By Logan Plant
Updated: Jan 4, 2022 10:20 pm
Posted: Jan 4, 2022 10:16 pm
The MCU is still the movie industry's biggest cash cow, and last year was no exception. While 2021 was slower year in terms of box office revenue, Marvel movies still raked in the cash, accounting for nearly a third of ticket sales in North America.
In numbers reported by The Wrap, Marvel's share of the North American box office in 2021 was an astounding 30%. This includes revenue from the five Marvel movies released last year: Marvel Studios' Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, and Spider-Man: No Way Home, along with Sony's Venom: Let There Be Carnage. In 2018, MCU movies claimed 18% of the domestic box office total.
Spider-Man specifically is smashing the box office, reaching $611 million, reaching the top ten highest-grossing films ever in North America. The film is only a few million dollars away from passing Star Wars: The Last Jedi and The Avengers.
Disney released Black Widow, its first new theatrical release since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, day and date on Disney Plus, which led to star Scarlett Johansson suing Disney over an alleged contract breach. Since then, all subsequent MCU movies have released exclusively in theaters. Even among COVID-19 concerns throughout the last year, the Marvel movies have still brought in a ton of profit.
The same can't be said for other theatrical releases, however. According to numbers from Box Office Mojo, 2021 as a whole brought in roughly $4.5 billion at the domestic box office. While this is significantly better than 2020's $2.1 billion, its a far cry from the last pre-pandemic year, 2019, where the box office hauled in $11.3 billion. So, while Marvel movies are certainly performing, it seems other, lower-profile releases aren't faring the storm nearly as well.
Regardless if you're happy about Marvel's runaway success, or concerned for the health of the rest of the movie industry, the Marvel train isn't slowing down anytime soon. 2022 looks to be a big year for MCU sequels, with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever all due out this year. For more, check out what to expect from Marvel in 2022.
Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.
