It was the little movie that could, and it did it.

"Avatar" gave James Cameron a major filmmaking distinction for the second time in two tries -- a title that most moviemakers never, ever, ever see. He is the King of the World.

The science-fiction 3-D drama pulled in yet another $36 million over the weekend, and added a bit more to its total box office on Monday to officially become the highest-grossing movie of all time, when not adjusted for inflation. That's right, "Avatar" has grossed $552 million domestically, making it the No. 2 movie of all time in that department, and now more than $1.84 billion globally to become the biggest ever.

It surpasses "Titanic," which until Monday had been No. 1 in the world for some 13 years. Cameron didn't get on the phone and congratulate that filmmaker for a long run at the top. He simply looked in the mirror.

"Avatar" is now some $50 million off "Titanic" domestically, and could take over that spot by the beginning of February. While the box office receipts for "Avatar" is unprecedented, movie tickets are more expensive now than they were in 1997. At the same time, "Avatar" is charging a premium on top of those higher ticket prices because of its 3-D and IMAX offerings of the film.

This is the sixth straight weekend that "Avatar" was No. 1, fending off the latest release to challenge it, "Legion." It likely won't have the staying power of "Titanic," which was No. 1 in the domestic box office for 15 weeks.

The past weekend was a little more challenging for "Avatar" as "Legion" earned more than $18 million its opening week, despite some heavy marketing for the film.

The next major challenge for "Avatar" is the new Mel Gibson film "Edge of Darkness," which is released on Friday along with "When In Rome" in wide release. After that, it's "From Paris With Love" and "Dear John" on Feb. 5.

The top global movies of all time, without adjusting for inflation, are "Avatar" at top followed by "Titanic," "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" and "The Dark Knight."