Avengers: Endgame Overtakes Avatar To Become Highest-Grossing Film Ever
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In the months leading up to the release of Avengers: Endgame, there was a hell of a lot of anticipation in the air, with the Russo brothers even sharing a letter discouraging fans from spoiling the movie for each other.
Then, once the film was finally released in April, people flocked to the cinema in their masses, with Endgame rocketing to the biggest box office opening of all time.
The world has spoken. Marvel Studios' #AvengersEndgame is the #1 box office opening of all time.
See it again in theaters: https://t.co/h90aWvzX1D pic.twitter.com/qhqj0AeIRD
- Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) May 7, 2019
From there, the film has kept up its momentum and now, three months on from its release, it has overtaken Avatar to become the highest-grossing film of all time.
James Cameron's epic sci-fi film has held the record for a decade, having grossed $2,789.7 (£2,231.22) billion. However, Endgame was sitting just $500,000 (£399,902) behind on Friday at $2,789.2 (£2,230.82) billion, meaning the record will be broken by the end of the weekend (if not already).
Marvel chief, Kevin Feige, announced the news while on stage at Comic-Con, San Diego, on Saturday.
In a statement, Alan Horn, Disney Studios co-chairman and chief creative officer, said the record was a testament to the 'power of movies'.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, he said: "A huge congratulations to the Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Studios teams, and thank you to the fans around the world who lifted Avengers: Endgame to these historic heights.
"Of course, even with the passage of a decade, the impact of James Cameron's Avatar remains as powerful as ever, and the astonishing achievements of both of these films are ongoing proof of the power of movies to move people and bring them together in a shared experience.
"The talented filmmakers behind these worlds have much more in store, and we look forward to the future of both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Pandora."
In reality though, Mickey Mouse and the gang are doubly winning, as earlier this year Disney acquired the rights to a majority of 20th Century Fox's assets, including Avatar.
It remains to be seen whether the long-anticipated Avatar sequel can surpass the record set by Endgame; it's certainly a tall ask, but the movie probably has a better chance than anything outside of the MCU.
Avatar 2 is set to premiere on 18 December 2020, and Avatar 3 will release a year later on 17 December 2021... So not long to wait now, relatively speaking.
Featured Image Credit: Marvel
Topics: TV and Film, US Entertainment
