‘Avengers: Endgame’ Takes Back the All-Time Box Office Record From ‘Avatar’ After ‘Encore’ Reissue

After two additional weekends of reissue, "Avengers: Endgame" surpassed the box office record held by "Avatar" as the highest-grossing film of all time. With $36.2 million domestically and $89.8 million internationally, the reissue of "Endgame" has made its global lifetime gross amount $2.92 billion, just edging out the 2009 sci-fi epic.

This achievement pushes the total earnings of the Marvel Cinematic Universe from the first film "Iron Man" in 2008 to $35 billion. The hype surrounding "Avengers: Doomsday" in December could add another $2 billion to "Endgame's" gross, as presales for the sequel have already reached $60 million. The anticipation for "Doomsday" played a role in "Endgame" reclaiming the record, as the reissue featured a modified ending and three new post-credit scenes tied to the upcoming film.

Thebox office success of "Avengers" has also influenced efforts in the movie theater industry to renovate their multiplexes, with Cinema United reporting $2.7 billion spent on upgrades over the past two years. Disney and Marvel Studios have capitalized on this trend with their "Infinity Vision" campaign, encouraging moviegoers to watch "Doomsday" in premium formats as it won't be shown in IMAX for the first three weeks.

Several exhibitors have accelerated plans to enhance sound systems and projectors to participate in Infinity Vision, with 70% of "Doomsday" presales coming through the campaign.