It looks like there’s a new victor at the box office arena after TOHO’s Godzilla Minus One breaks the record on its opening day in Japan. The film marks the latest iteration of the famous beast in the Monsterverse.
Meanwhile, Brie Larson’s The Marvels is struggling to leave a positive mark after it earned a disappointing $47 million on its opening weekend. With a whopping $275 million production cost, it needs to do better in the coming weeks.
Godzilla Minus One Outperforms The Marvels With A Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score
Godzilla Minus One is currently dominating Japan’s box office since its premiere early this November. The movie is still gearing up for its North American release, but those who have seen it overseas all gave positive reviews. In fact, the movie has a perfect score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes!
TOHO previously teased fans on what to expect in Godzilla Minus One, stating the country’s economic state has been reduced to zero after the war, and with the attack of Godzilla, everything just turned into chaos. President of Toho International Koiju Ueda said via Comic Book:
“Set in a post-war Japan, Godzilla Minus One will once again show us a Godzilla that is a terrifying and overwhelming force… The concept is that Japan, which had already been devastated by the war, faces a new threat with Godzilla, bringing the country into the ‘minus.’”
Fans will have to brace themselves because this is a new level of cinematic devastation. With only a $15 million production cost, the project is already showing incredible support from the viewers.
On the other hand, Brie Larson’s The Marvels sets a new record as the worst opening weekend for Marvel Studios. It currently has a 62% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is evidently not a pleasant score for a massive MCU production.
Now, does this mean the superhero fatigue is still lingering? Godzilla and MCU are both long-enduring franchises that have solid fan bases, but with the onslaught of comic book adaptations over the past two years since the pandemic, it’s quite understandable that fans want something different now.
The MCU Struggles To Maintain Its Power
Is this the end of the reign of Marvel Cinematic Universe? Are they no longer the standard when it comes to box office wins? Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com, explained how the studio reached the zenith of success and now they are struggling to maintain it (via CNBC):
“Marvel has simply set a very high standard for themselves. When a new film or series is released, they have more pressure to stand on their own while also pushing the universe forward.”
Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore, shared how The Marvels can find hope in the midst of this box office crisis. He said:
“Despite posting the lowest domestic debut for the MCU, The Marvels proved once again the importance of the international marketplace for the Marvel brand. The film will now rely on Thanksgiving holiday corridor moviegoing to help move the big-budget superhero film closer to profitability and help to determine the film’s ultimate success at the box office.”
While The Marvels will rely on the holiday season for some boost in profit, Godzilla Minus One will arrive in the US and Canada on December 1.
