'Avatar' Stays Ahead of 'Avengers: Endgame'
by EG
An extra 18 seconds of footage wasn't enough to make an Avengers: Endgame re-release attractive to many millions of viewers. That means Endgame has not yet passed Avatar to be the top-grossing movie ever. Read on for details.
Avatar is safe for now.
Over the weekend, Marvel and parent company Disney rereleased Avengers: Endgame with 18 seconds of additional footage in a bid to pass James Cameron's blockbuster, which stands as the top-grossing film of all time at the worldwide box office.
Avengers: Endgame, directed by the Russo brothers, earned another $5.5 million domestically (it placed No. 7 on the weekend) and $2.3 million overseas for a revised worldwide total of $2.76 billion. That's roughly $27 million shy of the $2.78 billion grossed by Avatar in its original run and subsequent rereleases.
Box office insiders say it would be impossible for Endgame to earn another $27 million in the immediate future.
For Marvel and Disney's part, catching up with Avatar wasn't the only reason for the quasi-rerelease (generally, rereleases happen months later). It was also an opportunity to piggyback on and promote Spider-Man: Far From Home, from Sony and Marvel Studios.
Far From Home begins rolling out in North American theaters on Monday night before playing everywhere on Tuesday. Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige played a key role in shaping the new pic; ditto for the movie's predecessor, Spider-Man: Homecoming. And the film's star, Tom Holland, appears in Endgame.
Get the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.
Do you think Endgame will ever pass Avatar? Let us know in the comments below.