5 reasons why Marvel does it better with box office numbers

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) may have been seeing a downturn lately; Captain America: Brave New World, The Marvels, and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania are a few recent examples of what the MCU at its poorest looks like. But when it comes to box office numbers, it's mostly a success.

Even the movie we mentioned here, The Marvels, is the only one that didn't even meet its production budget. It came close to earning $200 million, which is $70 million less than the film's original production budget.

Now when we talk about the highest-grossing ones, 11 films have entered the billion-dollar club. And even among them, the final two, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, made it to the $2 billion club. But what could be the reason behind the studio's commercially successful run? Well, there is a barrage of them, but let's take a look at a few of them here.

Disclaimer: The article contains opinions on why the MCU is a commercial success

Why is Marvel such a big success when it comes to numbers?

5. Brand recognition

The MCU is currently the highest-grossing film franchise, having grossed over $31 billion in revenue worldwide at the time of writing. Now brand recognition is pivotal here, as it's not just the films but the history of the brand that has been entertaining the fans since 1939, when it was called Timely Comics.

4. Savory characters arcs

Crossovers like The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Thunderbolts*, and more are great. But it's the sole character arcs that are something fans can go back and watch over and over again and learn more about a character. We do have solo movies on the original trio of Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America, and a few of those films have solely brought in over a billion dollars on the Marvel Cinematic Universe table.

3. A bigger and better cinematic universe

It's not just a universe; the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a finely knitted fiber with interconnecting stories. While solo stories are great for learning about the characters, the fact that all the films connect seamlessly with each other is just as savory. If we see Matt Murdock ending up in a Peter Parker movie, we know they have roots going back to one perfect source material that made them cross paths, and that's one of the things fans pay to watch.

2. The cliffhangers

There's a reason the Marvel Cinematic Universe fans don't simply leave the theater just because the movie ended. They know that the end isn't really the end. Their money's worth is usually realized after the credits roll, in the middle of it. Almost every time, the MCU has something for them to hold on to and speculate about what's to come in the future. It all began with Nick Fury turning up at Tony Stark's premises in Iron Man's post-credits, and it has become a tradition since.

1. A visual treat

Whether it's Tony Stark bringing in a party or every single Avenger coming out of the portals, the fans know that they are about to get a visual treat in a theater when they are watching a Marvel film. Although recent films have struggled with the VFX aspect, the MCU has always given the fans visuals they cannot simply forget after leaving the cinema hall.

Bonus: A hope for recurring actors

Even if the fans know after watching a trailer that they won't be getting a good movie, they still turn up in theaters, even though they won't see that movie again, in the hope that they will see a certain rumored character in a film. And that's not a new thing; every time the MCU drops a trailer, there are speculations that this character is rumored to be in the film. Just like we hope to see Loki turning up in one of the upcoming Avengers movies as Avenger Prime.