Disney CEO Hails ‘Thunderbolts’ as Marvel’s New Era Despite Historic Low Opening

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Disney CEO Bob Iger has stated that Thunderbolts serves as the “foremost illustration” of Marvel’s shift towards prioritizing quality over volume in their productions, despite the fact that its opening weekend during the summer period recorded the smallest earnings in the MCU to date. Indeed, while both critics and audiences have commended the film’s quality, it has not generated substantial revenue.

During Wednesday’s quarterly earnings meeting, Iger conceded a point long voiced by both critics and supporters: Disney’s content production, notably Marvel Studios, has often favored quantity over quality. He admitted that the company had, to some extent, lost focus due to excessive expansion in both film and streaming, resulting in an overproduction of content too swiftly.

During the call, Iger acknowledged that our eagerness to fill our streaming service with more content led us to tap into all of our creative resources, such as Marvel, and produce a greater volume of content. Over time, we’ve realized that producing more doesn’t automatically lead to better quality. In fact, we’ve recognized that we may have strayed from our focus by creating too much. By streamlining our approach and allowing Marvel to concentrate more on their films, we believe this will lead to improved quality. I believe the upcoming film, Thunderbolts, is a strong example of this new direction. I feel quite optimistic about it.

Iger’s comments come as a shock, especially for The New Avengers (formerly known as Thunderbolts in marketing), as they find it hard to justify their commercial viability. Despite the final domestic opening weekend earning $74.3 million, this figure fell short of initial expectations and ranked lower than Shang-Chi ($75.4M) and Black Widow ($80M). However, it managed to surpass Eternals’ earnings by a narrow margin ($71.3M), but not significantly so.

The extraordinary nature of this performance is evident in its exorbitant ticket prices. In contrast to Iron Man from 2008, which kickstarted the MCU with a summer opening grossing $98.6 million, Thunderbolts managed fewer sales despite each ticket fetching more, illustrating the significant drop in audience interest.

Iger Spins a Loss as a Win

Despite receiving positive reviews from critics, including Bob Iger, with a 88% score on Rotten Tomatoes and an A- CinemaScore, it’s clear that the box office performance of Thunderbolts doesn’t meet expectations. In light of this, Disney must now present underperformance as advancement, and Iger’s endorsement of Thunderbolts is a component of that evolving narrative.

By indicating that the film represents a fresh path for Marvel, Iger is essentially admitting that there have been issues with their previous productions over the last few years (without explicitly saying “issue” or “mistake”). Movies such as Quantumania, The Marvels, and Captain America: Brave New World did not live up to expectations, be it in terms of critical acclaim or financial success, despite featuring some of Marvel’s most iconic characters.

Instead of it, the movie “Thunderbolts” was designed with lesser-known actors and a more rugged atmosphere. This could have allowed the studio to present it as a new beginning, although the public may not have been completely convinced yet.

A Familiar Pattern From a Rival Studio

2020 saw an unexpected move by Warner Bros., similar to what occurred at DC across the aisle, where they decided to change the title of the movie “Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)” following its low box office performance in its opening weekend. The film was then known as “Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey” on ticketing systems and marketing materials to enhance visibility and attract more viewers.

Similar to Birds of Prey, Thunderbolts initially received good reviews but struggled due to ambiguous marketing and a title that didn’t connect well with audiences. Now, Marvel is adopting a similar strategy by rebranding Thunderbolts as The New Avengers during its release, which some view as an attempt to revive the brand.

It’s not the kind of move Marvel used to make. But it may now be the kind of move it has to make.

Betting Big on 2026

In the future, Iger expressed high optimism about Disney’s upcoming movie lineup. He highlighted movies such as “Zootopia 2”, “Fantastic Four: First Footsteps”, and “Avatar: Fire and Ash”, along with titles scheduled for 2026 like “The Mandalorian and Grogu”, “Toy Story 5”, and “Avengers: Doomsday”.

“That’s quite a lineup,” Iger said. “It’s as strong as any slate that I’ve seen in a long time.”

Although an upbeat tone is essential in investment pitches, there’s a persistent undercurrent: Disney is striving to reclaim the success it experienced in 2019, a year that saw it ruling the global box office with seven blockbuster films that cumulatively raked in over $11 billion globally.

In the good old days, before streaming platforms were overflowing, franchises began to tire, and the theatrical market post-2020 became fragmented, I was an eager moviegoer, always looking forward to the next big release. Now, as we stand on the brink of a new era for Marvel, according to Bob Iger’s vision, I can’t help but wonder if audiences will find Thunderbolts to be a step towards improvement or simply more of the familiar with a fresh coat of paint.

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2025-05-07 22:19