There has not been a movie event in our lifetimes quite like Avengers: Endgame. No amount of pie-in-the-sky box office forecasting or broken pre-sales records could have prepared the industry or us for the opening weekend of Marvels culmination film. By the time all the money was counted on Monday morning, Avengers: Endgame had obliterated the domestic opening weekend box office record by nearly $100 million and left a sea of exhausted movie theater employees in its wake.
Avengers: Endgame shot off like a rocket and the domestic opening weekend record was just the first major victim to fall to Marvels decade-in-the-making achievement. One by one, the Russo Brothers film climbed the box office charts, breaking records and felling many other massive movies, including those of the MCU, on its way to the top. Records are made to be broken, and like a blow from Stormbreaker, Endgame has done plenty of breaking.
But there is one record in particular left to break. One record that cements a movie as the biggest ever and the all-time box office champ. One film that stands alone. That record is for the worldwide box office gross, and it belongs to James Camerons Avatar.
After an opening weekend that got it over 40% of the way there, and after it sunk James Camerons other box office stalwart Titanic, it seemed to many like it was a matter of if, not when Avengers: Endgame would break Avatars record. That inevitability might have been premature though.
Avengers: Endgame currently sits at $2.713 billion worldwide, but Forbes Scott Mendelsohn does not see it having enough juice to make it to the $2.788 billion and beyond needed to match Avatar and claim the worldwide box office crown. Instead, he predicts that it will top out at a staggering, but still second-place, total $2.766 billion.
It is still a monumental achievement and no one involved has anything to hang their heads over if the film has to settle for being 2nd to James Camerons 2009 film. Yet, regardless of whether the MCU film ultimately claims the top spot on the worldwide charts or comes up just short, Avatars box office record is even more impressive after Avengers: Endgame.
I think we sometimes hand wave Avatars record and take it for granted because it has become a constant in our minds. We all know that Avatar is the biggest movie of all time, but the abstract nature of that fact has made it seem at times less like something that the film achieved and more like something that just is. That detracts from how impressive its run really was.
First, it must be addressed how long Avatars record has lasted. Avatar was released in December of 2009 and since it ended Titanics reign at the top, it has never once been so much as threatened until Avengers: Endgame. Thats nearly a decade of dominance where the biggest films Hollywood could muster all failed to even sniff Avatars record.
The Navi held off the reboot of the Jurassic Park franchise, a franchise whose original 1993 film once held the worldwide record before Titanic. The end of Harry Potter, the animated phenomenon Frozen and the MCUs finest and biggest films all fell short. Even the return of Star Wars, an incredible cultural and cinematic moment, with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, wasnt enough.
Hollywood may have become more myopically focused on tentpole blockbusters since 2009, but in that time it still couldnt craft one that could to bring down Toruk Makto. And if Avengers: Endgame too falls short, Avatars long reign will continue on.
Domestically, Avengers: Endgame beat Avatar and currently sits at $815.7 million according to Box Office Mojo. That makes it the second film, after Star Wars: The Force Awakens (which made $936.7 million domestically, a record Endgame definitely wont be beating) to best Avatars $760.5 million take.
Consider this though: Avatar got to $760.5 million domestically and that current Number 3 spot with a max domestic theater count of 3,461. At the height of its run Avengers: Endgame enjoyed a theater count of 4,662. Thats over 1,200 more theaters than Avatar had to achieve what it did. And according to the National Association of Theater Owners, the average U.S. ticket price was $7.50 in 2009 versus $9.11 last year.
Inflation means that movie tickets were less in 2009, which would be to Avatars benefit, but James Camerons movie was also the first, and arguably last, 3D event, and thus demanded premium ticket prices from audiences wanting the full experience. So to be fair, that issue gets a bit financially muddled. And domestically, when adjusted for inflation, the movie that sold the most tickets and remains and will forever remain the GOAT is Gone With the Wind.
