Ant-Man and the Wasp has been steadily increasing its Box Office without anyone noticing. Most eyes were focused on all the news surrounding James Gunn and Captain Marvel. Still, one of Marvel Studios smaller production has been making quite a splash in cinemas worldwide. It had a later release in major markets, most notably China and Japan. It managed to reel in $21.5 million on its opening day in the ever-growing Chinese market and ended up with a $42.7 million opening weekend. It has now officially passed the $600 million mark worldwide and is on its way to surpassing its predecessor by $100 million.

There has been some debate if the film could be considered a success, as its Box Office pales in comparison to Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War. It has been described as a smaller investment for Marvel Studios, as the first Ant-Man had a production budget of around $130 million. That film made $519 million at the end of its run. As only half of the overall cinema incomes are attributed to the production companies and marketing costs are subtracted, the film ended up making quite a profit. The production behind its sequel was not too much higher and managed to surpass the first film’s original Box Office. This is a good sign that there is a growing interest in the franchise and that it has not lost any steam. Also, both films started around the same time as Ant-Man still running in cinemas until mid-December. As of now, Ant-Man and the Wasp still have some time to add to its overall Box Office. There is a good chance it may end up between $650 to $700 million. Not every film in the franchise has to break records.

The upcoming Black Widow film will also most likely be a much smaller film in comparison to their Avengers tentpoles. Films like Ant-Man and the Wasp manage to bring in a higher revenue with smaller budgets and also add a bit more variety to the MCU. It may still be effects-heavy but they can create films with smaller events to humanize the world a bit more. It is the franchise’s biggest strengths that it is more about family and redemption than trying to save the world from a random evil. As long as these smaller films make a profit, there is no reason for Marvel Studios to stop making them.

Source: Box Office Mojo (Ant-Man), Box Office Mojo (Ant-Man and the Wasp), Variety

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