Avengers: Endgame has surpassed Avatar to become the highest-grossing film of all time.

The Marvel Studios sequel, directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, earned over £2.3bn ($2.9bn) in revenue by Sunday, since being released in April. Avatar, directed by James Cameron, which was released in 2009, previously held the record as the highest grossing movie of all time , earning $2.79bn.

Alan Horn, co-chairman and chief creative officer of the Walt Disney Studios, said: “A huge congratulations to the Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Studios teams, and thank you to the fans around the world who lifted Avengers: Endgame to these historic heights.

“Of course, even with the passage of a decade, the impact of James Cameron’s Avatar remains as powerful as ever, and the astonishing achievements of both of these films are ongoing proof of the power of movies to move people and bring them together in a shared experience.”

Producer Kevin Feige announced the news at Comic Con on Saturday, saying it would be a “matter of days” before Endgame became “the biggest film in history” but added that “if you adjust for inflation, [James Cameron] still holds the title”.

Chris Hemsworth, who starred as Thor in Endgame, congratulated his team for the achievement in an Instagram post: “Thank you to all the fans around the world that lifted Avengers Endgame to historic heights making it the top grossing film of all time!”

Avengers: Endgame is the sequel to 2012’s The Avengers, 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, and 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War and the 22nd film in the Marvel cinematic universe and the fourth blockbuster in the Avengers series.

The film, which was first released on 25 April stars Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth. It earned $1.22bn in its initial April release, achieving the biggest global opening of all time.