The longest-running rivalry at the global box office has flipped again.
Avengers: Endgame has reclaimed the title of highest-grossing movie of all time, not adjusted for inflation, after its re-release lifted its worldwide total to $2.9255 billion, just ahead of Avatar’s $2.9237 billion, Deadline and CBC News reported. The margin is less than $2 million.
How it got there
Disney and Marvel Studios returned the Russo brothers’ 2019 film to theaters late last month as Avengers: Endgame Encore, a slightly recut version with four additional minutes, CBC reported. The re-release opened to $86 million worldwide, including about $26 million in the U.S. and Canada, according to Disney figures cited by CBC.
Among re-releases, only 1997’s Star Wars and 2011’s The Lion King have opened higher domestically, CBC noted.
Business cooled quickly. In its second weekend, Encore took in $4.4 million domestically, down 81%, and $18.8 million worldwide, Deadline reported, bringing the re-release’s global total to $126 million. It was the top non-local film in China that weekend with $21.3 million and became the highest-grossing re-release across Latin America, according to Deadline.
A record that keeps changing hands
This is the second time Endgame has passed Avatar. Marvel’s film first took the record in 2019, ending a run in which James Cameron’s movies, first Titanic and then Avatar, had held the top spot since 1998. A 2021 re-release of Avatar in China sent Cameron’s film back to No. 1, CBC reported.
The handoffs have been friendly. In 2019, Cameron congratulated Marvel on X, then Twitter, with a phrase from the Na’vi language, “Oel ngati kameie,” or “I see you.” When Avatar reclaimed the lead, directors Joe and Anthony Russo replied, “Passing the gauntlet back to you,” according to CBC.
Domestically, Endgame’s running total of $894.6 million ranks third all time, behind Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Deadline reported.
Setting the stage for ‘Doomsday’
The re-release was designed to build anticipation for Avengers: Doomsday, also directed by the Russos, which opens Dec. 18 and will bring back familiar faces including Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans, CBC reported. It is set to open the same weekend as Dune: Part Three, a matchup Deadline compared to 2023’s “Barbenheimer” showdown.
For Marvel, the record is a welcome headline after recent entries such as Thunderbolts* and Captain America: Brave New World, whose new lead characters, CBC noted, failed to capture audience interest. It also shows that a seven-year-old film can still draw crowds.
Photo: Bricetofly via Wikimedia Commons (CC0 public domain dedication). Generic file image of an empty cinema auditorium, November 2025.
This article was produced with AI assistance and is based on reporting from Deadline and CBC News.