Brie Larson’s The Marvels ended its theatrical run with $206 million at the box office, failing to break even with its $274 million gross budget. The movie was set for a disaster after poor marketing, negative word-of-mouth, and disastrous opening numbers at $46.1 million. Many fans still believe that there was an active negative campaign against the film. As the film hit Disney+ for streaming, many Marvel fans have rallied behind the film claiming that it was a great film.
While many audience members agreed that the film was fun to watch, it was not good enough to compensate for all the ‘negative’ publicity. The critics praised the performances of the main cast but were disappointed with the script and tonal inconsistencies.
Brie Larson Fans Support The Marvels After Its Streaming Release
The Marvels has been now made available for streaming on Disney+ following its abysmal performance at theaters. However, the streaming release has prompted a section of fans to appreciate the film and the performances. The film featured the return of Brie Larson‘s Carol Danvers, Iman Vellani‘s Kamala Khan, and Teyonah Parris‘s Monica Rambeau.
At the time of the film’s release, fans raised accusations about a planned attack against a female-oriented film. Fans claimed that the attack has its root in the Captain Marvel debacle, during which Brie Larson was heavily trolled on social media. Larson’s political statements and Marvel’s attempt to establish Carol Danvers as the strongest Avenger received significant backlash from the fanbase.
The streaming release of The Marvels has paved the way for new discussions. One fan on X shared that he finally got to see The Marvels and felt like he watched a different movie from the haters. He revealed having fun and wanted to see the “ladies” again in the MCU. Another fan shared the opinion that the film didn’t deserve the “trashing”. One fan blamed misogyny, while another believed that people just jumped on the Marvel hate bandwagon. Fan reactions read:
Ok, I finally saw The Marvels on @DisneyPlus, and I feel like some of y’all watched a different movie from me. I loved this movie. This is probably the most fun I’ve had watching an MCU project. The sooner I see these ladies again, the better. #TheMarvels #HigherFurtherFaster pic.twitter.com/to3XeeTE5Z
— Key'Shawn Watkins #BLM (@KeyWatkins51299) February 7, 2024
Thank you for putting this out there. I saw it in the theaters twice because it was so fun. It never deserved the trashing it got from some.
(Also, sorry you’re getting grief from people right now)
— Panda Thredz (@oldmancoyote22) February 7, 2024
misogyny really sabotaged this movie. it’s easily one of the best they’ve put out in a while
— ᱬᴱᴳᴬᵀᴿᴼᴺ 💋 (@TheeWandaStan) February 7, 2024
I agree. I thought it was a lot of fun. But I can't say that I'm surprised. Like so many Marvel movies before this one, people jumped on a hate bandwagon and decided they were going to hate it before even seeing it.
— Steven (@Steven27252409) February 8, 2024
This was a case of the media and negative influencers convincing people that Marvel isn't good anymore. They influenced it to fail by convincing the public it should fail.
— Malcolm Harris- WGA and proud! (@malcolmharrisx) February 7, 2024
I literally was wondering the same thing the movie is very good I don’t understand how anyone didn’t like it
— . (@wiay204) February 8, 2024
Interestingly, Larson’s first film, Captain Marvel, performed exceptionally well and became the first female-led superhero film to pass the billion-dollar mark. It appears that the sequel film had several factors that worked against it.
Why Did Brie Larson’s The Marvels Fail At The Box Office?
The Marvels had better critical ratings than its previous MCU film, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (via Rotten Tomatoes). The film’s pre-sale figures suggested that the film lacked a significant marketing effort from Disney. The SAG-AFTRA strikes prevented the actors from promoting the film to a large extent. However, the main cast including Brie Larson and Iman Vellani attempted at some last-minute promotions following the conclusion of the strikes.
The film also suffered from ‘superhero fatigue’ due to the sheer amount of average to bad movies and series released in the genre. Most of the Marvel films post-Endgame failed to impress the Marvel fanbase let alone the general audience. The Marvels‘ box office was also impacted by other theatrical releases like Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour and The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Despite the declining trend at Marvel, fans hope that the studio gain back glory with the much-anticipated upcoming release, Deadpool 3. The film, featuring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, is set to be released in theaters on July 26, 2024.
