It took over 20 movies of build-up, but Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Endgame has finally dethroned James Cameron’s Avatar as the highest-grossing film of all time at the worldwide box office.
Kevin Feige made the announcement during Marvel’s panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday, where the studio announced a whole host of Phase 4 movies and shows for the upcoming streaming service Disney+ too.
“A huge congratulations to the Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Studios teams,” Disney co-chairman and chief creative officer Alan Horn also added in a statement.
“And thank you to the fans around the world who lifted Avengers: Endgame to these historic heights.”
20th Century Fox
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He continued: “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.”
The official figures aren’t in just yet, but Endgame is only about $500,000 away from beating Avatar‘s record, and Disney is expecting the film to cross that today (July 21) once the box office totals are added up.
But that hasn’t stopped the film’s cast and crew from celebrating already, as Thor actor Chris Hemsworth marked the milestone on his Instagram.
“Thank you to all the fans around the world that lifted Avengers: Endgame to historic heights making it the top grossing film of all time !!” he wrote.
Marvel Studios
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Meanwhile, Endgame directors Anthony and Joe Russo also paid tribute to everyone who helped the film take the throne too, tweeting: “To the greatest fans in the universe, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you…”
It looks like Marvel are taking a break from Avengers films for a while, while James Cameron has about 1,276 Avatar sequels planned. Whichever series sits on the top spot, though, the Walt Disney Company is laughing all the way to the bank.
Avengers: Endgame is out now.
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