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Well, that wasn't really fantastic.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps easily topped the box office on its second weekend, but in the process, it posted one of the steepest second weekend drops in the whole MCU. Three newcomers arrived at the scene, but it was a mixed bag; The Bad Guys wasn't that far off from the original, The Naked Gun was off to a solid start, while Together over-performed projections.

The Top 10 earned a combined $118.4 million this weekend. That's down 28.9% from last year, when Deadpool & Wolverine held the top spot against other newcomers like Trap and Harold and the Purple Crayon.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps added $38.6 million this weekend. That's down a very poor 67.2% from last week, which is the seventh worst in the MCU. That drop is worse than Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (67.0%) and it's not far off from Thor: Love and Thunder (67.7%), Black Widow (67.8%), and Captain America: Brave New World (68.3%). It's even worse than the 2005 film (59.4%) and Rise of the Silver Surfer (65.5%), and it's incredibly close to Fant4stic (68.2%)

Even compared to this year, it's a far larger drop than Superman (53.2%). This is a very brutal drop, especially considering the film had the best reception of the Fantastic Four films and it still had PLF screens. But considering that it was very front-loaded on its opening weekend (the worst internal multiplier in the MCU), it was clear that fan hype didn't translate into general audience's interest. Or that maybe word of mouth isn't as good as it appears.

Through 10 days, the film has earned $197.1 million domestically. It has already surpassed the lifetime gross of all Fantastic Four films, although that was expected already. The opening weekend was $7.3 million behind Superman, and F4 is now $39.1 million behind it through the same point. The film is losing its IMAX screens to Weapons and F1 this weekend, which means it's heading for another rough drop this weekend. The film seemed like an easy $300 million grosser, but right now it seems like it will close with around $280 million. Which means the film will finish with just a little above what the 2005 film did in adjusted inflation ($272 million).

In second place, Universal/DreamWorks' The Bad Guys 2 debuted with $21.9 million in 3,852 theaters. That's not far off from the original's debut ($23.9 million), which is honestly a good sign, considering sequels often drop big from the originals.

On its own, this is a solid start. But it still feels like the film could've done a bit better than this. After all, the original legged out pretty well and the sequel still retained much of its humor and tone. But especially considering animated films have been faring poorly this year, so there wasn't much competition. Perhaps it looks like there's a ceiling to The Bad Guys, and even great reviews (86% on RT) won't change that.

According to Universal, the audience was a 50/50 split between men and women, 29% were parents, and 35% were kids under 12. They gave it a great "A" on CinemaScore, which is the same grade as the original. There's basically no animated competition until Zootopia 2 in November (Ne Zha 2 opens this month, but it's more niche than these titles in America). Based on this, the film should earn around $75 million domestically.

In third place, Paramount's The Naked Gun debuted with $16.8 million in 3,344 theaters. That's the second best debut in the franchise, behind The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear ($20.8 million), although in terms of inflation, it had the least attended opening of the franchise. At least, it had the best debut for director Akiva Schaffer, and it has already outgrossed Hot Rod ($13.9 million) and Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping ($9.6 million). It was also Liam Neeson's biggest debut as leading man since Taken 3 ($39.2 million).

This is a very solid debut, considering theatrical comedies have been very scarse lately. Paramount has tried to revive the brand for decades; one with Leslie Nielsen reprising it one last time, and then Ed Helms after Nielsen's death. But it didn't gain real buzz until 2021, when Seth MacFarlane joined as producer and decided that Liam Neeson should take the mantle. Then Akiva Schaffer was hired as director, and the film was finally moving forward it.

Credit must go to an excellent marketing campaign: the teaser trailer was absolutely hilarious, confirming it would maintain the same spirit as the original films (the OJ joke was just cherry on top). This was followed by hilarious posters, which raised awareness. And turns out Schaffer knew what he was cooking: it's sitting at a fantastic 90% on RT, which is the best in the franchise.

