Endgame Retakes Box Office Crown From Avatar
Avengers: Endgame is the top-grossing movie ever. Again. Disney puts the Marvel film at $2.925 billion in worldwide ticket sales after its autumn re-release, Variety reported on 4 October 2026.
That total covers every cinema market, including domestic, the United States and Canada. It sits just above Avatar at $2.923 billion worldwide, according to the same report. The gap is about $2 million. Both figures count original releases plus later returns to theatres.
Avatar held the record for a decade. Endgame passed it in 2019 during its first run, then fell to No. 2 in 2021 when Avatar returned to cinemas ahead of Avatar: The Way of Water, Variety reported.
Disney and Marvel reissued Endgame to build excitement for Avengers: Doomsday, which opens in December, Variety reported. The return, titled Avengers Endgame: Encore, began an exclusive theatre run on 25 September 2026, Marvel announced on 25 August 2026. Disney estimated its opening weekend at $86 million worldwide, Disney said on 27 September 2026. The re-release has since added more than $126 million worldwide, Variety reported on 4 October 2026.
Doomsday is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and will be the 39th entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Variety reported. The series has earned a combined $35.07 billion worldwide, according to the same report. That includes Spider-Man: Brand New Day at $2.5 billion worldwide and counting.
Avatar is the 2009 science-fiction film from director James Cameron. It was first released by 20th Century Fox, which Disney acquired in 2019, Variety reported. Disney now owns both of the top two films on the all-time chart.
Cameron publicly congratulated the Marvel team when Endgame first took the record in 2019, the Mercury News reported at the time. His series remains active. The third Avatar film opened to an estimated $345 million in global ticket sales through its first Sunday, Reuters reported on 21 December 2025.
What makes this stand out is how the record keeps moving. Neither film set its total in one run alone. Re-releases, five for Avatar and fresh returns for Endgame, keep pushing the line a little higher each time.
