Disney boss Bob Iger has bigged up the recently released Thunderbolts*, saying it’s “the first and best example” of Marvel’s new commitment to quality over quantity.
Thunderbolts* topped the domestic box office with a $76 million opening, a start that was seen as solid rather than spectacular. For context, that’s ahead of Eternals ($71 million) and Ant-Man and the Wasp ($75 million), which were both considered flops, but below most other MCU movies’ opening hauls.
However, Thunderbolts* is going down well with audiences and critics. IGN’s Thunderbolts* review returned a 7/10. We said: “Thunderbolts* has, like its sort-of-not-really antagonist, both a dark half and a light half. But only one of them is actually pretty great (hint: it’s the one that involves plumbing the depths of the characters’ worst memories).”
Disney will be hoping that positive word of mouth helps Thunderbolts* enjoy a better run at theaters than Captain America: Brave New World, which dropped off dramatically. Indeed, Marvel movies have endured a torrid time in recent years apart from the odd blip, such as the billion dollar Deadpool & Wolverine movie.
Now, speaking during a financial call, Disney boss Bob Iger touched on Marvel’s changed strategy, which targets fewer but better films.
“We all know that in our zeal to flood our streaming platform with more content, that we turned to all of our creative engines, including Marvel, and had them produce a lot more,” Iger said.
“We’ve also learned over time that quantity does not necessarily beget quality. And frankly, we’ve all admitted to ourselves that we lost a little focus by making too much. By consolidating a bit and having Marvel focus much more on their films, we believe that will result in better quality. I think the first and best example is Thunderbolts*. I feel very good about that.”
The big question for Disney will be whether Thunderbolts* turns a profit. Thunderbolts* made $162 million at the global box office during launch weekend, behind February’s Captain America: Brave New World ($192 million). According to Variety, Disney spent $180 million to make Thunderbolts* and another $100 million to market it. So Thunderbolts* needs to show staying power globally to turn a profit theatrically.
To that end, Marvel’s marketing for the film has seen it rebranded with a different title, and the on-screen dispute between Sam Wilson’s Avengers and this new superhero team dragged into the real world. Clearly, Marvel is hoping that interest in Thunderbolts* continues in the coming months, as it heads into the crucial launch of Phase 6 kickstarter The Fantastic Four: First Steps in July.
Looking further ahead, 2026 will see both Avengers: Doomsday (May 1, 2026) and Spider-Man 4 (July 31, 2026) release, with Avengers: Secret Wars set for May 7, 2027.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
