It seems Superman’s run in theaters is nearing its end after DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn announced the release date for the movie’s digital launch.
In a post on social media, Gunn said Superman’s home release is set for this Friday, August 15. He then indicated the movie will soon end its theatrical run by saying: “Or catch it while it’s still in theaters!”
Assuming he means Superman’s run in theaters ends this weekend, it’ll have lasted six weeks. Its latest box office is $578.8 million globally following weekend five, having added $7.8 million internationally last weekend and a domestic weekend take of $7.8 million.
So we’re probably looking at a near $600 million haul for Superman, which kicked off the rebooted DC Universe. Is that good enough for DC Studios and parent company Warner Bros.? Warner Bros. said today that Superman is the highest-grossing Superman film in the U.S. with more than $331 million at the domestic box office, and is also the largest grossing superhero film year-to-date. (Gunn has offered his thoughts on why Superman is doing better business in North American theaters than internationally.)
Last week, during a financial call, CEO David Zaslav said Gunn was now writing and preparing to direct the next movie in the “Super-Family,” and he declared Superman “the beginning of a new era for DC Studios.”
For his part, Gunn has said rumors surrounding exactly how much money Superman needs to make in order to be considered successful are wide of the mark. In a profile of Superman actor David Corenswet published on GQ, Gunn downplayed the box office pressure on the movie. “This is not the riskiest endeavor in the world,” Gunn said.
Gunn then called the $700 million figure that had been touted online as the minimum Superman needs to make during its theatrical run to avoid flop status as “just complete and utter nonsense,” but admitted there is of course some pressure on the movie to deliver for Warner Bros.
“Is there something riding on it? Yeah, but it’s not as big as people make it out to be,” Gunn said. “They hear these numbers that the movie’s only going to be successful if it makes 700 million or something and it’s just complete and utter nonsense. It doesn’t need to be as big of a situation as people are saying.”
It is, after all, kickstarting Gunn and fellow DC Studios CEO Peter Safran’s rebooted DCU, which already has a number of eye-catching follow-ups in the works. For example, Superman leads into the events of HBO Max series Peacemaker Season 2. Then, next year, the DCU continues on the big screen with Supergirl starring Milly Alcock, and Clayface starring Tom Rhys Harries.
As for Superman’s home release, it debuts in North America on digital on August 15, with 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD arriving on September 23.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Superman Digital, 4K UHD, and Blu-ray contain the following special features:
- Krypto Saves the Day!: School Bus Scuffle – (5:32)
- Adventures in Making Superman Featurette (60:00)
- Icons Forever: Superman’s Enduring Legacy – Featurette (6:05)
- Lex Luthor: The Mind of a Master Villain – Featurette (5:18)
- Kryptunes: The Music of Superman – Featurette (6:31)
- Paws to Pixels: Krypto is Born – Featurette (5:54)
- Breaking News: The Daily Planet Returns – Featurette (5:23)
- The Ultimate Villain – Featurette (5:30)
- The Justice Gang – Featurette (10:37)
- A New Era: DC Takes Off – Featurette (4:53)
The following special features will be coming soon to Digital:
- Director’s Commentary with James Gunn
- Gag Reel
- Deleted Scenes
Check out IGN’s Superman review to find out what we think of the film, and then head over to our Superman Ending and Post-Credits Explained to find out what it all means.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
