Even with the strikes continuing to shutter every in-development Marvel Cinematic Universe production, the biggest franchise in the business has lost none of its ability to captivate.
Whether that’s through casting rumors, release date reshuffles, re-releases of established favorites or anything else besides, Kevin Feige’s sandbox is the gift that keeps on giving. Sort of, at least, seeing as there’s always some negativity sprinkled over the top to ensure that the spandex-clad dish doesn’t end up tasting too sweet.
With that in mind, the numbers have Brie Larson handily defeating Amber Heard when it comes to being the most-disliked female comic book star of the moment, while Jonathan Majors’ team has been batting away accusations that his most recent stint in the headlines technically qualified as his return to acting.
Even with fresh bombshells, Aquaman 2 is nowhere near The Marvels in the dislike stakes
The campaign in opposition to Brie Larson’s mere existence as a key part of the MCU continues on, and it’s seen the first trailer for The Marvels become the most-disliked YouTube trailer in franchise history, with the thumbs downs outweighing the ups by roughly 300,000.
You may have been expecting something similar to happen to Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom given the involvement of tabloid heat magnet Amber Heard, but it hasn’t happened as of yet. In fact, The Marvels is outpacing the DCEU’s upcoming finale in that regard by well over 2000 percent, a remarkable feat considering the latter is being threatened with two separate boycotts over Heard’s involvement.
Jonathan Majors’ lawyer denies his breaking up of a high school brawl was a return to acting
Not to call the internet a suspicious place, but it wasn’t really a surprise when the video of Jonathan Majors breaking up a fight between brawling teenagers was immediately called into question and questioned for its veracity.
The star’s legal team didn’t waste too much time getting out in front of it, though, with his lawyer stating in no uncertain terms that it was “absurd” for anyone to perpetuate the belief the clip was staged in any way.
The gulf between Marvel and DC is vast, even when it comes to box office disappointments
It’s not untrue to say the MCU has been on something of a lackluster box office run recently by its typically-impeccable standards, and yet it remains country miles ahead of DC when it comes to separating the hits from the misses.
Eternals – largely regarded as a critical and commercial disappointment following its Nov. 2021 release, still managed to earn $71 million in its domestic opening weekend. By comparison, Blue Beetle has just completed its fifth frame in multiplexes, and it hasn’t even matched that total yet. Even when Marvel flops, it still flops more successfully than its greatest rival.
That’s it for yet another week of Marvel mania, but as always, check back tomorrow for when it all begins again.