James Cameron’s Avatar Earns $242.5 Million Worldwide Over Debut Weekend

The self-proclaimed “King of the World” might have another titanic (tee hee!) hit on his hands. Variety reports that Avatar—James Cameron’s ambitious 3D sci-fi epic—raked in $77 million domestically in its opening weekend. Overseas, the film earned $165.5 million, bringing its worldwide total to $242.5 million.

These numbers are impressive, but Avatar failed to wrest the best December opening title from I Am Legend, which earned $77.2 million domestically in 2007. It did, however, earn a record-breaking $9.5 million on IMAX screens. Worldwide, the film generated $13.6 million on IMAX screens, beating the $11.3 million opening weekend record set by Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen this summer.

Experts say Avatar would have performed even better had a blizzard not hit the East Coast over the weekend. I know it prevented me from getting to the theater when it hit New York Saturday night. So, while I pretty much figured out the plot months ago after watching the first theatrical trailer, I’ll need to avoid potential spoilers for a few more days.