Avengers: Endgame just had the biggest opening night in box office history

Avengers: Endgame's box office domination is inevitable, and it's already shattering records in the U.S.

The Marvel superhero finale, which wraps up 21 movies worth of films, launched with $60 million in its Thursday night U.S. previews, CNN reports. This is the biggest domestic preview gross of all time, surpassing the $57 million that Star Wars: The Force Awakens earned during its first night of showings in 2015. Endgame also soared way past the $39 million that Avengers: Infinity War took in on its Thursday night opening in 2018.

This $60 million figure comes from screenings that began in the U.S. on Thursday evening, and it will be added to Friday's gross for a final opening day total that Deadline writes could be up to $140 million. This would give Endgame the best opening day in the U.S. ever, easily beating Star Wars: The Force Awakens' $119 million.

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Endgame is virtually assured of setting a new record for the biggest opening weekend of all time, passing the current record-holder, Avengers: Infinity War, which opened to $257 million. It may gross between $270 million and $300 million, notes The Hollywood Reporter, with Deadline writing that the film hitting $300 million is now "likely." Only six films in history have had an opening weekend gross of more than $200 million.

Thanks to its record-breaking opening in China, Endgame has already grossed more than $300 million worldwide, and it could be looking at a historic $1 billion global debut.