The Fantastic Four: First Steps' chances of passing the coveted $1 billion mark have increased after an exciting box office update. I’m a major fan of Marvel’s First Family, which includes the Fantastic Four stories in Marvel Comics and the iteration of the team from the 2000s live-action movies that featuredMarvel Cinematic Universestar Chris Evans as the Human Torch. In recent years,the MCU has not been able to be as steady at the box officeas the franchise was with some of theMCU’s best moviestowards the end of the Infinity Saga.
There are a few factors that contribute to that, such as oversaturation, superhero fatigue, shorter streaming windows, negative reviews, and more. That said, 2024 was a good year for the franchise, with the R-ratedDeadpool & Wolverinefinishing its global run with $1.3 billion (viaBox Office Mojo). The project was Marvel’s latest to pass the mark, as theMCU’s 2025 moviesso far —Captain America: Brave New WorldandThunderbolts*— did not have encouraging runs at the box office. Still,The Fantastic Four: First Steps' storyintroduces one of Marvel’s biggest teams, and its $1 billion chances look good.
The MCU Fantastic Four Movie’s Pre-Sales Have Reached An Impressive Mark
Marvel’s First Family Is Already Breaking Records Before Debuting In The MCU
After a shaky start to the MCU’s 2025 movies at the box office, with not evenThunderbolts*’s New Avengers surprise reveal helping it at the box office, I became more worried about howThe Fantastic Four: First Stepscould perform. However, a recent box office update eased my concern, as it seems like the MCU movie is truly destined to go the distance. According toFandangoon Instagram,The Fantastic Four: First Stepsbroke a major 2025 record, withits first day of pre-sales being higher than any other movie this year so far.
While there is a caveat, as James Gunn’sSupermanmovie, another major contender for the $1 billion mark in 2025, has yet to start its ticket pre-sales — set to begin on Wednesday, June 11 —The Fantastic Four: First Steps' latest box office update is very exciting.It sets the movie on the path to a successful global run. Marvel has been preparing for that to happen through measures like alive event to releaseThe Fantastic Four: First Steps' trailerand more that have managed to elevate the anticipation for the film, and it seems to be working.
Why The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Pre-Sales Make $1 Billion More Likely
The MCU Movie Is Tracking Above Two Heavy Hitters
Now, it is true that high pre-sales should transform into a healthy box office forThe Fantastic Four: First Steps, but some might wonder how they make the specific $1 billion mark more likely. Well, my increased confidence in the MCU movie passing $1 billion at the box office comes from looking at what the Fantastic Four reboot’s pre-sales record meansin comparison to the movies that have been released in 2025 so far. While there are some heavy hitters waiting to debut, the year has already seen two major releases.
Taking outNe Zha 2, which made nearly all of its impressive $1.88 billion total in China,the biggest movies of 2025 areA Minecraft Movieand Disney’s live-action version ofLilo & Stitch. The former’s global total stands at $951.4 million, coming close to the $1 billion mark. WhileA Minecraft Moviewill not reach it,Lilo & Stitch— currently at $772.5 million — is set to gross over $1 billion, as highlighted by box office analyst Luiz Fernando on Twitter.The Fantastic Four: First Steps' pre-sales start is higher than both movies, meaning its worldwide total could follow suit.
The MCU’s Fantastic Four Can Finally Do What Past Iterations Couldn’t
The Marvel Team Needs To Have A Resounding Win At The Box Office
With how good things are looking forThe Fantastic Four: First Steps, the MCU movie could finally allow the superhero franchise to break the $1 billion mark at the box office. Not only did Marvel’s First Family never pass that mark, butall the released Fantastic Four movies did not even come close to doing so. The team’s first theatrical release was 2005’sFantastic Four. The film, which featured MCU star Chris Evans as Johnny Storm, grossed $167.8 million. As the first live-action entry for the team, it was the lowest-grossing Fantastic Four movie.
$167.8 million
$289.5 million
Fantastic Four (2015)
$333.1 million
Then came director Tim Story’s sequel.Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, which also featured the Silver Surfer and — more or less — Galactus, ended its global run with $289.5 million. While the sequel saw a bump from the original film, the Fantastic Four movie does not hold a candle to what superhero films have become used to at the box office over the past decade. Interestingly, despite it being one of the most criticized movies to ever come out of the genre,director Josh Trank’s 2015 Fantastic Four reboot has the biggest box office out of the team’s franchise.
The Fantastic Four movie, led by Miles Teller as Reed Richards and with MCU star Michael B. Jordan, ended its theatrical run with $333.1 million. As it stands,no live-action Fantastic Four movie has a box office that would be even remotely close to being called successful for the MCU. Sure, their budgets were also all in the reported $87.5-120 million range, which makes most of them profitable, but there are no bona fide hits.The Fantastic Four: First Stepscould be that movie for Marvel’s First Family, with its 2025 pre-sales record making $1 billion possible.
How Marvel Studios’ Next 4 Movies Could Make Up For The MCU’s Recent Box Office Issues
The Franchise Is Set To Release Multiple Huge Entries
Based onThe Fantastic Four: First Steps' latest positive box office update, I’m convinced that the movie could be the first ofa wave of four films that can help course-correct the MCU. The Fantastic Four reboot marks the debut of a major team in the franchise, with the characters set to have important roles to play in the next two Avengers movies. Then, Marvel and Sony will release Tom Holland’sSpider-Man: Brand New Day. The MCU Spider-Man franchise is one of the most prolific ones, withSpider-Man: No Way Homenearly breaking the $2 billion mark.
To end the MCU’s exciting streak of movies are two Avengers entries,DoomsdayandSecret Wars, the first time the team has come back since 2019’sAvengers: Endgame. With characters from all over the MCU and the multiverse —Fox’s original X-Men are confirmed forAvengers: Doomsday— the upcoming Avengers movies are almost sure to make at the very least $1 billion worldwide. The future is looking bright for the MCU, which could see a streak of box office hits after a few divisive releases, and I’m confidentThe Fantastic Four: First Stepsis that turning point.
