Adjusted Box Office

Recently I got into the whole concept of the adjusted box office as a window into comparative popularity between eras.  I thought it'd be fun to see what that looks like for DC's and Marvel's movies.  Box Office Mojo's got a list I'll draw on,  This will be an incomplete list. (Numbering indicates where it falls on the list as of 6/5/18; M = millions)

29. Marvel's The Avengers (2012)
$704M
($623M unadjusted)
Surprisingly the first big MCU culmination point is still the most successful.

30. Black Panther (2018)
 $699M
Second most successful is this surprise breakout from earlier in the year.

32. The Dark Knight (2008)
$682M
($534M unadjusted)
Christopher Nolan's second Batman flick casts a very long shadow.

38. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
$644M
The fourth most successful is the second big MCU culmination point.

40. Spider-Man (2002)
$636M
($403M unadjusted)
Sam Raimi's first Spider-Man set the tone for wide superhero acceptance.

55. Batman (1989)
$576M
($251M unadjusted)
Tim Burton made it okay to like superheroes again, and even to take them seriously njow and again.

62. Spider-Man 2 (2004)
$551M
($373M unadjusted)
A lot of fans still consider this the perfect superhero sequel.

70. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
$527M
($448M unadjusted)
Nolan's third Batman flick is not as often seen that way.

72. Superman (1978)
$525M
($134M unadjusted)
For at least a decade, the completely unchallenged king of superhero movies.

96. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
$490M
($459M unadjusted)
It's in the adjusted results you see how this one earned its reputation as a disappointment.

112. Spider-Man 3 (2007)
$448M
($336M unadjusted)
You can see the hierarchy of popularity, and unpopularity, begin to form at this point.

113. Iron Man 3 (2013)
$447M
($409M unadjusted)
And you can see what fans don't want to admit, too.

123. Captain America: Civil War (2016)
$428M
($408M unadjusted)
It always surprises me to see this one considered in divisive terms; guess it shouldn't.

127. Wonder Woman (2017)
$422M
($412M unadjusted)
The most successful of the DCEU movies.

140. Iron Man (2008)
$406M
($318M unadjusted)
Is it surprising that the first, breakthrough film in the MCU is actually this low on the list?

148. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
$398M
($389M unadjusted)
Unadjusted it looks like the Guardians are massive successes.  Adjusted?  Not as much.

161. Batman Forever (1995)
$387M
($184M unadjusted)
The adjusted results give Schumacher's first Batman a big bounce over the unadjusted results versus Burton's second.

162. Deadpool (2016)
$387M
($363M unadjusted)
The bigger surprise than Iron Man is this one.

172. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
$377M
($333M unadjusted)
You can see the cult level emerge around here.

189. Iron Man 2 (2010)
$363M
($312M unadjusted)
Ironically one of the least popular MCU entries lands here.

195. Batman Returns (1992)
$359M
($162M unadjusted)
Burton with his natural instincts unleashed definitely feels right to be described at the cult level.

198. Superman II (1981)
$356M
($108M unadjusted)
"Kneel before Zod" feels right at cult level.

202. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
$350M
($330M unadjusted)
Once the hysteria of comparing MCU to DCEU subsides, cult status seems just about right for this one.

204. Suicide Squad (2016)
$349M
($325M unadjusted)
Same as above.

214. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
$342M
($334M unadjusted)
The third cinematic Spider-Man seems less impressive this way.

229. X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)
$327M
($234M unadjusted)
Especially when you realize we're reaching unpopular territory.

231. X2: X-Men United (2003)
$326M
($214M unadjusted)
The truth is, no X-Men movie has ever been a huge draw.

234. Man of Steel (2013)
$322M
($291M unadjusted)
The first DCEU movie landed poorly.

245. Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
$314M
($315M unadjusted)
Watching this one in theaters I was really convinced it would spark a backlash against the MCU; looking at this ranking I'm still surprised it didn't.

255. The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
$308M
($262M unadjusted)
The first of the two movies featuring the second Spider-Man, for comparison with the above statement.

276. Batman Begins (2005)
$295M
($206M unadjusted)
Here's where it really looks fascinating.  Nolan's first Batman was considered a return to form, but it really wasn't, as far as real money was concerned.

292. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
$285M
($259M unadjusted)
One of the great ironies of the MCU is that it's built on relatively unpopular movies.

I could dig around for a more complete list, but this is a pretty good survey as it is.