Two short weeks ago, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" was the biggest box-office thing ever in Hollywood.
Now, it's getting beat by "Captain America."
Is the wizard out of magic--and so soon?
RELATED: Will this be Emma Watson's first post-Potter movie?
Hardly.
"Deathly Hallows: Part 2" just became the first movie to break $900 million after only 15 days in theaters worldwide, Box Office Mojo reported. (The film opened in some foreign countries on July 13.) It's already the Earth's 19th-biggest-ever grosser.
But, domestically, Harry Potter's wand has indeed lost its zip--and lost it fast.
On these shores, "HP8" was at about $298 million through Wednesday. At the same point in its runs, "The Dark Knight," which "Deathly Hallows: Part 2" blew past to take the opening-weekend record, was at $342.7 million.
How did Harry Potter blow such a big lead?
"Even a huge franchise like this has a ceiling, and the base hasn't expanded that much," BoxOffice.com Phil Contrino said via email.
In other words, Potter fans here rushed to see the franchise's final film the first second (read: weekend) they got, and then after that... Well, let's just say, Twilight fans could tell Potter fans that ginormous debuts don't mean "Avatar"-toppling runs.
Speaking of the all-time box-office champ...
"['Deathly Hallows: Part 2'] doesn't have a shot at 'Avatar's' record," Contrino said.
And no one ever thought it did because "Avatar" is "Avatar," one of those flukes and/or James Cameron movies. (For what it's worth, "HP8" is currently running ahead of "Avatar's" pace.)
Of course, with "Deathly Hallows: Part 2" long expected to gross $1 billion worldwide, it's OK to be Harry Potter, too.