Disney's Marvel needed a direction. With a big box office and familiar faces, it may have one

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Robert Downey Jr. speaks onstage during the Marvel Studios Panel in Hall H at SDCC in San Diego, California on July 27, 2024. Editor's note: This article contains spoilers for "Deadpool & Wolverine." Marvel is on the rebound. After its worst performance of all-time at the box office last November, the studio is back on top with "Deadpool & Wolverine." The 34th entrant in the Marvel Cinematic Universe hauled in $211 million during its domestic debut, the highest debut of 2024 and of an R-rated film ever. It's also the highest-opening MCU film since 2021's "Spider-Man: No Way Home." It's a promising development for the Disney -owned Marvel Studios, which has struggled to maintain box office momentum in the wake of 2019's historic "Avengers: Endgame." A push for quantity of theatrical titles and streaming series led to a decline in quality, and audiences balked. "Welcome to the MCU," Reynold's Deadpool says to Hugh Jackman's Wolverine in the film, which arrived in theaters over the weekend. "You're joining at a bit of a low point." That low point is 2023's "The Marvels," which generated the lowest domestic opening ($46.1 million) and lowest global box office haul (under $200 million) for the MCU ever. At the same time Marvel Studios was still reeling from pandemic-related production shutdowns and dual Hollywood labor strikes. Then, its heir apparent Jonathan Majors was convicted of misdemeanor assault and harassment, leading to his firing and questions about the future of the villainous Kang. However, with the recent success of "Deadpool & Wolverine" and several strategic hires, Marvel looks to be on its way to righting the ship. And that's good news for a studio that has generated more than $30 billion in box office since 2008. The MCU is the highest-grossing film franchise of all time and one of the most consistent ticket sales drivers in cinematic history.