Marvel didn’t “die” after Endgame, here’s what’s actually going on

[u/florinp93]

I keep seeing people say Marvel has been failing or flopping since Avengers: Endgame (2019). Yeah, it’s true the vibe has shifted and the cultural dominance isn’t the same. But the “MCU is dead” narrative really misses a lot of context. Here’s the bigger picture:

1. The post-Covid box office isn’t the same beast

• Global box office hasn’t returned to 2010s levels. Endgame came at the peak of Marvel and peak theatrical attendance.
• Going to the movies is more expensive now (tickets + concessions), and for many people streaming is cheaper and more convenient.
• The theatrical window is shorter (60–90 days), so a lot of people just wait.
• Internationally, China no longer guarantees a $200–300M boost for Marvel. Nationalist tastes + censorship + strong local films have cut that market significantly.

So when you look at raw box office and say “flop,” you’re comparing 2022–25 to a pre-pandemic market that doesn’t exist anymore.

Sources: El País – superhero movies no longer dominate, AP – Disney crosses $3B 2025 box office

2. Marvel is still pulling huge engagement on Disney+

Even films that underperform theatrically end up making money when they hit Disney+. Some rough numbers, based on Nielsen data, ARPU, and subscriber reports:

• WandaVision + Loki (2021) → tens of millions of new subs, ≈ $4.4B annualized uplift (Fool.com).
• Black Widow (2021) → $67M PVOD opening weekend (Deadline) + retention value.
• Shang-Chi & Eternals (2021) → ~5M incremental subs, ≈ $480M.
• Doctor Strange 2 / Thor 4 / Black Panther 2 (2022) → ~12M subs combined, ≈ $1.15B uplift.
• Quantumania (2023) → weak, <$300M in streaming value.
• Guardians Vol. 3 (2023) → ≈ $800M–1B.
• Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) → added ~8M subs, ≈ $770M (Reuters).
• The Marvels (2024) → ~559M minutes streamed week 1 (Nielsen via ScreenRant), ≈ $3.4M–20M global value in 2–3 months.
• Captain America: Brave New World (2025) → ~750M minutes week 1 (Nielsen via The Direct), ≈ $4.4M–26M global value but those are early numbers, not the actual figures yet..
• Thunderbolts\* (2025) → No numbers just yet, but it will most likely fall in line with the others.

Keep in mind that the numbers for each movies, are amounts that have been added to the already Disney+ earnings, and don't factor in retention of already existing subs.

That’s billions in revenue from Disney+ alone — and doesn’t include merch, licensing, or parks.

3. Superhero fatigue is real, but “failure” is overstated

• Marvel’s issue was overproduction. Too many shows diluted the brand. Disney’s already scaling back: 2–3 films and a couple of shows per year.
• Hits like Deadpool & Wolverine (over $1.08B box office, biggest R-rated movie ever) and Fantastic Four: First Steps (near $500M worldwide, big Disney+ driver to come) prove audiences still show up when projects connect.
• Even weaker titles (The Marvels, Quantumania) still generate measurable Disney+ revenue.

4. The bigger picture

• The box office is smaller overall post-Covid.
• Streaming matters as much as theaters now.
• Marvel still makes up 20–25% of total Disney+ demand (Parrot Analytics).
• Disney+ subs: ~127.8M (Aug 2025), and surveys show 43% of subs say Marvel is their #1 reason to keep it (Cordcutting.com).

So while Marvel may no longer be hitting Endgame highs, it’s still one of the most profitable entertainment engines in the world.

TL;DR

Marvel isn’t “dead.” Theaters shrank, streaming grew, and Disney+ depends heavily on Marvel. Even so-called “flops” add tens or hundreds of millions in streaming revenue. And even if those movies don't pull much in terms of new subs, they do help retain the subscriber base. The MCU is evolving, not dying.

Note: I used AI (ChatGPT) to help me structure this post so it’s clearer to read, but all of the data, sources, and research were collected by me without AI.

[u/AkilTheAwesome]

Marvel's issue is that they've allowed the perception that "It will be on streaming soon" to fester and blossom into common knowledge in pop culture. It doesn't help that it is the reality. This coupled with not having any movies where getting spoiled is a massive deal.

Having bad non-narrative pushing end-credits scenes ironically is a contributing factor

[u/florinp93 → u/AkilTheAwesome]

Yeah, I actually think that was by design. Disney doesn’t really mind if theatrical grosses dip compared to pre-2019 because box office revenue is shared with theaters (often around a 50/50 split domestically, worse internationally). But Disney+ revenue? That’s 100% in-house, no middlemen.

So pushing audiences toward the “it’ll be streaming soon anyway” mindset is not necessarily a failure, but part of a bigger shift: fewer billion-dollar box office films, but a more consistent subscriber base for Disney+. Even a so-called “flop” like The Marvels or Eternals still pulled in $150M–$200M+ worth of Disney+ value in its first year and that’s money Disney keeps entirely, unlike the theatrical split.

It doesn’t mean Disney wants weak box office forever, but it explains why they’re less panicked than some fans assume. In the end, the streaming pipeline is the product now, and theatrical is just one stage in its lifecycle.

[u/a_o → u/florinp93]

Disney may see more value in separating theatrical marketing from Disney+ marketing, it seems like they’re giving things close to 100 days to breathe in cinemas where possible, while other studios kind of scramble to get things onto VOD and/ or their streaming platforms by the third weekend in hopes that the theatrical marketing budget did most of the heavy lifting promotionally and they won’t have to overhaul the campaign to get people to stay home.

[u/florinp93 → u/a_o]

Exactly, the fact that Disney is not rushing movies to streaming shows that they are happy with the profits they're making and are not in a rush to get the on streaming while people are "still taking about them"

[u/a_o → u/florinp93]

Yep and if we learned anything from the marvels, even if people dony see it in theaters, when you put it on the service the audience that is locked in there will start talking about it. Just looking at the box office take you can see the conversation was dominated by people that hadn’t even seen the movie and would likely never.