Superman Movie's Massive Profit Numbers Revealed

A new report indicated that 2025's Superman was a major success for Warner Bros. from a financial perspective. James Gunn's DCU has an increasingly bright future thanks to its first theatrical movie, Superman, becoming one of the biggest movies of the year. While earning fantastic reviews across the board from critics and fans, it also did what it needed to do in terms of dollars and cents for its parent company.

Superman reportedly generated about $125 million in profit margins for Warner Bros. Following the DCEU's efforts from 2013 to 2022, which had mixed results financially and critically, James Gunn's new franchise had plenty of pressure to perform with its first big-screen movie. As expectations build to see the new franchise surpass its predecessor, this new saga appears to have put forth a solid first effort.

Variety reported this profit margin for Superman, coming just over eight weeks after the movie debuted in theaters worldwide on July 11. As of writing, Gunn's first solo movie for the Last Son of Krypton has grossed $613 million globally, including over $350 million at the domestic box office. Superman's global box office gross is the seventh-highest of the year for any movie, trailing films like Ne Zha 2 ($2.2 billion), Lilo & Stitch ($1 billion), and A Minecraft Movie ($958 million).

Comparatively (per Deadline), 2013's Man of Steel earned a profit margin of $42.7 million for Warner Bros. Zack Snyder's first DCEU movie grossed $291 million at the domestic box office and $670 million globally, the latter number ranking as the ninth-highest total worldwide in 2013. That year, Disney's Frozen and Iron Man 3 paced the worldwide box office with gross totals of over $1.2 billion each. Comparing Man of Steel to Superman, Superman's much higher domestic total is partially responsible for its higher profit margin.

Kicking off James Gunn's new DC Universe, Superman stars David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult, and a host of Gunn regulars in its cast. The film shows Clark Kent in his early days as a hero and a reporter at the Daily Planet before he flies into his first true duel with Lex Luthor and other powerful villains. Superman is now available to rent and purchase digitally, and it is still playing in theaters.

Is Superman's Box Office Profit a Good Sign for James Gunn's DCU?

While $613 million may not seem like a huge number at the box office, Superman seemed to do enough to be considered a success for Warner Bros. In fact, along with nearly cracking the top five highest-grossing films of the year, it was 2025's most successful superhero movie, as it still outpaces all three big-screen efforts from Marvel Studios (Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts*, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps).

Additionally, Superman still has not left theaters, and it sits just over $55 million behind 2013's Man of Steel. The latter had just over three months in theaters compared to just under two months for Superman (as of writing). While the current era has far different practices for how long films stay in theaters, a margin this small should be seen as a win for James Gunn and his crew.

Warner Bros. is already banking on major success from this franchise, as Gunn confirmed development for Man of Tomorrow as a sequel to Superman on September 3. Set to hit theaters in July 2027, David Corenswet's Superman is expected to be a pivotal player for the greater DCU, which still has dozens of other heroes to introduce and develop.

Fans are already predicting who will play key roles in Man of Tomorrow, setting the stage for the new DCU to be one of cinema's biggest franchises for years to come.