Marvel Studios’ Multiverse Saga has definitely not landed with everyone. While there have certainly been some wonderful projects theatrically and streamed on Disney Plus, projects such as Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, Secret Invasion, Eternals and Thor: Love and Thunder were largely considered misses for the studio. With the return of Bob Iger to Disney came a mandate for the company’s larger studios to throttle down and focus on quality. Combined with a lengthy work stoppage in 2023, Marvel Studios was left with only one theatrical offering in 2024: Deadpool & Wolverine.

With all eyes on the project (and a growing number of people who simply want Marvel to fail), Marvel Studios marketed the hell out of the project, putting Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman everywhere over the last month, ensuring a major box office take. However, big bucks alone wouldn’t be enough to prove to critics that Marvel still has what it takes, nor would the Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The true test, as always, is how the film lands with fans and now we know that answer as well.

Following its true opening night, fans gave Deadpool & Wolverine and A Cinemascore. That score is higher than Logan, which many consider one of the best superhero films of all time, and on par with Deadpool and Deadpool 2. What does it mean? While the film has been hammered a bit by critics for feeling a tad empty, audiences are having a good time in the theater which is, of course, the point of going to a theater in the first place.

Is Marvel Studios back? One good Cinemascore certainly doesn’t prove anything but Deadpool & Wolverine landing with fans on the heels of a few well-regarded projects such as X-Men ’97 and Echo can only help keep the positive momentum going.

Related