Avengers Endgame box office: Will Marvel hit make more than a BILLION in opening weekend?

Analysts now believe it has a chance of crossing $1 billion globally by the end of the weekend – an all-time first.

Marvel’s epic blockbuster took $111.4 million in the US on Saturday, after raking in $158.3 million on Friday.

Avengers: Endgame‘s domestic total is now thought to be at around $358.5 million, pending official confirmation once the sales are finalised.

For comparison, that’s more than $100 million higher than Avengers: Infinity War managed last year ($257.6 million).

Estimates for the whole weekend now sit at well over $400 million, higher than Infinity War’s record-setting $314 million.

Yesterday the film was reported to have thundered to an almighty $487 million up until Friday alone – not including an additional estimated $82.4 million from China yesterday.

Deadline reports that this could put the film as high as $1.1 billion worldwide for its opening weekend – completely unheard-of previously.

The highest worldwide opening was previously Avengers: Infinity War’s $641 million – which didn’t include China.

Fans have been rushing to soak up the film before seeing it spoiled on social media.

The level of secrecy around it was enormous, with cast members unable to discuss the film in depth during promotional interviews.

Demand for pirated illegal torrents has also been high – but clearly not to the detriment of the box office receipts.

The release of the movie seems to be having an effect on its predecessor too: Captain Marvel is expected to rebound to No2 at the US box office this weekend.

ALL 22 MARVEL MOVIES RANKED – WHAT’S NO1?

Its $8.3 million estimated gross in its eighth week is only 9% down week-on-week, and puts it close to $414 million domestically since its release.

This is a hugely profitable year for Disney: they still have many more smash hits in the bag for release in 2019, including Toy Story 4 and Aladdin in the coming weeks alone.

The Lion King, Frozen 2, Spider-Man: Far From Home and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will also do big business later in the year.

Avengers: Endgame is out now.