First Steps and Superman stack up at the box office and with critics? With both films launching in July 2025, fans and analysts have been comparing every number and rating to see which superhero epic came out on top.

Even before they released, just two weeks apart from one another, we knew that Superman and The Fantastic Four: First Steps would have a lot in common. Both movies feature founding characters from the comics, both embrace the qualities that made their characters uncool in the past, and both have a hopeful, optimistic tone.

First Steps is coming in lighter than projections in its first box office weekend with $117.6 million. Still records were broken.

For the past two weeks now, I’ve gone to the movies. That’s probably the first time in a half decade or so that I’ve actually chosen to buy tickets, make the drive out to the Lawrence multiplex, and watch two films on two successive Sundays.

Summer's two biggest superhero films pick up long after their central figures have already taken up their respective mantles. They (and the genre) are better for it.

That might sound like no big deal, but after 2023’s “The Marvels,” this spring’s fourth “Captain America” movie and “Thunderbolts*” all underperformed by Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) standards, the new “Fantastic Four” may offer broader audience appeal by not pulling from other franchises.

Outside of 'Deadpool & Wolverine,' the reboot looks to score the best domestic opening for Kevin Feige's superhero studio since 2022's 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.'

We've got two top-notch comic-book movies in theaters: "Superman" and a new "Fantastic Four." How do they rank among the best superhero movies ever?