Paramount Pictures has crossed the $1bn mark in domestic ticket sales in record time just days after its international division PPI achieved the same feat. Paramount becomes the first studio to reach the milestone this year and bettered the old record by three weeks.

The studio was the first to reach $1bn last year as well. It also holds the distinction of leading the market share rankings for the past five weeks and has released the top three grossing films of the year-to-date.

Cloverfield got Paramount off to the races in January with an $80m domestic haul, followed by $305m for Iron Man, $291m for Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull and $156m for Kung Fu Panda.

Paramount's upcoming openings this year include DreamWorks' Tropic Thunder starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr and Jack Black, Paramount Vantage's hit Sundance documentary American Teen, DreamWorks Animation's Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa featuring the voice of Stiller and The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett.

Paramount Pictures International (PPI) hit the $1bn mark at the international box office on June 14, making it the first studio to reach the figure internationally this year.

PPI hit the mark six weeks faster than it did in 2007, thanks to blockbuster summer films, chiefly Iron Man and Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.

The milestone was reached before this week's huge Indiana Jones opening in Japan (click here for more) and before the opening in manymajor markets ofKung Fu Panda.

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