Shazam! Fury of the Gods is the first DC movie of 2023, but it's sadly not making much of a splash. Amid the new movie's tepid reviews is a box office intake that's even more disappointing. There are many reasons why this is, but the ambitions of DC Studios head James Gunn wasn't one of them.
Some fans have been quick to blame the announcement of the upcoming DC Universe reboot for the box office failure of Fury of the Gods. This almost makes sense until several other factors are taken into account, especially regarding mainstream moviegoers. Here are the more likely reasons why the film didn't hit the mark in terms of selling tickets, and why DC's plans were ultimately unrelated.
James Gunn's DCU Reboot Was Irrelevant to Shazam! 2's Failure
For hardcore DC fans and movie buffs, news of James Gunn choosing to reboot the DC Universe was known a few months ago. For the average Joe, however, this news likely isn't as well-known, especially since The Flash -- the film that will reboot things -- is still unreleased. Much like potentially blaming the Marvel Studios Spoilers script leak for the tepid reception and box office for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, it's simply a scapegoat for bigger issues. General audiences simply wouldn't have the same thought process of the film being a "waste" given the upcoming DCU reboot, and they'd seek it out merely if it interested them.
The biggest source of controversy involving the reboot was getting rid of Henry Cavill as Superman, something which angered many people. Nevertheless, that's failed to keep excitement for The Flash down, and that's amidst the various controversies surrounding its main actor. Interest in a project or property can often far outweigh any scandals, especially if said scandals aren't even widely publicized. If anything, most people wouldn't have any clue how James Gunn joining DC or rebooting Superman would affect Shazam! Fury of the Gods, making its status as an audience deterrent rather skeptical.
Shazam! 2 Failed at the Box Office for a Variety of Reasons
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is underperforming in several markets, be it potentially big foreign markets such as China or even the domestic box office. One of the biggest reasons for this was that the movie lacked much in way of marketing, largely due to the financial straits of Warner Bros. Discovery as a whole. A similar fate befell Magic Mike's Last Dance, and it didn't help the latest DC superhero movie. Another big issue was the film's reception, with most considering Fury of the Gods to be inferior to the first movie. The biggest reason behind this harsher reception was the movie's grating humor, with such comedy having grown stale since the 2019 original.
Worth noting is that the first Shazam! didn't exactly make a large profit when it came out in theaters. Against a production budget of $100 million, the movie earned a net profit of only $74 million after overall costs were accounted for, according to Deadline. While the movie didn't lose money, it also didn't earn more than it could have. Despite the movie's positive reception and lighthearted tone being a positive direction for the moribund DC Extended Universe, there wasn't a deluge of viewers who flooded to see it in theaters. It's since then been mostly forgotten, and it could be argued that its initially positive reviews were more a reflection of the bleak tone of the Snyderverse than its own staying power. That could definitely be the case given that the new movie doubles down on many of the first's traits.
Considering that its predecessor didn't exactly garner a massive audience, Fury of the Gods was arguably expected to underperform. It had a number of factors working against it, though the DCU reboot was deeply down on that list. A number of other reasons, namely the generic nature of the film, made it far from must-see cinema -- something which paying audiences have taken to heart. This could mean good things in terms of the hype for the new DCU, but it certainly didn't work in the favor of the new Shazam! movie.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods is now playing in theaters.