It’s a record 20 days in the making; today, Star Wars: The Force Awakens will surpass Avatar to become the top-grossing film of all time domestically according to The Hollywood Reporter. The blockbuster actually passed the original run James Cameron’s epic on Monday, but Avatar added another $10 to its total with a special edition rerelease, bringing its lifetime total to over $760 million. Following the holidays, Star Wars’ grosses have come back down to earth but the film still managed to pull in around $8 million yesterday.
With the U.S. conquered, The Force Awakens now sets its sights on Avatar‘s $2.7+ billion worldwide haul. Deadline and others have major doubts about whether or not will happen, but the movie’s release in China (the second biggest film market in the world) on the 9th of this month should help give us a better idea of its prospects. It should also be noted that these records do not account for inflation (when such factors are calculated, Gone With the Wind is the actual champion).
Since its official release on December 18th, Star Wars: The Force Awakens has raced into the record books, hitting every major milestone up to $700 million faster than any other film in history. Additionally, the movie has broken at least 56 records that Box Office Mojo keeps track of.
Although Star Wars may seem like old news by now (with spoilers more or less being dubbed fair game), its run is still in its infancy. Avatar closed after 238 days in theatres — Star Wars has been out for less than three weeks! Even if it ultimately doesn’t take Cameron’s worldwide crowd, there’s no doubt that the film has been massive success, proving once again the strength of the beloved franchise.