The Current State of Superhero Movies

2025 is a big year for superhero films. It signifies the launch of James Gunn’s DC Universe with Superman. It also heralds a new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Fantastic 4: First Steps. While both have raked in considerable amounts at the box office, reports are mixed regarding their financial performances. They haven’t matched projections. Box Office numbers aside, both films have received overall positive reactions from fans and critics alike. If turnout for superhero movies is fading but a significant audience is maintained, what are the next steps for these companies?

Superhero Fatigue

The term “superhero fatigue” has been thrown around for many years. This has occurred during the success of the MCU and DC’s attempts to compete in the space. It’s the idea that, at some point or another, general movie audiences will be tired of superheroes. Consequently, they will stop seeking out the genre. These films have dominated the market. This worries many that there won’t be room for other types of movies.

In reality, there is no clear sign, outside of financial success, that people are getting tired of any film genre. People like to point to a decade-old Spielberg quote about superhero films dying like Westerns did in the ’60s. Speilberg may have been wrong on that front. While westerns have existed nearly since the inception of the medium, superhero films have arguably existed since the 1920s (with The Mark of Zorro up for contention). However, they have maintained a more recognizable presence since Fleischer’s Superman in the 40s and Adam West’s Batman in the 60s.

Since then, the superhero genre has only gained popularity, outliving the western. It reached its peak of success with the MCU.

Superheroes have proved to be more adaptable to the changing tides of culture than their cowboy counterparts. Even if they do share some similarities in their tales of heroism. And while westerns aren’t as popular as they once were, the genre can be thought of as rock n roll. It hasn’t truly died, but rather evolved. Ultimately, the Box Office dictates what movies will get made. Understandably, film companies want to follow the money. However, this often compromises the artistic side of the medium.   

Box office numbers

 The consideration of box office numbers should come second when talking about the success of a film. While it gives a specific assessment of financial success, it doesn’t dictate a film’s cultural value. If this were the case, movies like Blade Runner and John Carpenter’s The Thing wouldn’t be cherished to this day. On the flipside, a major financial success doesn’t inherently translate into a critical success. David Ayer’s Suicide Squad is a prime example of this. It made almost a billion dollars but was universally panned. For better or worse, many people did dress up as Harley Quinn and Joker for Halloween, though.

 Film companies need to take risks if they want to maintain audience interest. This won’t happen if their only output is mediocre superhero movies that only exist to bring home a check. So when people talk about superhero fatigue, it’s really just bad movie fatigue.  

Film studios

 If a film is loved by its audience, this should signal to film studios that they are doing something right. They should recalibrate what they define as a success. A greater issue causes people to think these movies aren’t smash hits. It is the misguided hope that they each make a billion at the box office. Considering the multi-million-dollar budgets of these projects, it’s no secret that anything shy of $800 million sets off alarm bells for the companies. This happens even if they are making a profit.

What is more worrying for fans is that studios will ignore critical success. They only invest in characters they know will be profitable. This is an obvious idea from a business standpoint. However, Marvel is the same company that turned The Guardians of the Galaxy into household names. Before the movies, these were fairly niche characters. If studios abandon risk, they in turn abandon growth and interest in the genre. 

There is a clear precedent for Marvel and DC to produce captivating movies. Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man Trilogy are still exceptional examples. These were superhero films before the idea of cinematic universes took hold on the collective conscience.  

Joker Movie

More recently, the first Joker movie was an astonishing success. It left a cultural footprint and got away with a billion dollars at the box office. Thus, it’s not fair to say that risks in the genre aren’t being made. Rather, the perceived malaise stems from people understandably being bored or disappointed with bad films. It is solely dependent on the substance of these films to keep audiences engaged with fresh ideas. It’s important to keep in mind that these characters are designed to be written about continuously. Anyone who says there’s nothing more to be done with Batman or Spider-Man is dead wrong.

Marvel

As of right now, superhero movies are in a disoriented state. Post Avengers: Endgame, the financial and critical consistency of Marvel movies is no longer a sure thing. One clear issue that Marvel seems to have is a lack of planning or coordination with their films. While every film led to Infinity War and Endgame in a planned-out manner, nothing after that leads to a clear destination.

With Avengers: Doomsday slated for next year, fans are left scratching their heads. How can such a seemingly massive event movie stand on its own without any prior buildup? Marvel is banking on Robert Downey Jr.’s return as Dr. Doom to get people in seats. Whether that decision will rekindle an interest in the MCU is yet to be seen.  

DC has hope on the horizon with a brand new direction set forth by co-CEO James Gunn. While Marvel had clear dominance in the superhero market in the 2010s, it might be DC’s turn to take the lead. Whichever succeeds, superheroes won’t be going anywhere as long as studios put in the necessary work to make people care. Not through gimmicks or big budgets, but through stories that give people hope. That’s what superheroes are all about, and Superman was the reminder that people needed. 

By: Alex Vartanov

Editor’s Note: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Presence News. This piece is published for informational and commentary purposes.