According to Paramount, 62% of the audience was male and 31% was 45 and over. While there's the belief that young audiences don't go to theaters, it seems like they made an exception for The Naked Gun; 47% of the audience was in the 18-34 demographic, meaning that the film succeeded in attracting Millennials and Zoomers. This is very encouraging, suggesting there's still an audience for comedies. They gave it a very good "A–" on CinemaScore, which is the same grade as the original. The film should enjoy some good holds through a very weak August. Depending on how it holds next week, The Naked Gun could finish with over $50 million domestically.

Superman dropped 45%, adding $13.7 million this weekend. The film has amassed $316 million so far, and it's still set to finish with over $350 million domestically.

Jurassic World Rebirth earned $8.7 million this weekend, easing 34%. The film's domestic total stands at $317.6 million. Last week, it was $30.8 million behind Dominion, and that gap has grown to $32.8 million. It officially has no shot in hitting $350 million.

Neon's Together hit sixth place with $6.7 million ($10.8 million) in 2,302 theaters. That's a pretty great start, and it's even better than Neon's Cuckoo, which flopped with just $6.2 million lifetime around this point last year.

The film has gained considerable buzz after its debut at Sundance, achieving a great 91% on RT. Even though it was also plagued with controversy over a plagiarism lawsuit, general audiences don't really care about that. They only care if the film looks intriguing. With I Know What You Did Last Summer failing to light the world on fire, this was a pretty good spot to open a buzzy horror title.

According to Neon, 52% of the audience was male, and 77% was 35 and under. They gave it a weak "C+" on CinemaScore, which is not actually bad for a horror film. The film faces tough horror competition this week, as the buzzy Weapons is making its way to theaters. But Together has enough gas to hit $25 million, which is pretty good for a body horror.

F1 continues holding well. It added $4.1 million, which is off just 34% from last week. The film has earned $173.3 million domestically, and it's gonna be re-released in some IMAX theaters this week.

I Know What You Did Last Summer fell a rough 50%, grossing $2.6 million this weekend. The film has amassed $29.3 million, and it's set to finish as the lowest grossing film in the franchise.

Well, Smurfs are now bluer than usual this weekend. With heavy competition from The Bad Guys 2, the film collapsed an abysmal 67%, earning just $1.8 million this weekend. The film has earned a poor $29.3 million, and it will vanish quickly from theaters.

Rounding up the Top 10 was Universal's How to Train Your Dragon, which dropped 54% for a $1.3 million weekend. The film's domestic total stands at $260.3 million.

OVERSEAS

You thought America was the only place where Fantastic Four collapsed?

The Fantastic Four: First Steps earned $39.6 million overseas, for a $367 million worldwide total. Good news: it's already the biggest Fantastic Four film, passing the 2005 film ($333 million). Now the real bad news: that's a poor 60% drop from last week, which is larger than usual even for a superhero film. For contrast, Superman dropped 53% and had a higher second weekend overseas ($45 million).

The film pretty much died in Asia, seeing a steep drop in China (93% drop) and flopping in South Korea with just $4.3 million (where F1 is stealing all its thunder). The film's best markets are the UK ($20.5M), Mexico ($20.4M), France ($10.2M), Brazil ($9.3M), Australia ($8.2M), Italy ($7.1M), Spain ($6.4M), Germany ($5.9M), and China ($5.5M). Based on its poor drops, it really looks like the film will struggle to hit $550 million worldwide. Given a very high budget (more than $200 million) and a very extensive marketing campaign, this definitely looks like another disappointment for the MCU.

In Japan, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle earned $17.4 million on its third weekend, for a gigantic $121 million in the market. It's already the biggest film of the year in Japan and the 10th biggest ever.

