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- 2022 hasn't been a huge year for the DCU, as only one movie in the franchise was released, but Black Adam was a huge movie, as it was promoted to no end and promised to drastically shake things up in the universe. It has become one of the highest-grossing DC movies and has knocked out The Suicide Squad from the top 10, but that still doesn't mean it was the smash hit that Warner Bros. expected.
Between studio meddling and day-and-date releases on HBO Max, there are a surprising amount of DCU movies that are low grossing. However, Warner Bros. has also made some much bigger risks than its biggest competitor, Marvel Studios.
While some of those risks might not have landed at the box office as well as the studio had hoped, others have paid off in ways WB couldn't have possibly imagined. And, amazingly, there's only one billion-dollar-grossing movie in the DCU, which doesn't even feature Batman or Superman.
UPDATE: 2022/12/30 12:00 EST BY STEPHEN BARKER
2022 hasn't been a huge year for the DCU, as only one movie in the franchise was released, but Black Adam was a huge movie, as it was promoted to no end and promised to drastically shake things up in the universe. It has become one of the highest-grossing DC movies and has knocked out The Suicide Squad from the top 10, but that still doesn't mean it was the smash hit that Warner Bros. expected.
Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) - $169.6 Million
Wonder Woman 1984's box office failure was a result of being released during a worldwide pandemic, but depending on which way some look at it, it wasn't all that much of a failure. The $166 million sounds like a box office bomb compared to its $200 million production budget, and though the movie certainly could have made more if it wasn't for the negative reviews, WW1984 was a success in different ways.
The film was the first of Warner Bros.' day-and-date release experiments, as the film was uploaded onto HBO Max the same day as it was released in movie theatres. This meant that the dip in box office figures was expected, and it also meant an increase in subscribers to the streaming platform, which could even have been more lucrative than a higher box office gross.
Birds Of Prey (2020) - $201.8 Million
Just like Wonder Woman 1984 and The Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey is yet another DCU movie that failed to make back its budget, only this time, it doesn't have the worldwide pandemic to blame. The movie had a budget of $100 million, but as a rule of thumb, the marketing budget is generally the same as production costs, and after movie theatres take their cut, the movie is still in the red.
The 2020 film might be the least deserving of its box office failure, as it's the first movie in the superhero universe that takes some brave risks. And between the unique visual style, its R-rating, and the face-peeling villain Black Mask, Birds of Prey deserved more success.
Shazam! (2019) - $365.9 Million
$365 million might not scream "blockbuster hit," as any other superhero movie has its sights set on the billion-dollar mark. But for a completely unknown superhero, Shazam was a great success for Warner Bros.
With the 2019 movie, Warner Bros. took a refreshing approach to the stale superhero formula, as it's inspired by 80s family movies and has clever references to other heroes in the universe, which made it impossible to fail. In many ways, Shazam is the best DCU movie, and the follow-up, Fury of the Gods, could potentially be even more of a hit.
Black Adam (2022) - $391.3 Million
Though it's far from the lowest-grossing entry into the DCU, Black Adam, which had a budget of $200 million, has been generally considered to be a financial failure. Dwayne Johnson in the title role and Henry Cavill returning as Superman, unfortunately, proved to be too little of a draw compared to the imminent arrival of the MCU's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
It's also one of the lower-rated DCU movies on Rotten Tomatoes, and spoilers regarding the big post-credits scene may have hurt the hype that it needed to become a breakout hit. Dwayne Johnson confirmed to fans in December that Black Adam is not currently in James Gunn's plans for the first films of the new DCU.
Justice League (2017) - $657.9 Million
Most would look at the $657 million figure and assume that Justice League was a success. However, its inflated production budget of $300 million (which could very well be more based on the extensive reshoots) means that the 2017 movie is one of the biggest bombs in recent years. For a team-up movie that includes Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman, all of which had solo movies that grossed much more, Warner Bros. was surely expecting to see double that box office figure.
The development, production, rollout, and consequent reception of the movie were completely disastrous. Between the reshoots, the strange-looking color correction, and the less-than-enthusiastic press junkets, potential viewers were just as much of a lack of enthusiasm to go see it. It's a clear red flag when the star of the movie doesn't want to talk about it, but it did at least create the hilarious sad Affleck meme.
Man Of Steel (2013) - $668 Million
This 2013 movie is the first entry in the superhero universe, and while a lot has changed since Man of Steel, it still remains a favorite for many fans. It marked the first dark and gritty depiction of Superman, which was a risk at the time. And while it wasn't clear that the film was the beginning of a universe, it's a unique depiction of the superhero.
However, though the film isn't a bomb like Justice League is, Man of Steel's $668 million box office gross is a little underwhelming. The intake is especially disappointing considering that Superman is an iconic and world-known character and, just a year later, Marvel Studios released a superhero movie about a tree and a talking raccoon, which made over $770 million.
Suicide Squad (2016) - $746.8 Million
Suicide Squad had a very successful and interesting box office performance. The movie is one of the most critically lambasted releases of the past decade, however, it still earned close to three-quarters of a billion dollars. Not only is it the highest-grossing David Ayer-directed movie, but it's also one of the biggest earners in the DCU too.
Despite a messy release involving big changes to the film in reshoots and editing, general audiences were enticed by the star power of Will Smith and the debut of Margot Robbie as fan-favorite character Harley Quinn. On top of that, fans were eager to see Jared Leto's depiction of the Joker, which was the first on-screen portrayal of the beloved villain since Heath Ledger's Academy Award-winning performance.
Wonder Woman (2017) - $822.8 Million
The beginning of the DC Extended Universe with Man of Steel began a rocky start with critics and fan backlash but the road began to smooth in 2017 with this widely-acclaimed entry into DC movie history.
2017's Wonder Woman was met with huge critical acclaim, and it was thanks to that acclaim and word-of-mouth that helped the movie earn as much as it did. As the character was introduced in an earlier movie, the hype was built for Wonder Woman's solo outing. Being both a period war drama and a superhero epic, it's one of the most crowd-pleasing films in the genre to date.
Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016) - $863.6 Million
Hype for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice quickly turned to polarized arguments online as Zack Snyder's second entry into what was then known as the DC Extended Universe remains one of the most divisive comic book movies ever made.
While its box office haul was ultimately quite high, it never shook the image of being a financial failure when compared to what it could have potentially earned. The film's second-weekend drop-off was high, and it failed to find the box office legs that its MCU rival, Captain America: Civil War, seemed to develop so easily.
Aquaman (2018) - $1.148 Billion
Amazingly enough, in a cinematic universe that includes Batman and Superman, Aquaman is the movie that breaks the billion-dollar barrier. It's an especially incredible feat considering that the superhero had always generally been mocked by comic fans for having silly powers, looking goofy, and riding on a seahorse.
Turning the character into a cool, tough, surfer-type proved to be a huge success, however. Thanks to Jason Mamoa's charisma in the lead role and James Wan's expertise behind the camera, Aquaman became the DCU's biggest surprise hit.