TheMarvel Cinematic Universe’s box office afterAvengers: Endgameshows what kind of projects the franchise should aim for in the future. It is hard to measure a film’s success by the last Avengers movie’s standards. Not only wasAvengers: Endgameone of theMCU’s best movies, butit became the highest-grossing film of all timefor a certain period.
Most MCU films will never have a shot at that, as they are not the culmination of all that came before, like the biggest of the MCU’s Avengers movies was. That said,Marvel used to have a pattern when it came to the box office, but the Multiverse Saga broke that. TheMCU’s upcoming moviesnow have to fix it.
That can be done by looking back at what worked and did not for thefilms released sinceAvengers: Endgame.There are some lessonsin them that can help the studio plan its releases around what could make them successful. With that in mind, here are all the MCU’s post-Avengers: Endgamemovies so far ranked by box office:
14The Marvels
Total Box Office: $199,706,250
Sadly,The Marvelsbecame the MCU’s biggest box office bomb. I was shocked by just how much it fell afterCaptain Marvel’s respectable gross.
The Marvel’s post-credits scene should like directly to the X-Men’s return in Avengers: Doomsday.
The team-up film could not get anywhere nearCaptain Marvel’s $1.13 billion (viaBox Office Mojo).The Marvelshad an exciting trio of heroes, Nick Fury, teases about the MCU’s future, and more.
Still, it did not succeed. Perhaps the lackluster villain, creative choices like the singing planet, andconnections to MCU showsbogged it down.
13Black Widow
Total Box Office: $379,751,131
The MCU took too long to release a movie for Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow. When it did so,Natasha Romanoff was already dead.
Black Widow’s box office performance was impacted by a simultaneous release on Disney+’s Premiere Access.
Still, I had a lot of fun withBlack Widow. The movie introduced concepts andcharacters who would be important to the franchise for years.
Black Widow
Cast
Black Widow: Released in 2021, Black Widow follows Natasha Romanoff as she faces a conspiracy linked to her past. Pursued relentlessly, Natasha must confront her history as a spy and navigate fractured relationships from her previous life before becoming part of the Avengers.
Black Widow’s box office performance was impacted bya simultaneous release on Disney+’s Premiere Access. Thankfully, Marvel learned its lesson after the controversial release.
12Thunderbolts*
Total Box Office: $381,317,318
Thunderbolts*’s box officebeing a disappointment was shocking. The movie was one of the franchise’s best-reviewed films.Thunderbolts*also had a New Avengers twist.
Despite those positive aspects, the film is still on the way to beingone of Marvel’s lowest-grossing movies. The obscure characters could not become box office headliners this time.
I feel likeThunderbolts*got hurt byCaptain America: Brave New Worlddisappointing fans a few months before.Its lesser-known heroes also impacted the film’s performance.
11Eternals
Total Box Office: $401,731,759
Eternalsis one of the MCU’s most distinct movies. Sadly, it did not have the wide appeal that Marvel thought it could have.
Boasting popular stars likeGame Of Thrones' Kit Harington and Angelina Jolie,Eternalstried to do too much at once.
The film’s many characters could not all be serviced equally.Eternalswas incredibly ambitious, butlike Ikaris, it flew too close to the sun.
10Captain America: Brave New World
Total Box Office: $413,640,021
The first of theMCU’s 2025 moviesmade Sam Wilson a movie star. Sadly,Captain America: Brave New Worldcould not accomplish muchmore.
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The film tried to go forCaptain America: The Winter Soldier’s formula. However,its Hulk-heavy plot — with no Hulk — felt out of place.
Had the focus been on Sam Wilson the whole time, I believe the Captain America movie could have succeeded. Still,it set up Sam’s new Avengers team.
9Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings
Total Box Office: $432,224,634
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Ringswas an exciting addition to the MCU. It hadsome of Marvel’s best fight scenes.
Still, with the movie industry still suffering from the pandemic, Shang-Chi’s MCU debut faltered.A sequel would likely do better, and Marvel has one in development.
The film introduced the Ten Rings, incredibly powerful artifacts. WithShang-Chi’s return inAvengers: Doomsday, they could help Marvel’s heroes against Doctor Doom.
8Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania
Total Box Office: $476,073,180
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniawasone of the MCU’s biggest disappointments. The movie introduced Kang the Conqueror as the Multiverse Saga’s main villain.
However, he was defeated in an underwhelming way. That, alongside problems like bad CGI and boring subplots, led to it becomingthe lowest-grossing Ant-Man movie.
WithQuantumaniaunderperforming,Marvel was likely more inclined to move on from Kangthan recast the role after Jonathan Majors' firing. Now, we haveDoctor Doom in the MCU.
7Thor: Love and Thunder
Total Box Office: $760,928,081
Chris Hemsworth’s latest Thor movie was not his best.Thor: Love and Thunderleaned too heavily on its comedic elements, hurting two important storylines.
I feel the movie could have neared $1 billion if the Jane Foster cancer story andGorr the God Butcher’s quest to kill godshad been developed better.
Sadly, we will never know. With Thor back forAvengers: Doomsday, a tonal change for the hero is expected.Thor 5, which Hemsworth wants to do, would follow suit.
6Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3
Total Box Office: $845,555,777
From this point on are only bona fide MCU hits. I thinkGuardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3isthe best entry in the cosmic franchise.
The Guardians of the Galaxy movie did a perfect job of ending the team’s journey.Rocket Raccoon’s backstory was spotlighted with a sharp focus.
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3set up a new version of the teamand Star-Lord’s MCU future. It is a poignant finale and the start of something new at the same time.
5Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Total Box Office: $859,208,836
It is true thatBlack Panther: Wakanda Forevermade less than its predecessor. However, its box office numbers were still respectable.
Black Pantherwas a cultural phenomenon. As such, it would be impossible to replicate the film’s success with the sequel. Still, Marvel delivered a layered and emotional story.
Shuri’s transformation into the MCU’s new Black Panther andNamor’s war with Wakandawere thrilling. The film is also a showcase of successful world-building.
