Marvel Movies Account For 30% Of 2021’s Box Office Dollars

Marvel movies continue to perform well at the box office, now boasting a substantial increase in their market share. In 2021, Marvel films (counting films from both the Disney-owned Marvel Studios and Sony’s Marvel movies) accounted for 30% of the box office total for the last year. This comes as movie theaters struggled to make any money after being shuddered for the majority of 2020 with only a few films trying to draw people back to cinemas, with the only Marvel title having been The New Mutants. The Marvel Cinematic Universe returned in 2021 for the first time since Avengers: Endgame and Spider-Man: Far From Home, delivering four movies itself. 

in 2021, Marvel Studios released Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and Eternals. Together with Sony Pictures, the Marvel Cinematic Universe also saw the biggest release of the year in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Sony, independently of Marvel Studios and its Marvel Cinematic Universe (except for one post-credits scene) also released Venom: Let There Be Carnage. If you want to take a fun look back at the year’s Marvel movies and shows, ComicBook.com’s Phase Zero podcast recently ranked all of the 2021 titles. The 30% stake in the total box office haul of 2021 is an increase from the already dominate 18% stake Marvel movies claimed in 2018 when Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, and Ant-Man and The Wasp hit theaters. 

Black Widow made $379 million at the box office, having been the only title of the year which simultaneously released on Disney+’s Premier Access for paid viewership for Disney+ subscribers at home. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings took in $432.2 million. Eternals made $401 million. Sony’s Venom: Let There Be Carnage made $501 million. Spider-Man: No Way Home is still in the midst of printing money at the box office, taking in $1.372 billion, so far. Combined, the Marvel totals cruise beyond a $3 billion haul for 2021 as Spider-Man continues its run.

Other big box offices titles for 2021 were F9 which crossed $726 million, No Time to Die which made $774 million, Godzilla vs. Kong which took in $467 million, Dune which neared $400 million as it landed at $396 million, Free Guy which made more than $331 million. Other films, like A Quiet Place Part II, Cruella, and Jungle Cruise landed south of $300 million. Worth noting; A Quiet Place Part II had a shortened theatrical-exclusive window before hitting Paramount+, with Cruella and Jungle Cruise both simultaneously debuting in theaters and on Disney+’s Premier Access. Marvel’s films were all in the top 12 box office totals for the year.

Which movies did you see in theaters this year? Share your thoughts in the comment section or send them my way on Instagram! Credit to BoxOfficeMojo and TheWrap for statistical reporting.