LOS ANGELES — “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” stayed on top of the North American box office for the fourth straight weekend, beating out Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Revenant,” and becoming the third-largest grossing movie in the world ever.

According to studio estimates Sunday, the adventures of Rey, Finn and stalwarts from the previous “Star Wars” films raked in $41.6 million in the United States and Canada and $104.3 million overseas, led by a record-breaking opening in China.

Disney distribution executive vice president Dave Hollis said the expected $53 million debut weekend in China was “spectacular” given the film is the first “Star Wars” episode many Chinese people have ever seen.

In the United States and Canada, it is the biggest movie ever and the first to pass $800 million with $812 million so far.

Its global total now stands at $1.73 billion, according to The Walt Disney Co., passing “Jurassic World,” with $1.67 billion.

The film now has in its sights No. 2 “Titanic,” with its $2.2 billion box office haul in 1997-98, and No. 1 “Avatar,” from 2009-2010 at $2.8 billion.

But its place as the all-time biggest movie is by no means assured, according to Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst with Rentrak.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily predestined,” Dergarabedian said. “That’s a big number. It’s a tough number to get to.”‘

“The Revenant,” a gritty R-rated movie directed by Alejandro Inarritu about an 1820s frontiersman who gets mauled by a bear, blasted through expectations of about $25 million in its first weekend of wide release with a $38 million haul, following limited showings in New York and Los Angeles in December.