"Launched this important franchise" - Disney chief highlights The Fantastic Four: First Steps' achivement despite an unexpected BO run

Disney CEO Bob Iger addresses what The Fantastic Four: First Steps represents for the company's slate of creative projects.

The comment comes from a recent earnings call, where he spoke about a few topics, including Disney's plan to develop "original property" and the importance of their Fantastic Four movie. Per Screenrant, he said,

"The more we can find and develop original property, the better. Of course, we are developing original property under the 20th Century banner and under the Searchlight banner. And look, you could even argue that Marvel continues to mine its library of characters for original property."

He further added,

"Even though, for instance, there have been Fantastic Four movies before, we kind of consider the one we did an original property in many respects, because we’re introducing those characters to people who are not familiar with them at all. [The Fantastic Four: First Steps] successfully launched this important franchise into the Marvel Cinematic Universe."

It comes shortly after the reports about the movie's underwhelming box office performance surfaced online. Let's explore why this was unexpected, along with the latest box office figures.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps box office took a nosedive on the second weekend

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is Disney’s first F4 movie (Image via YouTube/Marvel Entertainment)

Matt Shakman's film opened in theaters to a wonderful reception, also from critics. Their largely positive reception earned it an 86% Tomatometer score. It also received an A- CinemaScore, which meant that the North American audiences were impressed by Marvel's new project.

It all reflected in the film's box office gross on its opening weekend, when it earned over $117 million at the domestic market. Although behind DC's Superman, it still seemed like a positive sign for the MCU, struggling to find a footing with their recent theatrical releases.

Thunderbolts* and Captain America: Brave New World didn't meet the BO expectations, so the studio was hoping First Steps would be their next big success. Unfortunately, the film didn't perform too well on its second weekend, earning about $40 million at home, marking over a 66% drop, unlike the anticipated 55-60%.

According to Box Office Mojo, the film had earned $197 million by then, and now its collection stands at $208 million. Despite an increase in collection on Tuesday, the film doesn't seem to be holding as strongly as it was expected to. That's why, in a recent report, Variety stated that the movie might be struggling to connect with viewers beyond the core demographic of Marvel fans.

Disney CEO Bob Iger appreciates the film for a reason

The Fantastic Four: First Steps World Premiere - Source: Getty

The Fantastic Four: First Steps may not have achieved what it was expected to in the theaters, but Bob Iger sees it as an achievement in its own right. According to his comments mentioned before, he appreciates how the film freshly introduced the quartet from Marvel's creative property and how it "launched this important franchise."

The First Family will next be seen in Avengers: Doomsday, fighting a threat against Doctor Doom alongside other heroes in the MCU. The mid-credit scene of the latest film already teased that the Fantastic Four will encounter a mysterious villain. It will still be more than a year to see how it all comes about.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps is available to watch in cinemas.