'Black Panther' Becomes Highest Grossing Superhero Film of All Time in US

Black Panther isn't just the superhero king of Wakanda, he's the superhero king of the box office as well.

Black Panther is now the highest-grossing superhero movie of all time at the box office in North America (not accounting for inflation).

Black Panther reached $630 million in earnings on Saturday, flying past the $623.4 million earned by Marvel's The Avengers in 2012 to become the highest grossing superhero movie ever domestically.

Black Panther is now only the seventh film to ever earn more than $600 million at the North American box office. It is currently the sixth highest grossing movie of all time.

Worldwide, Black Panther has earned over $1.2 billion so far. By the end of the weekend, it is expected to surpass Iron Man 3, which earned $1.214 billion, to become the third highest grossing comic book adaptation of all time globally, behind only The Avengers, which earned $1.5 billion,, and its sequel Avengers: Age of Ultron, which earned $1.4 billion.

Having been made with just a $200 million production budget, the film stands to be one of Marvel's most profitable ever.

Black Panther will return next month in Avengers: Infinity War, which unites all of Earth's heroes with the Guardians of the Galaxy to fend off an invasion by Thanos and the Black Order. The film, which is expected to climb the box office just as Black Panther has, also features several returning supporting cast members from Black Panther, including Danai Gurira as Okoye, who is struggling with Wakanda's new status quo.

"She's a deep traditionalist, and Wakanda is a very traditional place," Gurira said. "It has been really protected through trades and traditions and rituals and structures that were created by the forefathers a thousand years ago. She holds it on her shoulders. She's in charge of the intel of the nation. She's in charge of the military. So, for her, it's something that really weighs on her shoulders, to make sure that this nation is maintained in its secrecy of course because what it really is, is hidden from the world, and in the structures that they developed to keep that alive. Also, to retain their status as the most advanced nation in the world. "

Black Panther is now in theaters. Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Avengers: Infinity War on April 27th, Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6th, Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2020.