"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" crosses $1 billion mark at worldwide box office

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" has reached a major box office milestone.

The Peter Jackson film crossed the $1 billion mark over the weekend, becoming the 15th film to ever reach the figure in global ticket sales.

It's the second time a Jackson film has crossed the billion-dollar threshold -- his first film to do it was "The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King." The top three films on the list are "Avatar," "Titanic" and "The Avengers."

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" has grossed $301.1 million domestically to date, according to The Hollywood Reporter, and just under $700 million worldwide.

In a statement announcing the news Sunday, Warner Bros. president of international distribution Veronika Kwan Vandenberg said: "From Berlin to Beijing, it is so gratifying to see how the release of 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' has been such an event with audiences around the world. It's an exciting bellwether as we move toward the release of the second film in the trilogy."

That second film, "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" is scheduled to be released on Dec. 13, while the final installment, "The Hobbit: There and Back Again," will arrive December 2014.