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Avengers: Endgame Passes Avatar At Domestic Box Office
Avengers: Endgame passes Avatar to become the second highest-grossing film all-time at the domestic box office. At this point, there's little to add to the conversation about Endgame's unprecedented commercial run, during which the film shattered numerous box office records and posted figures that were at one point thought to be unfathomable. It's rare for a highly-anticipated blockbuster such as this to exceed expectations, but that's precisely what happened and Endgame has been climbing up the charts ever since its incredible debut.
Opening with $350 million domestically and $1.2 billion worldwide, Endgame immediately became a threat for the all-time box office crowns. Crossing the $2 billion mark in the blink of an eye, it remains on pace to surpass James Cameron's Avatar and top the $2.7 billion worldwide gross of the 2009 sci-fi epic. As Endgame inches closer to that milestone, it's just beaten Cameron's movie in the U.S.
According to Box Office Pro, Endgame now stands at $770.3 million domestically, moving past the $760.5 million earned by Avatar. It now only trails Star Wars: The Force Awakens ($936.6 million) on the domestic charts.
Endgame is about $166.3 million away from matching The Force Awakens, and it'll be fascinating to keep tabs on that race as it unfolds. Through 22 days in theaters, The Force Awakens had grossed $781.1 million, compared to Endgame's $748.7 million, so the Marvel tentpole is pacing behind its Disney brethren (Mickey Mouse is the real winner in all this). That's likely a byproduct of playing during the more competitive summer movie season. Force Awakens came out during the holiday season and then feasted on smaller and weaker January offerings. Endgame held on to the weekend crown for three straight weeks, but is now going up against the likes of Detective Pikachu and John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (which won the weekend with a franchise-best $59.3 million domestically). With more high-profile films on the way, Endgame business might be slowing down a bit, which will hurt its chances of unseating Star Wars.
As for the current champion, John Wick 3, its start is great news for Lionsgate, which was in desperate need of a major hit. Parabellum nearly doubled the debut of Chapter 2 ($30.4 million) and outgrossed the domestic total of the 2014 original ($43 million), meaning audiences are very much interested in the continuing adventures of the Baba Yaga. Director Chad Stahelski and star Keanu Reeves are both open to making more, and odds are they'll get that green light eventually. Since each installment in the series has proven to be more successful than its predecessor, it wouldn't make much sense to stop now.