F1 is already surpassing Jurassic World and Superman in weekend grosses, even though it opened prior to both. The film added $17.2 million overseas, which is just 17% off from last weekend, and taking its worldwide total to a fantastic $546 million. With this, it's officially Brad Pitt's highest grossing film as leading man, surpassing World War Z ($540 million). Its best markets are China ($55.1M), the UK ($28M), France ($26.7M), South Korea ($24M), Mexico ($19.3M), Australia ($17.4M), Germany ($15.1M), Taiwan ($14.9M), India ($12.8M), Japan ($12.5M), UAE ($9.5M), and Spain ($9.3M). Not content with recouping its $200 million budget already, the film is now set to cross $600 million worldwide, an insane mark. Even crazier fact: it's going to outgross all MCU titles this year and it won't be far off from Superman's total.

The Bad Guys 2 earned $16.3 million overseas ($22.3 million if we add last week's overseas debut), taking its worldwide total to $44.4 million. The best markets are the UK ($6.4M), France ($2.6M), Mexico ($1.8M), Spain ($1.4M) and South Korea ($1.3M). There's still a lot of markets left, and there's not much animated competition.

Jurassic World Rebirth added $16.2 million overseas, for a $766 million worldwide total. The best markets are China ($77.4M), the UK ($42.7M), Mexico ($34.2M), Germany ($28.4M) and France ($25.2M).

The Naked Gun debuted with $11.5 million overseas, for a $28.3 million worldwide start. The best markets are the UK ($2.3M), Germany ($2.3M), Mexico ($674K), Netherlands ($590K) and Austria ($430K). Comedies are tough overseas, even though the original Naked Gun were big hits outside America. But it's not a bad start for this film.

Superman added $11.2 million overseas, allowing it to cross $550 million worldwide. The best markets are the UK ($32.8M), Mexico ($21.8M), Brazil ($15.3M), Australia ($14.6M), France ($13.2M), China ($8.9M), Spain ($8.9M), India ($6.8M), Germany ($6.6M), Japan ($6.4M), South Korea ($6.3M), and Italy ($5.9M).

FILMS THAT ENDED THEIR RUN THIS WEEK

• Wes Anderson's The Phoenician Scheme has closed with $38.7 million worldwide, against a $30 million budget. That's another box office dud in Anderson's filmography, but let's face it, he's not going to be affected in the slightest. Too big to fall (and with Steven Rales' help).

• Here lies Chuck Krantz (? – 2025). Neon's The Life of Chuck has already ended its run domestically with just $6.7 million and just $7.9 million worldwide. The film surprised many by winning the People's Choice Award at TIFF, which is usually a sign that the film could gain Oscar buzz. But instead of capitalizing on it, Neon released it 9 months after its debut in the middle of a competitive summer season, letting buzz die down. A very disappointing performance.

• Yes, you read it correctly. M3GAN 2.0 has closed after just 5 weeks with a pathetic $24.1 million domestically and $39 million worldwide. That's an insane 78.6% drop from the original film, which is one of the steepest for a sequel. Whether it was the genre shift, audience disinterest or the film's reception, it was simply a case of so many dominoes falling. Blumhouse, however, is on a very bad spot. Once a reliable hitmaker, this year has been filled with pure flops in theaters, something that seemed impossible years ago for this studio.

THIS WEEKEND

Fantastic Four's reign ends after 2 weeks, and it's gonna be a fierce battle.

First, there's Disney's Freakier Friday, once again bringing Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis back into their roles from the 2003 film. The 2003 version earned $160 million worldwide and its popularity has continued thanks to cable and home media. Comedies have been hit-and-miss in theaters (mostly the latter), but maybe the film could still hit all the nostalgia angles needed to succeed.

And there's WB's new release, Zach Cregger's Weapons, which follows the case of 17 children from the same classroom who mysteriously run out of their homes towards an unknown target in the middle of the night. The marketing has been excellent, managing to offer an eerie and creepy atmosphere and explaining just pretty much enough about the film without really spoiling it. Cregger hit gold with Barbarian, and perhaps the same could happen here.

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