Paramount ranked No. 1 in market share at the domestic box office in 2011, taking the crown away from Warner Bros. after Warners’ three-year winning streak. Paramount titles collected $1.96 billion in 2011 in North America, compared to $1.82 billion for Warner Bros. Overseas, the news was just as good for Paramount, where it became the first studio in history to jump the $3 billion mark, with its titles earning $3.21 billion.

That puts Paramount’s global total at $5.17 billion.

Warner Bros.’ films took in $2.86 billion overseas for a global total of $4.67 billion, the second-best showing after Paramount among the Hollywood studios.

Paramount is credited for its fine-tuned marketing and distribution units, as well as for a focused development slate.

“Over the last six years, we’ve achieved everything we hoped we would,” Paramount chairman-CEO Brad Grey told The Hollywood Reporter. “We had three major franchise titles in 2011, Michael Bay’s Dark of the Moon, Paranormal Activity 3 and the recalibration of Mission: Impossible–Ghost Protocol, withTom Cruise doing a great job.”

When announcing the good news, Paramount revealed its 2012 slate will include Halloween release Paranormal Activity 4. Other 2012 titles include Brad Pitt zombie tentpole World War Z, directed by Marc Forster, G.I. Joe: Retaliation and The Dictator, reteaming Sacha Baron Cohen with Borat directorLarry Charles