This poll showing people's interest in superhero and Marvel movies dropping should worry Disney
- A new Morning Consult survey suggests that consumers are growing tired of superhero movies.
- The share of those surveyed that said they enjoy superhero movies fell from November to July.
A new survey suggests that Marvel and DC could face problems in the future.
Interest in superhero movies has declined since last year, according to a poll released Thursday by Morning Consult. The consumer-insights company surveyed 2,200 US adults in November 2021 and this July to find how much superhero fatigue has set in.
The survey breaks out Marvel fans, 82% of which said they still enjoy superhero movies in July — compared to 87% that said they enjoyed them in November.
Since the November survey was conducted, three Marvel Cinematic Universe movies have been released — "Spider-Man: No Way Home," "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness," and "Thor: Love and Thunder" — on top of the Sony Marvel movie "Morbius," as well as DC and Warner Bros.' "The Batman."
31% of Marvel fans said they're "getting a little tired of so many" superhero movies in July, a 2% increase from November's results.
59% of adults overall said they enjoy superhero movies in the July survey, compared to 64% in November.
The only generation — among boomers, Gen Xers, millennials, and Gen Zers — that increased in its interest of superhero movies was Gen Z.
47% of Gen Z adults in November said that they still enjoyed superhero movies and would continue to see them in theaters, which rose to 53% in July.
Superhero movies are still the dominant genre at the box office. "No Way Home" was the biggest movie of 2021. "Multiverse of Madness" crossed $900 million worldwide, and might have hit $1 billion if it had been released in China. "The Batman" earned over $700 million globally.
But cracks have started to show. Recent MCU movies like "Eternals," "Multiverse of Madness," and "Love and Thunder" have received some of the worst critic reviews and CinemaScore grades of the MCU (CinemaScore is a company that surveys audiences on a movie's opening night).
It suggests fatigue could set further in for audiences as Marvel ramps up releases — especially if the quality of the movies doesn't improve.
Marvel mapped out the future of the MCU recently at San Diego Comic-Con, including two new "Avengers" movies, both to be released in 2025.
And now DC is aiming to reset its movie universe. During an investor call on Thursday, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said that there is a 10-year plan for DC similar to Marvel.
That means there are going to be a lot of superhero movies in the coming years (not to mention all of the Marvel and DC TV shows on Disney+ and HBO Max).