featuring David Corenswet.

Warner Bros. Pictures

Superman — James Gunn’s Man of Steel tale starring David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan — just reached a big box office milestone as it heads into its fourth weekend in theaters.

Written and directed by Gunn, Superman opened on July 11 and earned $125 million at the domestic box office in its first three-day frame from 4,135 theaters. The film marks the first DC Studios release from Gunn and his fellow co-CEO Peter Safran after they took over the division at Warner Bros.

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Forgoing the origin story route, Gunn’s version of Superman picks up with Superman already a well-established force for good in Metropolis, along with Clark Kent a fixture at the Daily Planet and boyfriend of Brosnahan’s Lois Lane.

Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) sends Superman’s life into a tailspin, however, when the tech billionaire finds a way to turn the public against the Krypton-born superhero.

Superman crossed the $300 million mark at the domestic box office on Thursday with $2.6 million in ticket sales, boosting its 21-day tally to $302.3 million. Combined with its international gross of $225.6 million through Thursday, Superman has earned $527.6 million worldwide to date.

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Superman had a production budget of $225 million and a marketing budget of $125 million, according to Variety.

‘Superman’ And ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Are In A Tight Race For The Top Superhero Movie Of The Summer

While Superman still has momentum three weeks in release, it’s still uncertain whether it will be the superhero film that flies the highest at this summer’s box office.

Superman easily soared by Disney and Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts* a week into domestic theater run. Thunderbolts* (aka The New Avengers) is looking like it will wrap up its domestic run this weekend in a mere 20 venues (via The Numbers). The film has a running North American box office tally of $190.1 million.

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Disney/Marvel’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps, however, has a shot at catching up with Superman, thanks to a solid domestic opening of $117.6 million from 4,125 North American screens.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps heads into its second weekend with $158.4 million in domestic ticket sales and $99 million in international receipts for a worldwide box office tally of $257.4 million to date.

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Superman’s theater count is dropping from 3,930 venues last week to 3,537 heading into its fourth weekend, per The Numbers.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is projected to easily win its second weekend at the domestic box office over three newcomers — the animated family comedy The Bad Guys 2, the action comedy The Naked Gun and the body horror thriller Together.

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