Across nearly five decades of filmmaking, James Cameron has cemented a lasting legacy with a string of movie masterpieces — Titanic, Aliens, and his two Terminator movies were all critical and box office successes. He also reshaped the science fiction genre by pushing technological boundaries and redefining the modern protagonist, featuring capable and emotionally complex female leads in his epics. One of those films has long held a box office record that’s now toppled by one of this year’s breakout hits.

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