Venom: The Last Dance Scores 2024's Second-Biggest Superhero Box Office Opening

In the school yearbook of superhero projects, 2018's "Venom" would definitely have been voted "Least likely to succeed." It was an origin story about a supervillain whose comic book origins are inextricably tied to Spider-Man ... but Spider-Man wasn't even in it, being tied up with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Instead, "Venom" was to be part of Sony's own shared superhero universe (which at one point bore the unfortunate acronym "SPUMC").

Against all odds, "Venom" was a box office hit. Then the 2021 sequel "Venom: Let There Be Carnage" was also a sizable hit. And although this year's threequel is heading for the lowest opening weekend of the franchise so far, it'll still be the second-biggest opening for a superhero movie of 2024 to date. Per TheWrap, "Venom: The Last Dance" is on track for an estimated $52 million debut at the domestic box office after grossing $22 million on Friday (including previews). That's considerably short of the box office projections from last week, which pointed to an opening in the $70 million range. 

Still, it's not a disaster. The domestic numbers may have been impacted by this weekend's Yankees-Dodgers games keeping audiences glued to their TVs at home, and overseas ticket sales could give "The Last Dance" a lift. A massive 75% of the global box office total for "Venom" came from international markets, including $269.1 million from China alone. "Venom: The Last Dance" scored a $9.4 million opening day in China on Wednesday — the country's biggest opening for a comic book movie since "Spider-Man: Far From Home" in 2019.

"The Last Dance" also has the benefit of a relatively thrifty (for a superhero film) budget of $120 million. Per Variety, $20 million of that budget went to star, producer, and co-writer Tom Hardy. That might sound like a lot, but considering Hardy's extensive creative involvement and the fact that he plays two characters (human host Eddie Brock and his symbiote partner Venom), he's working hard for the money. Plus, this franchise wouldn't have worked at all if Hardy hadn't thrown himself into it so enthusiastically.

"Deadpool & Wolverine" still holds the title of 2024's biggest opening weekend for a superhero movie (and for movies in general), with its massive $211.4 million start. Obviously there's quite a large gulf between that and the expected $52 million take for "Venom: The Last Dance." The fact that a disappointing debut has still landed "The Last Dance" a silver trophy speaks to just how far superhero movies have fallen from their recent peak — both in terms of the number of movies released, and how much money they're making.

Aside from those two, the only other comic book movies that have hit theaters this year are "Madame Web" (a box office bomb), "The Crow" (also a box office bomb), and "Joker: Folie à Deux" (a box office nuke). The last contender of the year will be another entry in the SSU (Sony's Spider-Man Universe, as SPUMC was rebranded after Sony got sick of people making fun of the name): "Kraven the Hunter," which stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson and hits theaters on December 13.

The landscape of superhero movies in 2024 is very different to the one "Venom" was a part of in 2018, which included hits like "Avengers: Infinity War," "Deadpool 2," "Aquaman," and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse." There are currently no plans for "Venom 4," and looking at the way the box office is trending, it would be smart for Sony to let "The Last Dance" really be the last dance.