A Black Adam sequel is still not certain, but its box office debate hides a deeper DCU problem that needs to be dealt with. Ever since Black Adam finally started production, its star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson has been promising the hierarchy of power in the DC universe is going to change. With a Henry Cavill Superman tease in the post-credits, it looked like The Rock was correct.

Since Black Adam's release, things have been a little more doubtful. A sequel seemed certain, but now there are conflicting reports about whether the film will break even and be profitable for Warner Bros. If a sequel has any chance at all the film needs to make a profit, and even then it is not guaranteed.

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Black Adam's Box Office Debate ExplainedDwayne Jonson Sits On A Throne In Black Adam Movie

It won't be clear if Black Adam has made a profit until the film finishes out its theatrical run, but even that is a problem - it's touch and go if it will make money. Whatever the case, it is clear that the film started out well and then dropped off, which is a worrying sign for DC. It was Dwayne Johnson's highest-ever opening weekend, which is a big win for the film, but that is where the good box office news ends.

Starting off with a report from Variety, Black Adam seemed set to lose out on $100 million with the nearly $200 million budget. A few days after this report, Deadline confirmed that the film would just about make a profit, as well as The Rock announcing the news on Twitter. What is clear from both reports is that they prove Black Adam hasn't done anywhere near as well as the studio would have liked, and if it does manage to profit, it will be by the skin of its super-powered teeth.

Black Adam's Box Office Drop Is A DCU ProblemBlack Adam and Superman

With Black Adam becoming Johnson's largest-ever opening weekend at $67m, the film was on track to keep chugging along. This did not happen, which is a problem for the DCU as they transition into a new era. Over at Marvel, not only do its movies open stronger, but they also have better legs at the box office. Black Adam's drop at the box office means that anyone who actually went out to see the movie on its opening didn't generate the buzz or word-of-mouth that would have been needed for the movie to do well. Word-of-mouth is something almost every MCU movie gets, which is one of the reasons why they are more successful.

This comes off the back of James Gunn's The Suicide Squad which was a bomb by any metric but even worse when compared to the success of the 2016 original. Before that, Wonder Woman 1984 failed to set fire to the box office, though that had a lot to do with the pandemic at the time of release. Even so, this isn't a great track record for DC in recent years. If you add Birds of Prey to the mix, which also underperformed, a disappointing pattern starts to emerge, one that DC will want to change quickly.

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The DCU Still Can't Catch A BreakThe Justice League with Henry Cavill as Superman

Black Adam's box office worries show that the DCU still can't catch a break. In his tweet announcing the film is set to make between $52m-$72m, The Rock compares Black Adam to Captain America: The First Avenger. The Rock thinks that Black Adam has done well enough to start a new franchise, much like what The First Avenger did for Captain America. There are a few reasons why comparing Black Adam to Captain America doesn't make sense, mainly that the MCU was still new in 2011 when the first Cap film was released. The DCU has been around for nearly a decade and this is not its first setback, just another in a long line of issues and problems over the years.

While Black Adam's box office debate is part of a larger DCU problem, there is hope yet. James Gunn and Peter Safran are working on their new 10-year plan, and the studio still has films like Shazam! Fury of the Gods and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom on the horizon. But whether the Dwayne Johnson film makes a profit or not, it's clear that the new DCU is facing an uphill battle.

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