‘Avatar’ has reclaimed its title as the number one movie in the world, leaving Marvel’s ‘Avengers’ behind in the box office race.
The James Cameron-directed 2009 film has received another run at the box office in China after the sci-fi adventure was re-released in the market on Friday, thus adding another $12.3 million to its overall haul and taking its worldwide gross to an estimated $2.802 billion.
The boost to its box office earnings ultimately saw ‘Avatar’ overthrow ‘Avengers: Endgame’ from its perch, which had claimed the top spot two years ago by pushing the alien adventure to number two and sinking 2010’s ‘Titanic’ to third place. ‘Avengers: Endgame’ ultimately took the top spot in 2019 by grossing an estimated $2.797 billion.
Directors of ‘Engame’, Anthony and Joe Russo, took to their joint Instagram account to congtratulate Cameron on the feat, posting: “Passing the gauntlet back to you... @jamescameronofficial…” The post was accompanied with artwork designed by Boss Logic.
Marvel Studios also posted a GIF that depicted the Avengers logo transforming into the ‘Avatar’ symbol, which was also reposted by Cameron himself.
This isn’t the first time the Russo Brothers, Marvel and Cameron have fan-boyed each other. When ‘Endgame’ passed ‘Avatar’ in 2019, Cameron posted a congratulatory tweet in Na’vi, the language created for the inhabitants of Pandora in ‘Avatar’. “Oel Ngati Kameie,” read the tweet, meaning “I see you” in Na’vi, making reference to one of the more famous scenes from the film.
“I see you Marvel,” Cameron wrote in a note tweeted from ‘Avatar’s’ account. “Congratulations to ‘Avengers: Endgame’ on becoming the new box office king.”
In response to Cameron’s note, Anthony and Joe Russo, the directors of ‘Endgame’, tweeted their own admiration for Cameron’s films. “You’re a monumental reason why we fell in love with film in the first place,” the Russo brothers said of Cameron on their shared Twitter account. “Thank you for always inspiring us and opening the world’s eyes to what’s possible. We can’t wait to see where you take us next.”
Cameron had earlier posted a similar tweet congratulating ‘Endgame’ for beating out ‘Titanic’ in earnings as well. “To Kevin [Feige] and everybody at Marvel, an iceberg sank the real Titanic,” posted Cameron. “It took the Avengers to sink my Titanic. Everyone here at Lightstorm Entertainment salutes your amazing achievement. You’ve shown that the movie industry is not only alive and well, it’s bigger than ever!”
