Summary
Matt Reeves’The Batmantrilogy is on track to surpass Christopher Nolan’sDark Knighttrilogy at the box office, depending on the success of the next Robert Pattinson-ledDCmovies.Christopher Nolan’sDark Knighttrilogyis a critical and commercial phenomenon that continues to influence the superhero movie genre to this day.Batman Beginsmarked a drastic change in the way comic book movies are made, representing the transition between the genre’s early days and its golden age today. Just three years later,the record-breakingThe Dark Knightset the standard for live-action comic book adaptations.
The Batmanrepeats some of the qualities that made theDark Knighttrilogy so popular, such as its realistic approach to Batman’s lore, multiple cerebral villains facing Batman simultaneously, and an emphasis on Batman’s friendship with James Gordon. Yet,Matt Reeves’The Batmanis different enough from Nolan’sDark Knighttrilogyto make an impact of its own. Despite being released parallel to Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton’s appearances inThe Flash,The Batmanwas a hit with audiences and critics, earning positive reviews and impressive box office numbers.
The Batman’s Box Office Is Higher Than Batman Begins
The Batman’s Worldwide Earnings Leave Batman Begins In The Dust
Matt Reeves’The Batmanmade $772 million worldwide, beating the first installment in Christopher Nolan’sDark Knighttrilogy,Batman Begins, which gathered $373 million in 2005. Taking inflation into account,Batman Beginsearned around $600 million in today’s dollars — considerably lower thanThe Batmanconsidering the little competition it faced back in 2005.The Batmanisn’t part of a cinematic universe or any expansive franchise, and it was developed fromthe DCEU’s canceled Batman solo movieoriginally starring and directed by Ben Affleck. Its critical and commercial success is clear proof of its standalone quality.
The Batmanmanaged to gather the 2024 equivalent of around $172 million more thanBatman Begins.
Like every theatrical movie in the past few years,The Batman’s box office was also affected to some degree by streaming. Streaming provides easier home access to recently released movies than DVDs, and much sooner.The Batmanwas available on Max just over a month after its theatrical release, as opposed toBatman Begins' 4-month window between theaters and home media. Yet,The Batmanmanaged to gather the 2024 equivalent of around $172 million more thanBatman Begins.
How Much The Batman 2 & 3 Need To Make To Beat The Dark Knight & The Dark Knight Rises
The Batman Part II and Part III May Need To Be Their Respective Years' Top-Grossing Movies To Surpass Nolan’s Trilogy
The Batman’s worldwide earnings promise a record-breaking run at the box office for its sequels, possibly surpassingThe Dark KnightandThe Dark Knight Rises. However, beatingThe Dark Knightis a much bigger challenge than beatingBatman Begins. In 2008, Christopher Nolan’sThe Dark Knightquickly became a cinematic behemoth, earning over $1 billion and claiming the fourth spot on the list of highest-grossing movies in history at the time. Four years later,The Dark Knight Risesearned $1.08 billion thanks in part toThe Dark Knight’s popularity.
$373 million
$600 million (approx.)
$1 billion
$1.45 billion (approx.)
$1.08 billion
$1.48 billion (approx.)
$772 million
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Taking inflation into account,The Dark Knight’s $1 billion is equivalent to around $1.45 billion today, andThe Dark Knight Rises' $1.08 billion is equivalent to around $1.48 billion.It might be difficult forMatt Reeves' upcomingThe Batman - Part IIand an eventualThe Batman - Part IIIto match — let alone surpass — those numbers. Theatrical earnings have struggled to match pre-pandemic numbers in the last three years, and top-grossing films likeSpider-Man: No Way Home,Top Gun: Maverick, andBarbiehave all been aided by external factors such as nostalgia or a special release date.
Will The Batman Trilogy Earn More At The Box Office Than The Dark Knight Trilogy?
The Batman May Only Match The Dark Knight Trilogy’s Box Office With One Franchise Trick
The Batman - Part IIandThe Batman - Part IIImight not be able to matchThe Dark KnightandThe Dark Knight Rises' box office by merit of quality alone. Theatrical releases aren’t bringing the same earnings as they did in previous years, and the superhero genre is currently going through significant changes. The DCU is set to reboot DC’s live-action projects after the DCEU’s critical and commercial flops, and the MCU is switching gears after Phases 4 and 5 failed to meet expectations. Whether widespread"superhero fatigue"is real is still up to debate, but the high competition within the genre is unquestionable.
The DCU will also introduce its own Batman, who will star in Andy Muschietti’sThe Brave and the Boldconcurrently with Robert Pattinson’s Dark Knight inThe Batman - Part IIandThe Batman - Part III. Batman is popular enough to warrant two simultaneous movie adaptations, but these might be too much for casual moviegoers. In order to match theDark Knighttrilogy’s numbers, Matt Reeves’The Batmanfranchise might also need to count the profits from streaming series likeThe Penguinand other spinoffs.
