Spinning a Web of Success: The One Crucial Lesson James Gunn’s DC Universe Can Borrow from Sony’s Spider-Man Formula
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Animated movies are experiencing an interesting moment. Before the pandemic hit in 2020, nothing seemed to guarantee box office success more than having the Marvel logo in front of a movie. Even DC had billion-dollar hits with “Aqauaman” and “Joker” amidst the chaos of trying to figure out the DC Extended Universe. Sony Pictures also discovered a potential gold mine within the larger “Spider-Man” franchise with 2018’s “Venom.” The film grossed a shocking $856 million worldwide and paved the way for further spinoffs centered around Spidey’s side characters. The whole experiment was something of a disaster, but in the wreckage of that disaster lies a potential lesson for those responsible for the future of superhero movies.
James Gunn is now co-head of DC Studios alongside producer Peter Safran.. Gunn is best known as the director of Marvel’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ trilogy and the 2021 film ‘Suicide Squad.’ Next year, they’re launching a complete DC Universe reboot. With ‘Superman’ directed by Gunn himself. That’s really just the tip of the iceberg, as the duo along with Warner Bros. have announced a full slate of movies and TV shows that they hope will make DC appealing to audiences for years to come.
A problem that has continued to be an issue in recent years, Especially in the realm of franchise filmmaking, huge and inflated budgets are required. For a particular film to be a success, it needs a huge amount of revenue at the box office. $200 million was a rare budget level reserved for only Hollywood’s biggest films. now? It has become the default number for superhero movies and other relatively large franchise blockbusters. That’s the problem, and it’s a problem DC can’t handle at this moment.
On the other hand, while there’s been a lot of talk about Sony’s “Spider-Man” spinoff movies in recent years (most of it bad), they’re one of the only studios bucking the big-budget trend. The recently released “Venom: The Last Dance” is the studio’s most expensive non-“Spider-Man” film, grossing $120 million. Everything else? It’s cheaper than that. DC Studios would do well to try and emulate such practices. along with some of the upcoming projects..
Critically speaking, it would be difficult to say that Sony films like ‘Morbius’ and ‘Madame Web’ were home runs, but that’s being kind. Even the “Venom” movie took a serious hit, but general audiences seem to like it. Creatively speaking, the general consensus is that these “Spider-Man” spinoffs leave a lot to be desired. Box office returns reflected this. But perhaps Gunn can find some frugal and creative success with his DC Comics properties.
Not all comic book movies have to be incredibly expensive.
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‘Morbius’ earned $167 million worldwide. It was a disaster, but it only cost $75 million to make. This year’s “Madame Web” was an even bigger critical and commercial misfire, grossing just $100 million worldwide. But Sony once again showed restraint and kept the film’s budget at $80 million. The result is: It’s bad enough to essentially ruin all plans for the current “Spider-Man” spinoff universe.. But over time, the film may actually be able to get out of the red thanks to finding a second life on streaming. At least it won’t be as outrageous as the losses have been in other recent superhero flops like “The Marvels” and DC’s “The Flash,” to cite a few notable examples.
If it works, the rewards can be great. ‘Venom’ was a surprise hit in 2018, earning $856 million. Because the film cost less than $120 million to make, Sony’s profits were much larger. Of course, a lot of it had to do with: China’s outrageous ticket sales Hollywood can no longer rely on. Otherwise, the movie would have been a hit. For this purpose, ‘Venom: The Last Dance’ recently failed at the box office.But relatively speaking, it’s not outrageously expensive, so it’s likely you’ll still make a small profit.
The point is that certain comic book movies are going to be at record highs. The “Avengers” movies cost some money. But Sony has shown that not everything has to be that expensive. These movies didn’t fail because they needed more spectacle or seemed cheap. They failed largely because they were considered bad. This is a problem that Gunn can solve by bringing his well-proven level of creativity to the new DCU. If he can achieve this with financial responsibility, the business will have a chance to catch up over time rather than suddenly becoming successful.
Honestly, Gunn, Safran, and WB need all the help they can get. No DC film released since 2020 has earned $400 million worldwide. Most of the movies failed. Gunn’s “The Suicide Squad” also failed to catch on, but that had a lot to do with the pandemic. Still, the film’s $185 million budget seemed enormous after taking in just $168 million at the box office. David Ayer’s 2016 “Suicide Squad” earned $747 million worldwide.. The point is that superhero movies are no longer automatic hits and we need to take this into account going forward.
DC Universe Must Be Fiscally Responsible to Save Itself
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There are certainly financial realities to making a big comic book movie. “Superman” would be difficult to make for less than $150 million or more. Especially since Gunn is setting up a lot of features that will be included in the new DCU with this film. But it’s also an important character in the hands of a trustworthy filmmaker. On the other hand, there are movies like “Swamp Thing.” “The Authority” from the DC Studios slate. Does $200 million make sense? you’re welcome. Even $150 million is very risky. It’s not an apples-to-apples situation, but if Sony can make a “Venom” movie for a little over $100 million, couldn’t James Mangold make a “Swamp Thing” movie for the same price?
Assuming they can pull it off, it will save Warner Bros. and DC from ruin. With a budget of that size, “Swamp Thing” could be a hit worth around $300 million to $350 million worldwide. The first “Shazam!” It was made for about $100 million and was a hit with $363 million worldwide. That’s right, ‘Shazam!’ in 2023! ‘Wrath of the Gods’ was a huge bomb for DC.But that’s another issue entirely. The point is that the low budget lowered the bar for success and allowed the first film to be a success. DC could use more of the $200 million blockbuster it needs to make. at least Globally, $500 million is considered a moderate success.
As a representative example, this year ‘Joker: Paulie Dew’ expected to lose $200 million in theaters This is due to the $200 million budget, which does not take into account marketing costs. However, its predecessor cost around $60 million, making it one of the most profitable comic book movies of all time. With the uncertain state of superhero movies, DC and WB can’t afford to take additional risks in this new era. Mitigating these risks is essential.
One of the best ways to make a comic book movie a hit is to make it a good movie. Sony didn’t make a good movie with this “Spider-Man” spinoff, but even at its worst, it wasn’t a financial wreck because it budgeted wisely. Despite its failures, the studio was able to weather the storm. Say what you will about Sony’s handling of the Marvel properties. But they budgeted these clown shows responsibly. There’s a lesson here for DC and, frankly, Hollywood as a whole.
‘Superman’ will be released on July 11, 2025.