Avengers Endgame is officially the king of the box office once again. The 2019 Marvel blockbuster has reclaimed the all-time worldwide box office crown from James Cameron’s Avatar, and in a gesture that has delighted movie fans, Cameron himself congratulated Marvel Studios on the milestone with a gracious crossover artwork post on Friday.
The record changed hands earlier this month after Disney and Marvel re-released the film as Avengers: Endgame: Encore on September 25. According to Variety, the re-release pushed Endgame’s lifetime worldwide total to about $2.925 billion — just ahead of Avatar‘s $2.923 billion, a razor-thin gap of roughly $2 million that has since widened to around $2.93 billion as the re-release keeps playing in theaters.
For context, these figures are not adjusted for inflation — a detail that keeps the debate over the “true” biggest film alive — but by raw box office gross, Endgame is back on top.
How Avengers Endgame Took Back the Crown
Avengers Endgame did not get there on nostalgia alone. The Encore re-release arrived with a clear mission: warm audiences up for Avengers: Doomsday, which hits theaters on December 18, 2026. The extended cut runs about four minutes longer than the original and includes new footage designed to connect the 2019 film directly to the upcoming crossover.
The strategy worked brilliantly. The re-release opened to an estimated $86 million worldwide in its opening weekend — the second-biggest global opening for a re-release ever, behind only the 2012 3D return of Titanic. It claimed $26 million in North America and $60 million internationally, and by its second weekend it had added roughly $126 million worldwide, enough to tip the all-time race.
The opening weekend was no small feat: the re-release rose to the top spot on the box office charts even against a crowded slate of new films. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo thanked fans on Instagram, writing, “Thank you for coming back to theaters for Endgame Encore and making Endgame the #1 film of all time. To every fan who’s been part of this journey for the last seven years, we love you 3000.”
That “3000” callback — Tony Stark’s famous line to Morgan Stark — landed perfectly with fans who have kept the MCU’s heart beating for more than a decade.
James Cameron’s Gracious Response to Avengers Endgame
Rather than grumble about losing the title, James Cameron did what he did the last time Avengers Endgame beat him: he congratulated Marvel publicly, and went bigger this time.
Cameron posted crossover artwork on his verified Instagram account showing Iron Man on Pandora, surrounded by Na’vi laying their hands on Tony Stark’s armor. “You are one of the people,” the image reads — a deep-cut reference to how the Na’vi accept an outsider into the clan in the 2009 film. His caption was short and sweet: “Congratulations to Marvel and the #1 ‘Avengers: Endgame: Encore’ for bringing moviegoers to the cinemas! — Jim Cameron.”
This is not the first time the two filmmakers have traded classy congratulations. When Avengers Endgame first passed Avatar in July 2019, Cameron shared celebratory artwork with a Na’vi greeting: “Oel ngati kameie. I see you Marvel — Congratulations to Avengers Endgame on becoming the new box-office king.”
Then in 2021, Avatar grabbed the record back through a theatrical re-release in China, and the Russo brothers returned the favor, posting, “Passing the gauntlet back to you.” Now the gauntlet has changed hands again — and fans are already predicting Cameron will try to win it back with another Avatar re-release, possibly timed to the film’s 20th anniversary in 2029, which Cameron jokingly hinted at in his post.
Read the full breakdown at TheWrap.
Why Disney Fought for the Record
The re-release was never just a stunt — it was a strategic move. Avengers Endgame returned to cinemas with a modified ending and new post-credit scenes specifically engineered to set up Avengers: Doomsday, the winter tentpole arriving December 18 in what promises to be a box office showdown with Dune: Part Three.
For Marvel, the headline milestone arrives after a mixed few years for the MCU, and it gave theaters a shot of good news: a re-release topping the weekend chart is proof that audiences still show up for events. For Disney, the outcome is a win either way — the company owns both films, since it acquired 20th Century Fox’s film business in 2019. Disney is now responsible for seven of the 10 highest-grossing films of all time, including Avatar: The Way of Water ($2.33 billion), Titanic ($2.26 billion) and Avengers: Infinity War ($2.05 billion).
Notably, Spider-Man: Brand New Day sits in third place on the all-time chart at around $2.5 billion, meaning Marvel now occupies two of the top three spots.
The Fine Print: What the Avengers Endgame Record Really Means
Box office historians will point out a few caveats worth remembering when fans argue over who really owns the title. Avengers Endgame reached its total with the help of one re-release; Avatar collected its $2.924 billion across its original run and five separate re-releases. Neither total is adjusted for inflation, which would crown older films like Gone with the Wind in real-dollar terms.
Still, the symbolism matters. Endgame is the cultural landmark that closed the Infinity Saga and turned “Avengers Assemble” into a theatrical moment people will remember for decades. That a seven-year-old film could return to theaters, add over $126 million, and retake the biggest crown in movies says something powerful about the MCU’s staying power heading into the Doomsday era.
And if Cameron really does mount a 2029 anniversary re-release of Avatar to take the crown back, the friendliest rivalry in Hollywood history is far from over.
Also on LB Daily News: catch up with more trending Hollywood coverage and our latest box office breakdowns.
Illustrations: LB Daily News. Box office figures via Variety and The Numbers; congratulations post via James Cameron’s official Instagram.
