Curious how The Fantastic Four: First Steps and Superman stack up at the box office and with critics? With both films launching in July 2025, fans and analysts have been comparing every number and rating to see which superhero epic came out on top.
Here’s a full breakdown of opening weekend totals, Rotten Tomatoes scores, CinemaScore grades, and Metacritic reviews.
Did The Fantastic Four: First Steps beat Superman’s opening box office?
The Fantastic Four: First Steps opened with $118 million in the U.S. and $218 million worldwide. It had a strong Friday at $57 million but dropped sharply on Saturday. Internationally, it added $100 million (via Deadline).
Superman debuted higher with $125 million domestic and $220 million global (via Deadline). Its weekend hold was steadier, with less severe drops across the three days. Superman earned $7 million more in the U.S., while Fantastic Four led overseas by $2 million.
Did Superman best Fantastic Four’s Rotten Tomatoes score?
On Rotten Tomatoes, Fantastic Four: First Steps holds a Tomatometer score of 87% based on 315 critic reviews and an audience score of 93% from over 10,000+ verified ratings. Superman has a Tomatometer score of 83% from 457 critic reviews and an audience score of 91% from 25,000+ verified ratings. Both films are certified fresh, but Fantastic Four has higher critic and audience ratings.
Superman and The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ CinemaScore compared
According to CinemaScore, both Superman and Fantastic Four: First Steps received an A- grade from opening night audiences. This places both films in the same tier of audience reception based on CinemaScore’s methodology.
Who won the review battle on Metacritic in Fantastic Four vs. Superman?
The Fantastic Four: First Steps has a Metascore of 64 based on 54 critic reviews, while Superman holds a Metascore of 68 from 58 critic reviews. On the user side, Fantastic Four has a 6.6 based on 308 ratings, and Superman has a 7.5 from 1,460 user ratings. Metacritic’s categorization lists both as “Generally Favorable,” but Superman leads in both critic and user scores.
Both films are still playing in theaters.
