In an impressive feat, “Captain America: Brave New World” has claimed the top spot at the weekend box office, marking a significant milestone during Presidents’ Day weekend.
Early estimates from Comscore suggest the fourth installment of the ‘Captain America’ series grossed approximately $88.5 million domestically from Friday through Sunday. Projections indicate that this figure could exceed $100 million by the end of the holiday weekend, positioning the film as the fourth highest-grossing Presidents’ Day weekend opener. This performance just surpasses “Fifty Shades of Grey,” which earned $93 million in 2015, but it remains behind Marvel’s “Black Panther,” “Deadpool,” and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” in terms of performance.
Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at Comscore, noted that this release could reignite interest in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), urging audiences to stay engaged as each movie interconnects the broader MCU narrative. The debut aligns closely with “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” which opened with $95 million in April 2014, yet it falls short of “Captain America: Civil War,” which reached $179 million in May 2016. Notably, “Captain America: The First Avenger” garnered $65 million at launch in July 2011, roughly $91 million when adjusted for inflation.
While “Brave New World” didn’t break Disney’s MCU records, it performed far better than “The Marvels,” which debuted at $46 million in November 2023. Historically, Marvel has consistently achieved substantial box-office returns since “Iron Man” in 2008, though opening weekends have varied in recent years. The R-rated “Deadpool & Wolverine,” another MCU entry, was an anomaly with its $200 million opening in July 2024, according to Daniel Loria, editorial director at The Boxoffice Company.
Though February is traditionally slow for big box-office returns, Disney has previously capitalized on Presidents’ Day weekend by releasing Marvel films during this period. Examples include “Deadpool,” “Black Panther,” and “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” which set records despite their February launches. Shawn Robbins, founder of Box Office Theory, pointed out that there is a noticeable year-over-year increase in ticket sales during Presidents’ Day weekends.
Overall box office revenue is up by 22% compared to the previous year, influenced by the SAG-AFTRA strike’s disruption of the 2024 release schedule, as Dergarabedian highlighted. “Captain America” is one of the two major releases scheduled for the first quarter of this year, with “Snow White” set to debut in March. Disney’s strategy of releasing family-friendly films has proven successful recently, suggesting positive trends for theaters and the box office.
Robbins anticipated that Disney’s release of three Marvel films in 2025 could enhance the brand’s reputation and boost theater attendance. Alongside “Captain America,” titles like “Thunderbolts” and “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” are slated for May and July releases. These releases signify a promising outlook for the theatrical industry, as noted by Dergarabedian, with expectations of domestic box office revenue potentially reaching between $9.3 billion and $9.7 billion this year.
As an impressive start to 2025, “Captain America: Brave New World” not only leads the box office but also suggests a positive trajectory for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the broader film industry. With more significant releases on the horizon, the coming months promise continued excitement for moviegoers.
