‘Captain America: Brave New World’ Tracking for Promising $90M-Plus U.S. Box Office Debut
The winter 2025 box office could certainly use a hero, and all eyes are on Anthony Mackie-starrer Captain America: Brave New World to be just that.
If early tracking is right, the Marvel Studios feature should open to at least $90 million-plus over the combined Valentine’s Day/Presidents Day weekend, one of the top showings ever for the holiday. That’s the same weekend the first Deadpool opened, as well as the first Black Panther. This year’s first all-audience event pic opens on Feb. 14.
It’s back to the basics for Marvel when it comes to the movie, which sees an entirely new cast. Mackie‘s Sam Wilson take up the mantle of Captain America, the hero previously played by Chris Evans. Tonally, the movie stays away from sci-fi elements and the multiverse and features an entirely new cast. It also cost around $180 million, less than many other Marvel movies.
Rather, the movie is a political action thriller akin to Captain America: The Winter Soldier, the 2014 film that starred Evans and introduced Mackie to the MCU. At CinemaCon last year, Marvel head Kevin Feige promised “no aliens, no alien invasions, no time travel,” before showing off some footage. He also called is a “relatively grounded action film.”
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Directed by Julius Onah, Brave New World also stars Harrison Ford as newly elected U.S. President Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, who wants to bring Captain America aboard in an official military position. But before Wilson can make a decision, he uncovers a nefarious global plot that includes facing off with Ross when the president unexpectedly transforms into the Red Hulk.
Danny Ramirez also stars, portraying Joaquin Torres/Falcon, alongside Liv Tyler, Tim Blake Nelson and Rosa Salazar.
Marvel, which had to take serious stock of its strategy and future after several films faltered, culminating with The Marvels, is in a far better place now thanks to the stunning success of Deadpool & Wolverine, which became the top-grossing, R-rated pic of all time after earning north of $1.3 billion globally in summer 2024.
That’s not to say that Brave New World didn’t hit bumps in the road. The film, which operated under a hazy shroud after wrapping principal photography in the spring of 2023, underwent 22 days of additional photography in spring of 2024 on its way to its Feb. 14, 2025 release date in after several delays.
At an opening of $90 million, Brave New World would boast the fifth-biggest President’s Day launch behind three Marvel titles — Black Panther ($242.2 million), Deadpool ($152l.1 million), Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantamania ($120.4 million) — Universal’s Fifty Shades of Grey ($93.1 million), not adjusted for inflation.
Disney will use the next three weeks to make its final and biggest marketing for the film, which could come in ahead of projections if there is positive word of mouth.
