Exploring Superhero Fatigue

Have people become tired of superhero movies?
In this article, we explore trends in ratings, budgets/revenues, and consumer sentiments to find if superheros still have super strength in theaters.

Movie Name (Year) Budget (USD) Box Office Revenue (Worldwide, USD) Rotten Tomatoes Score (%) Audience Score (%)
Iron Man (2008) $140,000,000 $585,000,000 94 91
The Incredible Hulk (2008) $150,000,000 $264,000,000 67 60
Iron Man 2 (2010) $200,000,000 $623,000,000 72 73
Thor (2011) $150,000,000 $449,000,000 77 79
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) $140,000,000 $370,000,000 80 82
The Avengers (2012) $220,000,000 $1,519,000,000 91 91
Iron Man 3 (2013) $200,000,000 $1,215,000,000 79 91
Thor: The Dark World (2013) $170,000,000 $644,000,000 66 61
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) $170,000,000 $714,000,000 90 91
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) $170,000,000 $772,000,000 91 91
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) $365,000,000 $1,405,000,000 75 61
Ant-Man (2015) $130,000,000 $519,000,000 83 87
Captain America: Civil War (2016) $250,000,000 $1,153,000,000 91 91
Doctor Strange (2016) $165,000,000 $677,000,000 89 86
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) $200,000,000 $863,000,000 85 86
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) $175,000,000 $880,000,000 92 91
Thor: Ragnarok (2017) $180,000,000 $854,000,000 93 86
Black Panther (2018) $200,000,000 $1,347,000,000 96 79
Avengers: Infinity War (2018) $316,000,000 $2,048,000,000 85 82
Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) $162,000,000 $622,000,000 87 82
Captain Marvel (2019) $152,000,000 $1,128,000,000 79 78
Avengers: Endgame (2019) $356,000,000 $2,798,000,000 94 90
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) $160,000,000 $1,132,000,000 90 80
Black Widow (2021) $200,000,000 $379,000,000 79 82
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) $150,000,000 $430,000,000 92 88
Eternals (2021) $200,000,000 $402,000,000 47 55
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) $200,000,000 $1,921,000,000 93 95
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) $200,000,000 $955,000,000 74 81
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) $250,000,000 $645,000,000 63 58
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) $250,000,000 $854,000,000 84 79
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) $200,000,000 $475,000,000 45 55
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023) $250,000,000 $845,000,000 82 86
The Marvels (2023) $200,000,000 $175,000,000 46 54
Captain America: Brave New World (2025) $180,000,000 $415,000,000 46 76
Thunderbolts (2025) $280,000,000 $382,000,000 88 95
The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) $200,000,000 $517,000,000 87 91

Visual Guides

MCU Movies vs. Budget
MCU Movies vs. Box Office
MCU Movies vs. Rotten Tomatoes
MCU Movies vs. Audience Score

Data Analysis

While the numbers may not be as strong, MCU movies still generate desirable box office results (and with similar budgets).

However, it seems like the Avengers series were the main hits, with the last billion dollar box office being Spider-Man: Far From Home in 2021. With the advent of Avengers: Secret Wars coming soon, we may see a revival in hype and box office success. If it is a flop, then it may be a regressive signal of superhero fatigue. For now, superheroes still dominate theaters.