James Cameron is a good sport about ‘Avengers: Endgame’ surpassing his ‘Avatar’
As of Sunday, “Avatar,” James Cameron’s 2009 juggernaut, is no longer the highest-grossing film of all time.
That title now belongs to Marvel’s “Avengers: Endgame” after the studio rereleased “Endgame” last month with a few minutes of extra content, including a deleted scene featuring the Hulk.
For 21 years, a movie directed by Cameron has held the spot of highest-grossing film. In 1998, his “Titanic” became the first film to earn more than $1 billion. It was not until 2010 that “Avatar” surpassed the 1998 film’s earning when it became the first film to reach $2 billion at the box office.
On Monday morning Cameron was a good sport and sent a congratulatory tweet.
The note begins in Na’vi, the language created for the inhabitants of Pandora in “Avatar.” “Oel Ngati Kameie,” reads 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 on Monday morning.
“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.”
In May Cameron posted a similar tweet congratulating “Endgame” for beating out “Titanic” in earnings.
“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!”
More to Read
Only good movies
Get the Indie Focus newsletter, Mark Olsen's weekly guide to the world of cinema.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.