Black Panther swims past Titanic at the domestic box office

The people of Wakanda have sunk the massive Titanic.

Posting an estimated $665.4 million in North America across its eight-weekend theatrical run, Marvel’s superhero blockbuster Black Panther bounded past James Cameron’s historical drama this weekend to claim the No. 3 spot on the all-time domestic box office chart, not adjusting for inflation.

The Ryan Coogler-directed film — starring Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Danai Gurira, Lupita Nyong’o, and Angela Bassett — now sits roughly $6 million ahead of the disaster epic’s $659.4 million cumulative haul.

Originally released in 1997, Titanic bagged $600.8 million throughout its debut stretch, adding $57.9 million for its 3D re-release in 2012 and a further $691,642 last year for its 20th-anniversary edition. Adjusted for inflation, Titanic’s $1.2 billion domestic total is the fifth highest in history; Black Panther is No. 34.

In terms of worldwide grosses, Titanic still leads Black Panther by a considerable margin. The Best Picture winner starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio has amassed $2.2 billion worldwide across its various theatrical runs, while Black Panther trails with an estimated $1.3 billion through Sunday.

Black Panther remains the top-earning Marvel release in franchise history, towering over The Avengers‘ $623.4 million North American take by about $42 million and counting.

Upon making $202 million over its first three days in wide release, Black Panther registered the fifth biggest opening weekend of all time and the second largest for a Marvel title, slightly trailing the $207.4 million posted by The Avengers.

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