http://www.economist.com/news/business/21579478-comic-book-characters-continue-conquer-box-office-superman-v-spider-man
“MAN OF STEEL”, the new Superman film, opens on June 14th in America and some other countries. In the film, Superman dons his cape and (spoiler alert!) saves the world single-handedly. Turning comics into films has produced superheroic profits. Since 1978, when the first Superman epic came to the big screen, DC Comics, which besides Superman has the rights to Batman, Catwoman and others, has seen its films gross nearly $8 billion worldwide.
