2018 Comic Book Movie Preview

While 2017 was a banner year for comic book movies, there were only seven major theatrical releases, and that's including LEGO Batman. 2018 is shaping up to be the biggest year yet for the Comic Book Movie, with 10 major theatrical releases planned between now and December 31. Let's take a look at the films coming out this year in chronological order, followed by a power ranking at the end.

Black Panther 2/16

The New Mutants 4/13

Avengers: Infinity War 5/4

Untitled Deadpool Sequel 6/1

The Incredibles 2 6/15 

Ant-Man and the Wasp 7/6

Venom 10/5

X-Men: Dark Phoenix 11/2

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse 12/14

Aquaman 12/21

So obviously, Infinity War is the big dog as far as our power rankings go, but the rest of the list may surprise you. Here are our predictions for how things will shake out at the box office for all ten films...

1. Avengers: Infinity War

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $1.45 Billion

The Avengers made 1.5 billion and Age of Ultron made 1.4 billion, so we're basically gonna split the difference here. The film's running time may also be a factor when it comes to multiple viewings by fans, though it didn't hurt the first two at all. It'll be huge, just not as big as the first Avengers. That trailer tho.

2. Untitled Deadpool Sequel

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $900 million

The original did nearly $800 million worldwide, and this sequel seems destined to outdo the original in almost every way. The first teaser, while short on details, was full of action, so expect the first movie but bigger and more and hopefully better. We think it'll be a close race between this and the next film on our list, but Deadpool 2 feels like it'll pull out the victory.

3. The Incredibles 2

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $875 million

With $633 million in worldwide receipts back in 2004, the original Incredibles was a sensation. I fully expect this to be a Finding Dory situation where fans of the original now have kids of their own to take and see this one. It could also very well end up cracking the $1 billion mark, so don't be surprised if that happens as well. Also, we should really have more than just a teaser by now.

4. X-Men: Dark Phoenix

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $650 million

Days of Future Past, the highest grossing X-Men film of them all, topped out at $747 million worldwide. While this one won't have quite the same punch, it'll likely do better than the overly long and mostly disliked Apocalypse, which still managed to make over $500 million worldwide. Lessons learned from that film will almost ensure this one does better.

5. Black Panther

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $600 million

Never go to sleep on an MCU origin film, because they almost always over-perform at the box office. This one will also likely do better overseas than it does here in the States, so look for this prediction to go higher if the rest of late February and early March's movie slate doesn't offer much else of interest. Not to mention, the film looks pretty badass.

6. Aquaman

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $575 million

Believe it or not, even a take this large would still make Aquaman the lowest grossing film in the DCEU—a title currently held by Justice League with $650 million. Still, it's hard to imagine the first big screen adventure for everyone's favorite Atlantean is going to set the world on fire. Even still, look for it to earn a nice chunk of change.

7. Ant-Man and the Wasp

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $550 million

2015's Ant-Man was a modest hit for Marvel, barely eking its way over the $500 million mark worldwide. I would expect this film to follow an almost identical box office pattern. It might open bigger, but the first film had very long legs, so I would expect this to end up with around the same amount of money as the first, perhaps slightly more. Let's see a trailer or something already, eh Marvel?

8. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $400 million

Don't underestimate the power of everyone's favorite webslinger to draw a crowd. Granted this will be the first big screen adventure for new Spidey Miles Morales, but the involvement of Phil Lord & Chris Miller, plus the brand recognition for the character ensures that this will be at least a modest hit. To be honest, the first teaser was a bit strange, but it's still a year off.

9. Venom

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $350 million

This one doesn't have to light the box office on fire to be perceived a hit. It'll also likely be R-rated, which will squash some of its potential teen business. However, I can't write this one off because of its cast. Three Oscar nominees (Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Woody Harrelson) plus Riz Ahmed and Jenny Slate. Add in one of the most recognizable villains in comic book history means this might be better than average. Its take will be low, but it'll still be viewed as a hit because of the low expectations.

10. The New Mutants

Worldwide Box Office Prediction: $150 million

Finally, we come to the biggest potential bomb among the group. The early marketing has been weak, with a tone that fits in more with programming on the CW rather than the established X-Men Universe. Couple that with the fact that even diehard X-fans could care less about these characters, and you've got more minuses than pluses staring you in the face. It was a decent idea, but the execution—in the first trailer anyway—seems more than lacking.