‘Avengers: Endgame’ is the biggest movie ever again, 7 years later—and it says a lot about the future of Hollywood’s IP machine

After seven years, "Avengers: Endgame" has reclaimed its title as the highest-grossing movie of all time, grossing $2.9255 billion worldwide. Disney and Marvel Studios brought the blockbuster back to theaters on September 25, 2023, adding new footage and an introduction from Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans. The rerelease topped the box office with $26 million domestically and $86 million worldwide, beating out new non-franchise releases such as "Heart of the Beast," "Primetime," and "Forgotten Island."

While ticket sales cooled in the second weekend, the Encore still managed to bring in $18.8 million worldwide, lifting "Endgame's" lifetime total to $2.9255 billion. This suggests that Hollywood's intellectual property machine is far from slowing down, and the future of moviegoing may become more familiar. The success of "Endgame" has been attributed to the prevalence of sequels, remakes, and spinoffs, many of which have grossed over $1 billion worldwide.

However, the industry has struggled to replicate that success since 2019, as evidenced by the decline of Marvel's biggest releases and the underperformance of newer franchises. Despite this, recent original and non-franchise titles have shown promise, with films like "The Odyssey," "Obsession," "Minions & Monsters," and "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie" topping the charts.

As new releases continue to vie for attention, the summer box office shows no signs of slowing down.