Marvel’s Captain America Movie Franchise Officially Passes $2.6B Benchmark
Marvel Studios’ Captain America movie franchise reaches a major MCU milestone thanks to Captain America: Brave New World’s box office. Captain America: Brave New World’s box office performance hasn’t thrived as much as previous Captain America installments. However, Sam Wilson’s first MCU movie has slowly climbed up the MCU’s rankings, leaving behind box office disappointments such as The Incredible Hulk and The Marvels. While the MCU’s Multiverse Saga — and Phase 5 in particular — hasn’t provided the results Marvel Studios may have planned, the bumpy road towards the upcoming Avengers: Secret Wars finale has been alleviated by a couple of important milestones in the MCU’s history.
One month and one week after its worldwide release, Captain America: Brave New World’s worldwide box office has officially reached $400 million (via Box Office Mojo). Hence, the MCU’s four Captain America movies have earned $2.6 billion in total. Captain America: The First Avenger gathered $370.5 million, Captain America: The Winter Soldier earned $714.4 million, and Captain America: Civil War still holds the record for highest-grossing Captain America installment, at $1,155 million.
What Marvel’s Captain America Franchise Box Office Milestone Means
Captain America: Brave New World Isn’t A Flop In Its MCU Subfranchise
Taking inflation into account, Captain America: Brave New World is still the lowest-grossing installment in Marvel Studios’ Captain America franchise. But taking its budget into account, Captain America: Brave New World’s $400 million worldwide box office may confirm that it has at least broken even for Marvel. While its box office performance could have been much better, Captain America: Brave New World maintains the Captain America subfranchise’s success record intact, whereas others such as Ant-Man and Captain Marvel failed in their third and second installments.
Our Take On Marvel’s Captain America Franchise Box Office Milestone
Only Three MCU Subfranchises Have Maintained Their Streak, But Box Office Results Aren’t Promising
Three of Marvel Studios’ subfranchises have had an unbroken streak at the box office over more than two movies: all installments of the Thor subfranchise have been hits at the box office, and none of them have made less than double their budget. The MCU’s Spider-Man subfranchise has had increasingly better results, with Spider-Man: No Way Home doubling Spider-Man: Homecoming’s total box office. The Captain America movies’ performance was also on the rise until its fourth installment underperformed in comparison to their previous three, but Captain America: Brave New World has probably broken even already, meaning that the Captain America subfranchise has avoided breaking its successful status.
On the other hand, Thor: Love and Thunder earned almost $100 million less than Thor: Ragnarok, and Captain America: Brave New World has grossed more than $300 million less than Captain America: The Winter Soldier and more than $750 millio less than Captain America: Civil War. Together with The Marvels and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, recent MCU sequels’ decreasing box office performance suggests that even the most popular MCU heroes aren’t invulnerable at the box office. Upcoming sequels such as Destin Daniel-Cretton’s Spider-Man 4, Doctor Strange 3, and Shang-Chi 2 will prove whether all sequels are being affected by this trend.
The compact Forester SUV is all-new for 2025, and it’s a dramatic update—at least on paper. This is the two-row, five-passenger Forester’s sixth generation, and it offers more passenger space and a quieter ride than the previous model. While its looks have been modernized, it’s still recognizable as a Forester, continuing the well-known formula that has made it a long-term success. Every Forester comes with a flat-four engine, all-wheel drive, a continuously variable transmission, and enough extra ground clearance to comfortably handle moderate off-road treks. And like its many competitors, the Forester’s tidy size makes it both garageable and easier to stuff into crowded urban parking spaces than larger three-row SUVs like Subaru’s own Ascent. While meaningfully improved in many categories, the 2025 Forester hasn’t been granted the one enhancement we value most: driving enjoyment.
The Forester enters 2025 with a fresh exterior design and a moderately updated chassis. It still offers all-wheel drive as standard, and its powertrain is virtually the same as the one employed by the outgoing Forester—although a Forester hybrid, reviewed separately, also joins the lineup for 2025. There’s a new electric power-steering rack onboard, which Subaru says shares components with the feisty WRX performance sedan, and a new foot-activated hands-free power tailgate joins the options list. The new Forester goes on sale in spring 2024.
Pricing and Which One to Buy
The price of the 2025 Subaru Forester starts at $31,415 and goes up to $41,715 depending on the trim and options.
The Forester has a sweet host of standard features, including remote keyless entry, LED headlights, and “welcome lighting,” which casts a beam of light on the exterior front door handles at night. We recommend the Sport trim level because it’s a good mix of equipment, appearance, and price within the Forester lineup. The Forester Sport gets attractive bronze trim and exclusive wheels, including some additional creature comforts such as heated front seats and a good-sized 11.6-inch infotainment touchscreen. Interestingly, Subaru says the current 2024 Forester Wilderness will continue alongside the new 2025 Forester models until an unnamed future date; we expect the Wilderness trim to move to the new model in 2026. Price for the 2024 Forester Wilderness remains unchanged at $36,265.
Engine, Transmission, and Performance
Under the hood is a 2.5-liter flat-four engine, a continuously variable transmission, and all-wheel drive. Output is a meek 180 horsepower and 178 pound-feet of torque. Subaru says a hybrid powertrain is coming next year. Although the Forester uses a dual-pinion electronic power steering rack similar to what Subaru installs in the WRX sports sedan, the SUV isn’t nearly as fun to drive. Steering feedback is minimal and the suspension is tuned for comfort above all else. Pitch the Forester into a corner at speed and you’ll feel a little wiggle in the rear end, which can feel unnerving in that second before it settles in. If your driving style is more sedate and you’re hoping for a plush ride, the Forester delivers exactly that.
0–60-MPH Times
At our test track, the Forester Sport we sampled dragged itself to 60 mph in 8.3 seconds, its flat-four engine groaning along the way. Around town, acceleration feels more than adequate though, and under light throttle, the engine’s gruff demeanor isn’t as noticeable.
Fuel Economy and Real-World MPG
EPA fuel economy estimates for the 2025 Forester land at 26 mpg city and 33 mpg highway, with the exception of the Sport and Touring trims, which give up 1 mpg in each measure. On our 75-mph highway fuel-economy test route, the Sport trim we tested managed 31 mpg. For more information about the Forester’s fuel economy, visit the EPA’s website.
Interior, Comfort, and Cargo
The two-row Forester is a politely comfortable affair. Starting with mid-level trims on up, its interior offers a good mix of materials, including a leather-wrapped gear selector and heated and ventilated front seats. A spacious back seat offers plenty of head, hip, and leg room for adults, while the rear cargo space, even while that second row is in use, is spacious. The rear seats split 60/40 and, when folded flat, open up 75 cubic feet of cargo space. Subaru claims the new-generation Forester has more sound dampening than before, which should result in a quieter cabin. Every Forester also comes with roof rails. A hands-free powered tailgate has been added as an available feature.
Infotainment and Connectivity
Inside, a large 11.6-inch infotainment touchscreen is standard on all but base models. The system comes standard with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay capability. The system also includes a wireless smartphone charging pad. The base model gets a dual 7.0-inch display similar to what was on the previous-generation Forester, which incorporates Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well.