Also, while Endgame started out with a massive bang at the box office that got it a lot of its haul very quickly, it also burned out faster. Whereas Avatar was a slow burn at the box office, with small percentage drops week to week that saw it methodically build its total. Avatar did also have a special edition re-release in the summer of 2010 that added $10.74 million domestically to its final tally.
Endgame debuted with a stunning $357.1 million and held on to the top spot on the domestic charts for 3 weeks. Avatar didnt even crack $100 million opening weekend, making $77 million. That puts it in 97th place for opening weekends. But it stayed in first place for seven straight weeks and didnt leave the top 10 until week 15. Thats crazy, and internationally Avatars accomplishments are just as impressive.
Avengers: Endgame has opened to a record $866.5 million overseas and to date has made $1.897 billion. Compare that with Avatar, which opened to a meager $164.5 million and went on to make $2.029 billion. And although blockbusters often make a huge chunk of their gross internationally, the foreign box office of 2009 wasnt what it is today.
We often cite the ever-growing importance of the China market for Hollywood films, but Avatar only made $204.1 million there. Thats because back then China only had less than 5,000 movie theater screens. Today the Middle Kingdom has around 60,000 according to The Washington Post. That incredible market growth has given blockbusters like Avengers: Endgame greater opportunity to make money. Endgame did just that, with $614.3 million in China so far, triple what Avatar did.
More screens equals more money, and because it played on fewer screens worldwide, Avatar had to do more with less, which makes the fact that it is still Number 1, whether it stays that way or not, all the more impressive.
Those are all just quantitative measures though and when you consider the qualitative factors of Avengers: Endgame and Avatar, the latters worldwide record is even more admirable.
While we sing the praises of Avatars record, it must be said that for all the factors like inflation and theater count, James Camerons film did have some distinct advantages that Avengers: Endgame did not enjoy. The most obvious of those is that Avatar released in December of 2009, years before studios decided on a year-round blockbuster season. Thats something Avatar arguably started, Disney continued with Star Wars and will soon alternate holiday seasons between Star Wars movies and the Avatar sequels.
In the weeks and months that followed Avatars release, Sherlock Holmes, The Book of Eli, The Wolfman, Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief and Dear John were released. It wasnt really until March of 2010 when a true blockbuster arrived in the form of Alice in Wonderland. Endgame was given no such quarter, with Detective Pikachu, John Wick: Chapter 3 Parabellum, Aladdin and Godzilla: King of the Monsters all following in the month or so after its release.
Nevertheless, despite its advantageous release month, Avatar still had more work to do than Endgame to reach the heights it did. Avatar was an original movie, from the filmmaker who made Titanic sure, but it had no real star power beyond James Cameron and Sigourney Weaver in a supporting role. Weve seen other original sci-fi blockbusters from name filmmakers and some with even more star power fail to launch, and Avatar could have easily gone the way of Jupiter Ascending.
It had to succeed by selling audiences through its marketing and in the theater, and it did so with fantastic word of mouth and repeat viewings from audiences that fell in love with the spectacle of the film and wanted to live in Pandora.
Conversely, Avengers: Endgame was always guaranteed to be huge. Before we saw the first trailer, Id say it had a good chance to snag the opening weekend record. Thats because it was the culmination of a franchise and characters audiences have invested in for over a decade. Everyone had already made up their minds to see it a long time ago.
It has the powerful Marvel branding and is the biggest film in the MCU, which is the biggest franchise in movie history. Those factors made Avengers: Endgame a true monoculture event that everyone wanted to be a part of, and the frenzy opening weekend is testament to that.
So the fact that it had all that going for it and it still might not surpass Avatar, and if it does it will be close, throws into stark relief just how impressive what Avatar did was. Thats not to take anything away from Avengers: Endgame, which has been a monumental achievement and no matter what film holds the top spot, Disney is the winner in all of this with Foxs Avatar now under its umbrella.
