Sci-fi spectacular "Avatar" has surpassed "Titanic" to become the highest-grossing movie worldwide, distributor 20th Century Fox said on Tuesday.

The worldwide total for the James Cameron movie stands at $1.859 billion after Monday's sales, beating the $1.843 billion haul racked up by "Titanic" in 1997-1998, said Greg Brilliant, spokesman for the News Corp-owned studio.

The data are not adjusted for inflation.

"Avatar" broke the seemingly insurmountable record set by "Titanic" in little over six weeks, handing Cameron the remarkable feat of directing the world's two biggest movies of all time.

It has reigned at the top of North American box office for six weeks. It has also led the field in France, China, Germany and Russia.

The action-adventure movie, starring Sigourney Weaver, is set in 2154 and tells the tale of a disabled ex-Marine sent to Pandora to infiltrate a race of 10-foot (3-meter) blue aliens and persuade them to let his employer mine their homeland for natural resources.

The film took more than five years to make and was reportedly one of the most expensive films, with a budget of at least $300 million.

It has wowed both critics and fans, winning a Golden Globe last week. It is expected to garner an Oscar nomination next month.

科幻巨制《阿凡达》的发行方20世纪福克斯公司于本周二称，目前《阿凡达》已超越《泰坦尼克号》，成为世界电影史上票房最高的影片。

隶属于新闻集团的20世纪福克斯公司的发言人格雷格•布里连特称，截至本周一，这部由詹姆斯•卡梅隆执导的影片全球票房达18.59亿美元，打破了《泰坦尼克号》在1997年至1998年创下的18.43亿美元的票房纪录。

该数据统计没有考虑通货膨胀因素。

《阿凡达》上映仅六周多就打破了《泰坦尼克号》创下的巅峰票房纪录，这也使得卡梅隆成为执导世界电影史上两部最卖座电影的伟大导演。

《阿凡达》已连续六周稳居北美票房之首，在法国、中国、德国和俄罗斯也是独占票房之鳌头。

这部由西格妮•韦弗出演的动作冒险片以2154年为背景，讲述了一名身有残疾的前海军陆战队老兵受命前往“潘多拉”星球，渗透进一个身高达10英尺（3米）的蓝色外星人种族，试图说服他们搬离居住地，以让地球人在此开发自然资源的故事。

这部影片耗时五年多制作而成，据称是世界电影史上最贵的影片之一，预算至少达3亿美元。

《阿凡达》获得影评家和影迷的盛赞。该片于上周斩获金球奖，并有望于下月获得奥斯卡奖提名。