Beginning with 2000’s X-Men, we have been in an era of unprecedented comic book movie mania for 25 years now. With audience fatigue now finally setting in and studios no longer able to wow audiences like they used to, now seems like a great time to compare how the two biggest brands in the comic book movie world (Marvel and DC) are doing against each other when it comes to their respective cinematic universes.
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To compare the two universes might not be so fair because the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is in its 17th year now, having started with 2008’s Iron Man. Whereas DC has already had its first cinematic universe, the DCEU (the DC Extended Universe), begin and end in the ten years between 2013 and 2023. The death of DCEU gave birth to the reboot titled DCU (DC Universe) as parent company Warner Bros tries to right the wrongs of the past.
The DCU is technically in its second year, having begun last year with the animated series Creature Commandos. Also important is the fact that the MCU has released three films this year as compared to the DCU’s only one. In the realm of TV, it is the MCU that is once again in the lead with at least 4 series, while the DCU’s sole TV outing will premiere in August in the shape of Peacemaker Season 2.
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Box Office
First, let's compare the box office receipts of the two. The MCU began the year by releasing Captain America: Brave New World in February and Thunderbolts in May. Both of these films fell short of expectations; Brave New World barely made back its budget while Thunderbolts ended up losing the studio at least $80 million dollars in its theatrical run. The final MCU film of the year, The Fantastic Four, released this weekend to good results and will leg out to at least $570 million in its global run, becoming the highest-grossing MCU film of the year. Taken together, the MCU movies are sure to gross a combined take of at least $1.3 billion in 2025.
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On the DCU side, 2025 saw the release of the first DCU film (Superman), which is performing fantastically in the United States but has crashed and burned almost everywhere else. Superman is poised to finish with at least $590 million when all is said and done. This will be a good start to the DCU but will come below the DCEU’s first outing (2013’s Man of Steel) not accounting for inflation.
Superman’s success will give much-needed confidence to the WB brass for continuing on, although the next two entries (Supergirl and Clayface) will struggle to match Superman’s gross owing to the fact that both are C-list characters when it comes to audience interest. In addition, Clayface is a horror film, and horror superhero films perform terribly at the box office (2020’s The New Mutants is a recent example of that).
MCU vs DCU In 2025
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Critical and Audience Reception
In the realm of critical reception, DC wanted Superman to have good reviews, which it did. However, the low overseas box office gross of the film suggests that foreign audiences are not on board when it comes to the reboot, and future films in the DCU might struggle even more in this regard. On the Marvel side, Captain America 4 had terrible reviews, but both Thunderbolts and Fantastic Four have had great reviews. So the two universes are neck to neck when it comes to critical reception.
However, good critical reviews do not guarantee box office success, and what really matters is if general audiences like the film enough to tell their friends and family about it. Considering this metric, both Marvel and DC seem poised to attract the superhero genre fans to their products for the foreseeable future.
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Fandom
Another point to consider is that the DC fandom remains divided. Fans of the old DCEU, who, through sheer will, heralded the Snyder Cut of Justice League, still want DC to give Snyder the support he needs to do his two Justice League sequels. In addition, Henry Cavill remains the definitive image of Superman in the minds of the global audience, so there has been some apprehension in getting on board with the reboot.
Thus, a portion of the DC fandom is actively working against the DCU, which never turns out well. A similar ‘civil war’ within the Star Wars fanbase famously wrecked that franchise’s film future (there has not been a live-action Star Wars film for six years now).
MCU vs DCU In 2025
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On the other hand, the MCU fandom is not so rabid and has been mostly on board with what Fiege has been doing. As a result, the MCU has consistently stacked wins and rewarded its fans, bringing back the two previous Spider-Man and Wolverine into the MCU on fan demand. Thus, a more cohesive fandom continues to reward Marvel more even though general audience interest in their films has somewhat stagnated (as evident by the failure of at least five theatrical films in the past four years).
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So who is winning?
It is thus quite clear that despite a few setbacks, the MCU remains firmly in charge. They have consistently churned out multiple films every year since their inception in 2008, have not damaged the brand so badly that they needed a reboot, and they remain the highest-grossing franchise in film history. The DCU, on the other hand, has just had its first film released to moderate success, but it remains to be seen what the future holds for the franchise in light of waning audience interest in superheroes and a collapse in overseas box office receipts. The DCU will need consistent box office hits repeatedly to be even considered as a serious contender to the MCU.
MCU vs DCU In 2025
Let us know in the comments who you support and who you think came out on top in 2025.
