Avatar tops Titanic as highest grossing domestic movie ever

It’s the moment you all knew was coming and it’s finally here: AVATAR has surpassed TITANIC as the highest grossing movie in US history. AVATAR had already become the biggest worldwide hit but needed a few extra bucks to line its pockets with before taking the domestic box office crown. Fox announced this morning that AVATAR has officially brought in $601.2 million, pushing it over the $600.8 million that TITANIC raked in back in 1998. And AVATAR is still #1 at the box-office.

Naysayers will quickly point out that the 3D format and the extra ticket cost it incurs has created an unfair playing field with TITANIC, which brought in its cash solely on multiple viewings. Also AVATAR has a way to go before it can catch GONE WITH THE WIND as the leader in total ticket sales.

Yet it is still a remarkable achievement for Fox and James Cameron as many were speculating that AVATAR could bomb and barely make back its cost of production. With no films proving they can knock off AVATAR as #1 at the box-office and the 9 Oscar nominations it received only giving it an extra boost, it’s possible it could reach $1 billion before it’s all said and done (unlikely, but possible). The next real contenders to knock off AVATAR are THE WOLFMAN and VALENTINE’S DAY, which both hit theaters on February 12.