‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ soars past US$1 bil globally

WORLDWIDE ticket sales for 'Avatar: The Way of Water' has skyrocketed past US$1 billion (RM4.42 billion) in just 14 days, becoming the fastest movie this year to cross the box office milestone. 

This makes Avatar the third film released this year to have surpassed the billion-dollar mark as the theatrical experience slowly resurges after two years of lockdowns and the popularity of streaming platforms.

The other two movies to make more than US$1 billion are Tom Cruise’s 'Top Gun: Maverick', which took 31 days to hit the benchmark, and 'Jurassic World Dominion', the 'final' film in the beloved dinosaur series – which took more than four months to join the ranks.

In 2019 (pre-pandemic times), nine movies surpassed the US$1 billion mark, and only six movies ever have managed to rake in US$1 billion in their first two weeks of release. 

So far, the Disney and 20th Century film has generated US$317.1 million in North America and US$712.7 million in other territories, bringing its global tally to US$1.025 billion. It surpassed “Jurassic World Dominion” as the second highest-grossing movie of the year, and is currently the third highest of the pandemic era. 

Avatar 2 continues to be a huge draw going into the new year, which is necessary to justify the hefty price tag of making it. Cameron has previously commented that it needs to generate roughly US$2 billion to break even, though analysts indicate the threshold for profitability is closer to US$1.5 billion.

'The Way of Water' is the first of three planned follow-ups in Cameron’s Pandora series. 

The original “Avatar” was released in 2009 and stands as the highest-grossing release in history with US$2.97 billion worldwide. The sequel, which arrived on the big screen 13 years later, will struggle to near those heights because the global box office hasn’t fully rebounded from the pandemic.

Moreover, China, a major theatrical market, is experiencing a resurgence of the virus and Russia, another big territory, won’t have access to the film. 

“The Way of Water” stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña and Sigourney Weaver, which follows the Sully family as they head underwater to battle the elements and keep the Na’vi safe from humans. Other cast members include Stephen Lang, Kate Winslet, Edie Falco and Jemaine Clement. – The Vibes, December 29, 2022