"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" Disney's top film overseas

(CBS) It's official. "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" is Disney's biggest earner ever at the international box office. Somewhere in the world there's a mouse quietly shaking his head.

Pictures: "Pirates" in Cannes
Pictures: Johnny Depp
Pictures: Penelope Cruz

The Hollywood Reporter writes the film is the fourth biggest at the box office of all time overseas with a gross of $695.9 million. The only pictures standing in Capt. Jack Sparrow's way are "Avatar" with $2 billion, "Titanic" with $1.2 billion and "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King." Its $742.1 million will look nearly paltry by the time "Pirates" is done with it.

What's the reason for this film's big numbers despite reviews that place it squarely in mediocre territory? This is just a guess, but perhaps Penelope Cruz has more overseas box office pull than any of the series' other non-American stars, including Keira Knightly, Orlando Bloom, Stellan Skarsgard, Bill Nighy and Geoffrey Rush.

Or maybe global audiences reeeeally love Johnny Depp - and who can blame them? - and couldn't wait for his rapscallion Sparrow in a fourth "Pirates" epic.