The DCEU has experienced several box office flops and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will be the franchise’s last shot at breaking a five-year record.

SUMMARY

•  Aquaman 2 is the DCEU’s last chance to redeem its box office performance after a string of disappointments and underperforming films.
•  The first Aquaman movie was a huge success, becoming the highest-grossing film in the DCEU and the highest-grossing DC film overall.
•  The pandemic and a lack of quality and interest have led to the decline in the DCEU’s box office performance, making Aquaman 2 crucial for the franchise’s success before its reboot.

The DCEU is coming to a disastrous end, but it has one last saving grace with Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom and the sequel’s potential box office results. The sequel is set to hit theaters on Dec. 20, barring any delays due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. It’s set to be the final film in the DCEU before the universe is rebooted by James Gunn with Superman: Legacy in 2025. However, Aquaman 2 has more responsibility on its hands than it should as it will end the DCEU on either a whimper or a bang after a long string of box office bombs.

The first Aquaman was a box office hit, but since then, it has only been downhill at the box office for the DCEU. There are many reasons for the downward trend in profits, such as a lack of quality, a lack of interest, and COVID-19. However, Warner Bros. is in a spot where it needs to reevaluate the audience’s interest in its DC universe, which is why the franchise is about to be rebooted. Aquaman currently holds a box office record for DC and Aquaman 2 will be the last chance the DCEU has to break it before Gunn’s universe takes over.

Aquaman 2 Is The DCEU’s Last Chance To Become A Top-Grossing Movie Of The Year

The DCEU has been performing below expectations at the box office since the first Aquaman. Its most notorious recent bomb, The Flash, should have been a massive hit for the studio as it featured the return of Michael Keaton’s Batman and the debut of Sasha Calle’s Supergirl. However, The Flash greatly underperformed at the box office as the film finished its run with a total worldwide gross of around $270 million. On a budget of $200 million, it’s an undeniable flop. Other recent DC movies didn’t fare better. Wonder Woman 1984 and The Suicide Squad were both hurt by the pandemic, being released on HBO Max the same day as theaters.

Shazam: Fury of the Gods and Black Adam were also box office disappointments and received mixed reviews from critics and audiences. While Blue Beetle received solid reviews, it’s currently underperforming at the box office. As the final DCEU film, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom represents the last hope from DC to be a top-grossing movie of the year. When it released in 2018, Aquaman was the #5 top-grossing movie in the world. Since then, no DCEU film has made it into the top 10 highest-grossing movies of the year lists (The Batman, which is set outside the DCEU, was a top-grossing film of 2022) and Aquaman 2 looks to be the final chance for the franchise to make it onto such a list before it’s reset as the DC Universe.

Why Aquaman In 2018 Was The DCEU’s Last Film To Be A Top-Grossing Movie Of The Year

When Aquaman wrapped up its box office run, the DCEU was where it wanted to be. The Jason Momoa-led movie earned around $1.15 billion at the worldwide box office. Currently, it is the highest-grossing film in the DCEU, and the only DCEU film to earn over $1 billion at the worldwide box office. It is also the highest-grossing DC film, passing both The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. While Aquaman wasn’t beloved by critics, audiences had a fantastic time with the James Wan-directed film and DC appeared to be on the right track before the pandemic hit in 2020.

Since Aquaman, the DCEU has been in a catastrophic state, and it isn’t getting better. With a reboot incoming, Aquaman 2 feels like an afterthought for Warner Bros. but the studio is still hoping the good returns from the first Aquaman movie will carry over to its sequel. Word surrounding the film isn’t excellent right now, and if there aren’t any stars to promote it in December, it could perform worse than expected. However, the box office is hard to predict these days, so perhaps Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom won’t be dead in the water.