Supergirl, the second film in James Gunn's rebooted DC Universe, directed by Craig Gillespie and starring Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El, opened to $38 million domestically and $68 million globally over its June 26-28 weekend.
Against a reported $170 million production budget and estimates that the film needs approximately $300 million worldwide to break even, that opening is widely being called DC Studios' first box office flop.
The film finished second behind Toy Story 5, which held at number one with $70 million in its second weekend on its way to a $297 million domestic total.
For context: last year's Superman, the first DCU film under Gunn, featuring the much more cinematically established hero, opened to $125 million domestically and $217 million globally before earning $618 million total.
Supergirl opened below the $39 million domestic start of the widely derided Morbius.
The Flash, the last old-DCEU solo superhero effort, took $131 million despite mixed reviews.
Supergirl's $68 million global opening is the lowest for a major DC theatrical release in many years.
The demographic picture tells the specific story of what went wrong.
The film drew 59 percent male audiences and 65 percent over age 25, the precise opposite of what a Supergirl movie should attract. The young women the film was built for simply did not show up in numbers.
Critics were mixed, The Hollywood Reporter called it an "uninspired slog" while praising Alcock's "appealingly punky" performance. The audience score has been more favorable than the critical one.
DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran addressed the results directly. "While Supergirl didn't meet our box office expectations, it's just one component of a broader, long-term strategy at DC Studios that we remain confident in." Milly Alcock will appear in future DCU films.
James Gunn's longer plan for the universe continues. But the question of whether general audiences are ready to invest in the new DC continuity beyond Superman himself is the one the Supergirl opening has left loudly unanswered.