That Avatar has finally been challenged though shows just how much it takes to beat it and looks to be a truly herculean and perhaps Sisyphean task. The question then becomes, if something like Marvels biggest film cant beat it, can anything?
Sexiest bits of the astoundingley, divinely beautiful Ms. Kate Beckinsale
Wonder Woman - CINEMABLEND
Wayne's World is one of the most quotable films of all time.For every "Schwing!", there's at least half a dozen "We're not worthy!"s right behind it, and if you're a true fan, you
Home Entertainment TV & Movies New Godzilla: King Of The Monsters TV Spot Has Tons Of Stuff New Godzilla: King Of The Monsters TV Spot Has Tons Of Stuff Blowing Up
Bird Box's director, Susanne Bier explains both, starting with Lucy and Felix, who stole the car and left the house. Bier spoke to People Magazine and revealed that she thinks that Lucy and Felix went to the grocery store, but we don't know if they survived.
Bird Box's Director Explains That Surprising Ending - MNNOFA NEWS
First trailer for Jordan Peele´s US. First trailer for Jordan Peele´s US. Skip navigation NEW MOVIE TRAILERS (2019) Sci-Fi Horror - Duration: 14:56. MovieGasm.com 2,552,800 views.
Avengers: Infinity War was a climactic, heartbreaking film 10 years in the making, and following the jaw-dropping events at the end of the movie, we're left with 10 huge questions. Here they are
5 Questions We Have After Seeing Avengers Infinity War
One of the craziest rumors when Ready Player One was in the making turned out to be completely untrue, but it's still fun to think about. Nick Evans Apr 11, 2018 One Exciting Ready Player One
Ready Player One - Sibling Rivarly - YouTube
"In Your Eyes" is in the finished product, but while filming the scene, Crowe played a very different song: Fishbone's "Bonin' In the Graveyard" because Cusack was in a "deep
Say Anything boombox scene almost had different song
[ March 29, 2019 ] Thousands line Essex streets in tribute to Keith Flint ahead of funeral procession Music Home Movies 6 Big Movies Heading To Theaters In April 6 Big Movies Heading To Theaters In April
7 Big Movies Heading To Theaters In January 2019 - MNNOFA NEWS
The Pet Sematary remake has languished in development hell for years, but now that it's finally getting off the ground, Lithgow sounds like he'll be a worthy addition to the cast, although it's
John Lithgow Joins Pet Sematary Remake Cast As Jud Crandall
The Captain Marvel Prelude #1 comic book reveals why Nick Fury waited until Infinity War to contact Carol Danvers. At the end of the last Avengers movie, before Fury turns to dust with half of the
Marvel's Kevin Feige On Why Nick Fury Waited To Page Captain
Apparently the competitive nature of the Hogwarts houses extends to the cast of the films as well. Actor Tom Felton, who played Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films, recently attempted to convert his co-star, Matthew Lewis, to ditch the scarlet and gold and join Slytherin. Take a look:
Harry Potter's Tom Felton tries to convert Matthew Lewis to
I love working with Neill and I think he'd do a terrific job, and James Cameron really thinks it's a great idea, so you never know. Right now, I think Neill's got like three projects going at once." While it doesn't seem likely, Weaver won't rule it out completely.
