With an almost-historic level of success in its nearly two-month stretch in theaters, Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War will end up just shy of a $2 billion worldwide box office this weekend, just 47 days post-release. This will make the film the second fastest to reach the milestone, after the 20th Century Fox megahit, Avatar, in 2010.
Currently, the film sits at over $650 million domestically, and $1.3 billion overseas. It’s also second to Avatar in its overseas grossing since its initial release. Domestically, it sits ahead of Jurassic World, good for 5th in all time grossing behind blockbusters Titanic, Black Panther, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and Avatar.
While the film is strong in pretty much every aspect, it has also reaped the rewards of a perfectly timed release. Its time in theaters is ending just before the releases of Fox’s Deadpool 2, Pixar’s The Incredibles 2, and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. In addition, the movie certainly got some help from the overseas downfall of Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Looking forward, it will be interesting to see how Marvel approaches the several movies slated for release leading up to Avengers 4 as well as after it. The movie will likely be the end of a significant chapter of the Marvel era, with certain original cast members set for it to be their swan song. The success of Infinity War seems like it will have an impact on the upcoming July release of The Ant-Man and the Wasp. Despite a more relaxed marketing approach, as Scott Mendelson from Forbes.com notes, the Ant-Man sequel’s sell is more “come for the Wasp, stay for Infinity War clues.” While some fans might have interest to see how the events of Avengers 3 affect Ant-Man, The Wasp and Co., it also will give viewers a well-earned break from the
Whatever approach Marvel chooses to take over the next year, for now one can sit back and admire the historic cinematic success they’ve garnered over the first 22 Marvel Cinematic Universe films. The cinematic universe as a whole has grossed $16.8 billion worldwide, more than four times the $4 billion Disney paid to acquire Marvel Entertainment in 2009.
