If going strictly on $. No movie by WB has sold as many tickets as quickly
link. It is also WBs highest grossing global movie ever.
The movie is also the first ever billion $ movie for a female director and representative of a key part of the economy in 2023. That is female driven discretionary spending
link.
It also dealt with some pretty complex themes like motherhood, feminism, and aging while playing on nostalgia in a way that movies like avengers don't come close to. And it stayed fun, appealing to multiple generations.
I honestly hate the movie bc my 2 yr old daughter wants it all the time and we don't put many movies on in the house. But I can definitely see why it's a cultural phenomenon in ways that none of the avengers have been.