James Gunn Comments on Superman vs. Fantastic Four Box Office Rivalry

James Gunn is not worried about his movie Superman competing with The Fantastic Four: First Steps at the box office next month. Both superhero movies come out in July, and while some fans regard the two franchises as opposite sides in a rivalry, Gunn thinks that it’s just for show. When asked about the potential competition by a fan on Threads, he replied that he thinks there is room for both movies to thrive at once. His only practical remark was that the release dates are staggered by two weeks — Superman on July 11th and First Steps on July 25th.

“They come out two weeks after us – there’s room for us both!” Gunn wrote on Threads. “I love my friends at Marvel. You can find whatever discussions you’d want to find online. I’d focus on all the positivity around the films instead of getting sucked up in online fan wars.”

Gunn is well-placed to bridge any gap that may exist between Fans of the new DC Universe and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though many commenters agreed that there really isn’t such a divide in the first place. Most fans of comic books and superheroes have some amount of love for both Marvel and DC, and are interested in seeing both of them succeed. From fans’ perspective, July is simply a chance for gluttony, not a difficult choice between two rivals.

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Gunn embodies that mindset — he was the director of three beloved MCU movies, and is now the co-CEO of DC Studios and director of the DCU’s first big screen outing. Gunn has also helped mastermind the whole franchise, as the creator of Creature Commandos and showrunner of Peacemaker as well. He is often compared to the MCU’s producer Kevin Feige.

It’s exciting enough to have a DCU and MCU movie in theaters at the same time, but it seems particularly auspicious for these two titles. Superman kicks off the franchise and introduces a huge cast of new characters, opening up this version of DC on the big screen for the very first time. Meanwhile, First Steps takes us to a completely alternate dimension with no familiar characters or decades-old lore to keep track of. It finally brings Marvel’s first superhero team home to the MCU, and will presumably set off the big climax to this Multiverse Saga.

Tickets for both movies are available for pre-order now, and even if they have a preference, most fans will probably get out to see both of them in July. Superman premieres on July 11th, followed by The Fantastic Four: First Steps on July 25th.