One week out from the release of Marvel Studios’ “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” and the film is reportedly projected to debut around $100-110 million domestically for its opening weekend reports Deadline.
The film had already racked up $13 million pre-sales by Monday and so far is reportedly pacing ahead of the two MCU films already out this year and around 20% behind “Superman”.
Critical reactions for the film don’t arrive until late Monday, which may boost its numbers. While the film’s domestic debut isn’t expected to beat “Superman,” it is expected to fare better overseas in its first weekend.
The news comes as it has been confirmed at Variety that actor John Malkovich will no longer appear in the film as Ivan Kragoff/The Red Ghost despite appearing in the film’s teaser trailer.
His scenes were reportedly part of a lengthy sequence involving the F4’s early years as superheroes, a sequence trimmed for pacing with the final film set to clock in at 115 minutes.
Check out a new featurette about the film’s set and production design. The movie opens on July 25th.
