EXCLUSIVE: Count gravitational pull as a superpower for James Gunn‘s Superman as the first movie under the filmmaker’s co-run DC Studios with Peter Safran is heading to a massive $21M+ in overall previews, sources tell us tonight. Oh, and audiences love it at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. Gunn and Safran and all of Warner Bros can rest easy after the cynics that have been out there going back to the first trailer in the December, for that’s the best RT audience score ever for a Superman movie, even better than Richard Donner’s 1978 original movie (86%). Take that, trolls.
That figure includes Tuesday night’s Amazon Prime members screenings cash of $2.8M, plus monies from showtimes which began today at 2PM.
Lots of records flying around here for the first title in DC’s phase one “Gods and Monsters”: First, that’s a preview record for a James Gunn directed film besting Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3‘s $17.5M ($118.4M 3-day) and it’s also the best damn previews we’ve seen all year ahead of Disney’s Lilo & Stitch ($14.5M, $146M 3-day opening) and Captain America: Brave New World ($12M, $88.8M 3-day).
While Warners was hoping for a $100M 3-day start and tracking and exhibition were spotting $115M-$130M, Superman, looks to be leaving all those projections in the dust. The IP has been done several times through history, not just on the big screen, but going back to radio with several iterations on TV including the first 1950s George Reeves black and white show. So, what’s the deciding factor in turning this latest iteration into a blockbuster and convincing non-frequent moviegoers they have a hero on the big screen? Why, reviews, according to sources. This Superman stands at 82% certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, the second-best reviewed Superman ever after Richard Donner’s 1978 original which stands at 86%.
Other intriguing benchmarks: Gunn’s Superman is easily ahead of the preview box office of Zack Snyder’s 2013 Man of Steel ($9M, 10pm start time, different era for previews, $116.6M opening) and there’s a shot when we wake up tomorrow morning it could be higher than Matt Reeves’ The Batman from 2022 which did $21.6M in overall previews (including $4M Tuesday shows and Thursday showtimes that began at 3PM; $134M opening). Gunn’s Superman is close to the sun as far preview records go for Superman movies overall, but hasn’t surpassed it (and that’s not a bad thing) meaning 2016’s Batman v. Superman holds the record for the best previews ever for a Superman movie with $27.7M ($166M 3-day).
Social media analytics firm RelishMix has noticed postive word of mouth leading up to opening with a massive social media universe across YouTube, TikTok, X, Instagram and Facebook of 953.8 million, +20% of superhero genre pics’ reach before their openings. That reach buries that of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (709.7M), The Batman (631.7M), Joker Folie a Deux (567M) and it’s not far from Deadpool & Wolverine (1.15 billion).
Says RelishMix “The exuberant tone and dedication to the characters is winning many fans over, i.e. ‘A comic book movie that’s not ashamed to be a comic book is something we desperately needed,’ and, ‘The trailers we’ve gotten for this movie have given me the warm fuzzy feelings…this Superman feels right.’ After his widely popular Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy for Marvel, James Gunn in the director chair is inspiring a lot of confidence: ‘Mr. James Gunn is going to do us DC fans right for once.’ The nostalgia is strong with this film, capturing the heart of the original 1978 film, ‘His look reminds me of Reeves Superman,’ and, ‘The actors are great. And the theme music a remix of the old theme. Take my money now.’”
These numbers do not come from Warners and by tomorrow business could be higher.
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