BIG NUMBER
4. That’s how many actors star in at least two of the summer’s biggest blockbusters. Holland, Zendaya and Jon Bernthal are all in both “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Odyssey,” and Anne Hathaway has leading roles in “The Odyssey” and “The Devil Wears Prada 2.”
Read more Europe Prepares For Total Solar Eclipse—See Photos
SURPRISING FACT
The two summers to have crossed the $4 billion mark since Covid owe a debt to Christopher Nolan. He directed both “The Odyssey” and “Oppenheimer.”
KEY BACKGROUND
The $4 billion summer box office mark is a major post-pandemic milestone, but was essentially the norm before Covid re-shaped how movie-goers watch films. The domestic summer season topped $4 billion in 11 of the 12 summers before the pandemic (it missed in 2017) but earnings fell to less than $100 million in 2020 and didn’t rise to the benchmark again until 2023. Analysts did think this summer would cross the $4 billion line, but the box office wasn’t projected to do so until closer to Labor Day and, like 2023, it was expected to just barely hit the mark. Instead, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Odyssey” significantly outperformed expectations, the two horror films became surprise hits and the contributions of legacy IP—like “Toy Story” and “The Devil Wears Prada” —turned it into a smashing success.
TANGENT
Of the 20th highest-grossing films domestically so far this year, 17 of them are summer movies. “Michael” ($242.5 million), “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” ($39.2 million) and “Project Hail Mary” ($34.3 million) are the year’s only hits to be released outside of the May to August window.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
If this will be Hollywood’s first $10 billion year since the pandemic. The surprisingly strong summer could lead the domestic box office to the $10 billion mark if movies coming later this year—including “Avengers: Doomsday,” “Dune: Part Three” and “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping”—pull their weight.
Read more Why Polls Got Wisconsin Governor’s Race Wrong—After Socialist Francesca Hong Loses
Forbes‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Passes ‘Toy Story 5’ As Year’s Highest-Grossing FilmBy Mary Whitfill RoeloffsForbesNewest ‘Spider-Man’ Crosses $1 Billion Mark In 6 DaysBy Mary Whitfill RoeloffsForbesHow Spider-Man Got A Record-Breaking Boost From Zendaya And Tom HollandBy Olivia Shalhoup