Titanic (1997 film) and was no. 1 in all of them" and the markets "such as Russia, where "Titanic" saw modest receipts in 1997 and 1998, are white-hot today" with "more screens and moviegoers" than ever before. Brandon Gray, president of Box Office Mojo, said that while "Avatar" may beat "Titanic" revenue record, the film is unlikely to surpass "Titanic" in attendance. "Ticket prices were about $3 cheaper in the late 1990s." In December 2009, Cameron had stated, "I don't think it's realistic to try to topple "Titanic" off its perch. Some pretty good movies have come out in the last few years.
RMS Titanic in popular culture aims to gain a decisive American advantage in the Cold War by retrieving a stockpile of a fictitious ultra-rare mineral of military value, "byzanium", that the ship was supposedly carrying on her maiden voyage. The film, directed by Jerry Jameson, cost at least $40 million. It was the most expensive movie made up to that time but made only $10 million at the box office. Lew Grade, the producer, later remarked that it would have been "cheaper to lower the Atlantic". James Cameron's "Titanic" is the most commercially successful film about the ship's sinking. "Titanic" became the highest-grossing film in