vice movie streaming release date
the best movie streaming app
movie streaming ps4
streaming movie youngblood
where can i find a movie streaming
solarmovie streaming
movie streaming no sign up
movie streaming in canada
where is a movie streaming
movie streaming sites yahoo answers
zac efron ted bundy movie streaming
movie streaming chromecast
indian movie streaming
online movie streaming
movie streaming blogspot
zovioz.com unlimited movie streaming
free movie streaming xbox 360
disney movie streaming service
can't help falling in love movie streaming
best movie streaming app
streaming movie kingsman
movie streaming online for free
rad movie streaming free
movie streaming germany
online free movie streaming
scary movie streaming
xbox movie streaming apps
movie streaming websites 2019
new movie streaming
what is amazon movie streaming
movie streaming uk
shoplifters movie streaming
x deal full movie streaming
what are the best free movie streaming sites
cold war movie streaming
live movie streaming sites
alpha movie streaming
movie streaming illegal
movie streaming urls
john wick full movie streaming
unlimited movie streaming
danur full movie streaming
vice movie streaming
nonton si doel the movie streaming
movie streaming like netflix
android movie streaming app
streaming movie veer zaara
best online movie streaming site
best free movie streaming sites 2019
now and then movie streaming
yes free movie streaming
is a movie streaming online
the worst movie ever streaming
wonder movie streaming
lego movie streaming
game night movie streaming
everest movie streaming
how does amazon movie streaming work
where to watch movie streaming online free
movie streaming in australia
best sites for movie streaming reddit
does google have a movie streaming service
veronica mars movie streaming
dragon ball super broly movie streaming
zero movie streaming
movie streaming movies
movie streaming youtube
rudolph the red nosed reindeer movie streaming
mobile movie streaming
latest movie streaming sites
movie streaming viooz
movie streaming platforms
movie streaming bandwidth
movie streaming quora
zero movie streaming online
youtube movie streaming service
rabbit movie streaming
movie streaming australia
movie streaming rental
online hindi movie streaming
movie streaming pc
the worst horror movie ever made streaming
best free movie streaming websites
movie streaming apk
movie streaming monthly subscription
where is the wife movie streaming
zulu movie streaming
worst witch movie streaming
movie zone streaming
pitch perfect 3 full movie streaming
green book movie streaming
where is the lego movie streaming
best free movie streaming sites 2018
kulari ke pantai full movie streaming
movie streaming sites
zero full movie streaming
do you believe movie streaming
zero movie streaming partner
where is scary movie streaming
amazon movie streaming
us movie streaming free
as the gods will movie streaming
full movie streaming youtube
the little engine that could movie streaming
dilan full movie streaming
overlord movie streaming
live movie streaming
online movie streaming sites
movie streaming ninja
movie streaming bohemian rhapsody
elf movie streaming netflix
movie streaming on ps4
yes movie streaming site
movie streaming github
would you rather movie streaming vf
movie streaming firestick
english movie streaming free
uri movie streaming partner
watch i can only imagine movie streaming
that thing you do full movie streaming
classic movie streaming
equalizer 2 full movie streaming
movie streaming guide
if looks could kill movie streaming
movie streaming new zealand
movie streaming websites free
is this movie streaming
that was then this is now movie streaming
xbox one movie streaming sites 2017
movie streaming legal
best free movie streaming sites uk
who will write our history movie streaming
movie streaming gb usage
#watchcrazy #watchhill #HostalCASAMXalameda #movietime #watchthemoonrise #watchswag #murica #blackking #WatchUsRise #filmyorumu #watchfamily #bff #watchtattoo #watchcandy #blackhistory365 #americanflag #filmlover #blackenterprise #watchquiz #watchwomen #filmography #netflix #WatchRoss #blackbusiness #watchmvmt #watchobsessed #america #watchblogger #watchos4 #FreeMovies #watchuswork #WatchJunkie #firecrackers #CASAMXhostales #netflixturkiye #melaninmagic #Filmametitrashqip #blackiflix #watchphoto #holiday #blackqueen #watchluxus #watchmaniac #SomosTuConexi #blacktech #moviesstreaming #funnytime #tvroomdesign #melanin #socialstreaming #TvSeries #WatchMovies #blacksocialmedia #Seriale #filmizle #watchmovies #blacksuccess #Zgerdhiu #blavity #slay #Filma #watchingthesunset #Movies #watchenthusiasts #watchful #merica #putitinreverseterry #fireworks #Filma24 #saladetv #watchnerds #independenceday
