Black Panther will cement its place as the top-earning superhero movie of all time at the U.S. box office.
The current Friday-Sunday estimate of $16.6 million for Black Panther will bring its cumulative domestic total up to $630.9 million (h/t Deadline). That gives it a small-yet-not-insignificant lead over The Avengers, which ended its May-September, 2012 run with a domestic take of $623.3 million.
Black Panther‘s box office success is all the more noteworthy in the context of the Marvel blockbuster it is poised to unseat. The Avengers was Marvel’s first major superhero ensemble effort, and it arrived at precisely the moment the Marvel Cinematic Universe reached peak popularity.
The next Avengers movie, Infinity War, is only a few weeks away. The Avengers movies have historically been Marvel’s biggest box office performers, and this one is sure to benefit from a number of advantages.