Superman Beats James Gunn’s Best MCU Movie at the Box Office

James Gunn’s first headline release in the newly launched DC Universe has reached an important milestone in terms of its box office performance. According to Box Office Mojo, Superman has now surpassed the domestic box office gross of Gunn’s debut Marvel Cinematic Universe installment Guardians of the Galaxy, climbing in the top 86 films in terms of lifetime gross in the U.S. This cements the success of the latest live-action adaptation of the Man of Steel, following Superman’s impressive critical reception and audience scores.

Since hitting cinema screens in mid July, Superman has now amassed takings of $333,784,195, and has now surpassed the $333,718,600 that Guardians of the Galaxy managed to achieve back in 2014.

The DC film still falls significantly behind the $773,350,376 in total worldwide gross of Guardians of the Galaxy, with Superman currently sitting at a total of $583,184,195 when the $249,400,000 of international gross is included. There’s also a way to go before Superman reaches the heights of Gunn’s other superhero movies in the form of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. With digital and physical 4K Blu-ray releases of Superman coming in the near future, it may well not climb much further.

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The financial news comes amid revelations that Gunn wanted the titular hero of the film to be “huggable” rather than the terrifying figure of other DC characters like Batman. After discussions with Superman actor David Corenswet, the pair agreed that the Man of Steel should wear red trunks on the outside of his costume as a way of making him seem sillier and more relatable. The director and writer was eventually won over when Corenswet pointed out that Superman would not want to scare people.

Fans of the latest incarnation of the DC mascot might not have to wait as long as they may have expected to see him again on the big screen. Gunn has recently revealed that the next entry in the “Superman Saga” is already in the works. Speaking at the premier of Peacemaker Season 2, Gunn confirmed that he is hoping to head to production soon now that he has finished a treatment for the story, which will act as a direct sequel to the first film. 

The success of Superman will give comic book fans hope that the DCU heralds a new dawn for the DC brand. While it isn’t a runaway hit in the same way as The Dark Knight, it has already overtaken many of the DCEU entries, with only Aquaman and Wonder Woman ahead of it in terms of domestic box office gross. 

What do you think of the news that Superman has overtaken Guardians of the Galaxy at the domestic box office? Let us know in the comments!