‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Takes Down ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ as Sixth-Highest Grossing Movie in Domestic Box Office History

variety.com:

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterThe milestones keep rolling in. “Top Gun: Maverick” has collected $679 million in North America, enough to overtake Marvel’s “Avengers: Infinity War” ($678 million) as the sixth-highest grossing movie in domestic box office history.It’s an especially impressive benchmark because 2018’s every-hero-but-the-kitchen-sink adventure “Avengers: Infinity War” had a little help in building up anticipation.

It served as part one (2019’s “Endgame” was part two) of Marvel’s epic culmination of more than 20 movies — most of which were box office juggernauts in their own right — over 10 years.

Talk about hype.Sure, “Maverick” had Tom Cruise, a box office hero in his own right. But moviegoers hadn’t felt the need for speed in more than 30 years; the sequel to 1986’s “Top Gun” was far from a guaranteed hit.

Yet, thanks to stellar word-of-mouth and repeat customers, “Maverick” continues to defy the odds. And there’s a chance the movie will continue to fly higher on box office charts.