Was 2023 a tipping point for movies? 'Barbie' success and Marvel struggles may signal a shift

For the first time in more than two decades, the top three movies at the box office this year didn't include a sequel or a remake

NEW YORK -- Eight years ago, Steven Spielberg predicted that the superhero movie would one day go “the way of the Western.”

Spielberg’s comments caused a widespread stir at the time. “Avengers: The Age of Ultron” was then one of the year’s biggest movies. The following year would bring “Captain America: Civil War,” “Deadpool” and “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.” The superhero movie was in high gear, and showing no signs of slowing down.

But Spielberg’s point was that nothing is forever in the movie business. These cycles, Spielberg said, “have a finite time in popular culture.” And the maker of “E.T.,” “Jurassic Park” and “Jaws” might know a thing or two about the ebbs and flows of pop-culture taste.

As 2023 draws to a close, no one is sounding the death knell of the superhero movie. The Walt Disney Co.'s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” made $845.6 million worldwide and Sony's “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” ($691 million) was one of the most acclaimed films of the year. Marvel is still mightier than any other brand in the business.

But more than ever before, there are chinks in the armor of the superhero movie. Its dominance in popular culture is no longer quite so assured. A cycle may be turning, and a new one dawning.