2018 North American box office hits an all-time high and it could go as high as $11.8 billion by the end of the year

• The 2018 domestic box office currently stands at $11.38 billion, according to Box Office Mojo.
• That passes 2016's $11.38 billion to be the biggest yearly North American total in ticket sales ever.
• Big blockbusters like "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom," can take credit, along with surprises like "A Star Is Born" and "A Quiet Place."

After a year where it seemed like almost every big release met or beat expecations at the domestic box office (sorry, "Solo"), Hollywood studio executives are reaping the rewards this week with news that 2018 set a new record in ticket sales.

The North American box office grossed $11.38 billion this year, passing the previous all-time record of $11.38 billion in 2016, according to figures listed on Box Office Mojo.

This was largely due to the performance by Disney titles. "Black Panther," "Avengers: Infinity War," and "Incredibles 2" were the studio's top three domestic earners this year. But unlike the last few years, big titles at other studios also carried the load. Universal's "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" and "The Grinch" were big earners for the studio. Warner Bros. had "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" and its successful December release of "Aquaman" will continue to build coin going into 2019. Sony had the dominant "Venom," Paramount had "Mission: Impossible - Fallout," and Fox had "Deadpool 2."

But to have a record-breaking year requires titles throughout the year that perform above and beyond, and 2018 certainly had that, with movies like "A Quiet Place," "Halloween," "Crazy Rich Asians," "The Meg," and "A Star Is Born" exceeding expectations.

Read more: Steve Carell's "Welcome to Marwen" suffered the worst box office opening for a studio movie this year

And with "Aquaman," "Mary Poppins Returns," "Bumblebee," and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" still going strong in theaters this week, the full-year figure could reach as high as $11.8 billion.