Supergirl's Box Office Flop: Worse Than Infamous Marvel Film Morbius!
Supergirl's Box Office Flop: Worse Than Infamous Marvel Film Morbius!
DC's 'Supergirl' disappoints at the box office, earning less than 'Morbius' and falling short of expectations. What does this mean for the DC Universe's 10-year plan? Read more!
Warner Bros. and DC Studios' latest superhero epic, "Supergirl," has stumbled at the box office, delivering a surprisingly low opening weekend performance. The film, which introduces Superman's cousin, debuted to a disappointing $38 million domestically and $68 million globally. These figures fall significantly short of the targeted $55 million in North American ticket sales for its first weekend, immediately raising concerns about its profitability against a substantial $170 million production budget, which doesn't even include marketing expenses.
This box office misstep is particularly notable as "Supergirl" has earned less than 2022's Morbius, an infamous Marvel Comics adaptation starring Jared Leto. Morbius, despite its widely panned reviews and confusing plot, managed to pull in $39.1 million in North American theaters. While Morbius was part of Sony's Spider-Man Universe and not the MCU, its underperformance became a benchmark for a legendary comic book movie fail. The fact that "Supergirl" opened even lower highlights the severity of its commercial struggles.
Starring House of the Dragon breakout Milly Alcock in the titular role, "Supergirl" faces a long road ahead to recoup its costs. The film did not experience the production delays that plagued Morbius, but it shares a common challenge: centering around a character less universally recognized than flagship heroes. This contrasts sharply with the massive success of James Gunn’s Superman last summer, which soared to $125 million on its opening weekend and became the highest-grossing superhero film of 2025.
The underwhelming debut of "Supergirl" poses a test for Warner Bros. Discovery’s CEO David Zaslav and DC Universe’s ambitious 10-year plan. Following Superman's triumph, Zaslav expressed confidence in the rebooted DC Universe's future. However, "Supergirl's" performance indicates that audience engagement for less-established characters within the DC lineup may be more challenging to achieve, requiring careful re-evaluation of strategies for upcoming projects.
