Avatar (the movie) and its Sequels

[Disney Irish]

That's not how it works.

Everything WoW makes into 2023 will count towards "top grossing movie of 2022."

I'm well aware of how it works, I'm talking about calendar year.

Maverick got $1.488B Worldwide in 2022.
WoW is currently at $1.100B Worldwide (some reports have it already at around $1.280B when including 12/29 overseas numbers)

Only a $388M (or $208M) difference right now.

It wasn't very long ago how some were saying it probably wouldn't even break the $1B mark before next weekend in the new year at the earliest (myself included), and look it broke $1B earlier this week. The international numbers are crazy. If it continues the way it has been, and there is no reason to think it won't at this point. Then its not hard to see how its possible it'll be close by the time the complete Saturday 12/31 tallies come in to beating Maverick worldwide, if not actually beating it, in calendar year 2022.

Edit - And I wouldn't be surprised if Disney themselves didn't buy out a couple theaters just to start 2023 with the top movie.

 

[AVeryDifferentDisneyDad]

I love a Hershey's Krackel, but you can't find them anywhere!

Stay focused!!!

 

[CaptainAmerica]

$20m Domestic second Thursday (compared to $17m for Rogue One).

 

[DKampy]

$20m Domestic second Thursday (compared to $17m for Rogue One).

Yeah it has been outpacing Rogue 1 this week…not a direct comparison since it was not during the holidays, but right now it is outpacing Top Gun by just 1% domestically

 

[Disney Analyst]

It was another $20M day for James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water, so big that it was the biggest regular box office Thursday of the year after the sequel’s Dec. 22 take of $14.6M and Top Gun: Maverick‘s June 2 gross. The movie’s running total is $358M stateside with a 3-day expected to be around $50M and will cross the $400M threshold on New Year’s Day per box office sources. New Year’s Eve Saturday isn’t expected to be as depressed as Christmas Eve was a week ago.

To date, the Disney/20th Century Studios/Lightstorm movie has the following daily 2022 records: top and second grossing Thursday, the 2nd and 3rd highest Mondays of the year, the 1st and 2nd highest Tuesdays, and 1st and 3rd highest Wednesday.

Total Thursday global was $67.9M. Overseas B.O. total cume is $810.6M –surpassing Top Gun: Maverick‘s $770M to become the No. 1 international release of 2022 and No. 2 MPA title abroad in the pandemic era. Ongoing worldwide total for Avatar 2 is $1.168 billion.

We hear Comscore is down this AM, preventing others from reporting numbers. Disney didn’t have any problems, clearly.

We’ll have more updates for you as they come.

‘Avatar: The Way Of Water’ Scores Monday January Record With $21M+, 4-Day Rises To $88M, Looks To Best Blumhouse’s ‘M3GAN’ Opening – Tuesday AM Update

'Avatar: The Way Of Water' To Cross $440M At New Year's Weekend Box Office

deadline.com

 

[Disney Analyst]

Interesting discourse on UK box office.

 

[Phroobar]

 

[Jedijax719]

All this box office Avatar mumbo jumbo is great until you realize that its success all hinges on a technological and visual experience that it monopolizes. No other film can nor is even allowed to do what Avatar/Cameron do and thus raise an unfair bar. Now, with 3D pretty much being dead EXCEPT for Avatar, it is even more difficult for any movie to truly be a monstrous success outside a Spiderman and Avengers movie (not even that latter any more). So is this movie's success really going to mean anything significant to anything other than itself? The answer is a big fat NOPE.

 

[doctornick]

All this box office Avatar mumbo jumbo is great until you realize that its success all hinges on a technological and visual experience that it monopolizes. No other film can nor is even allowed to do what Avatar/Cameron do and thus raise an unfair bar. Now, with 3D pretty much being dead EXCEPT for Avatar, it is even more difficult for any movie to truly be a monstrous success outside a Spiderman and Avengers movie (not even that latter any more). So is this movie's success really going to mean anything significant to anything other than itself? The answer is a big fat NOPE.

I think it means that spectacle filmmaking has a future and it perhaps an undervalued niche that can be better served. Cameron is somewhat unique but there’s got to be a future Cameron sitting out there if the studios actively try to find and nurture him (or her!).

 

[Ghost93]

All this box office Avatar mumbo jumbo is great until you realize that its success all hinges on a technological and visual experience that it monopolizes. No other film can nor is even allowed to do what Avatar/Cameron do and thus raise an unfair bar. Now, with 3D pretty much being dead EXCEPT for Avatar, it is even more difficult for any movie to truly be a monstrous success outside a Spiderman and Avengers movie (not even that latter any more). So is this movie's success really going to mean anything significant to anything other than itself? The answer is a big fat NOPE.

Hey, it's not Cameron's fault that most other filmmakers aren't putting as much effort into making their visual effects look amazing. He spent a lot of time on Avatar: The Way of Water. Other filmmakers are free to do the same!

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

No one else is allowed to do 3D? Huh?

I guess most studios would be hesitant to give any filmmaker the kind of budget Cameron got for the Avatar sequels. He is in a class by himself when it comes to return on investment, that even a Spielberg can't touch.

Regardless, the message here is that tacked-on 3D as an upcharge isn't going to be as effective as actually filming a movie in and for 3D.

 

[BrianLo]

All this box office Avatar mumbo jumbo is great until you realize that its success all hinges on a technological and visual experience that it monopolizes. No other film can nor is even allowed to do what Avatar/Cameron do and thus raise an unfair bar. Now, with 3D pretty much being dead EXCEPT for Avatar, it is even more difficult for any movie to truly be a monstrous success outside a Spiderman and Avengers movie (not even that latter any more). So is this movie's success really going to mean anything significant to anything other than itself? The answer is a big fat NOPE.

I don't think that's the case. It was really important for this movie and Top Gun to have performed well. Avatar in part because they actually spent time on its post production and Top Gun for the practical showmanship. It's a lesson for other studios to not strictly try and replicate Marvel.

The thing I most care about frankly though is that I'm now invested in seeing this franchise through. I'd like it to do well because a director (without studio handcuffs) is overly dedicated to his quite ridiculous, but ambitious 5 film arc plan. Emphasis on the planned part, when many (not Marvel) series seem to simply be making it up as they go along. I want to see where this goes and an underperformance would not get us there.

Finally... from a self-serving parks perspective, this does actually get us closer to another Pandora ride. The stars are starting to align, particularly because Pandora was an Iger legacy project.

 

[Ghost93]

Finally... from a self-serving parks perspective, this does actually get us closer to another Pandora ride. The stars are starting to align, particularly because Pandora was an Iger legacy project.

Yeah, after watching Avatar: The Way of Water I kept thinking "Disney MUST add an underwater ride in Pandora!"

 

[MisterPenguin]

Yeah, after watching Avatar: The Way of Water I kept thinking "Disney MUST add an underwater ride in Pandora!"

If Splash Mountain boats are any signs, Navi River Journey will eventually provide one.

 

[Disney Analyst]

I don't think that's the case. It was really important for this movie and Top Gun to have performed well. Avatar in part because they actually spent time on its post production and Top Gun for the practical showmanship. It's a lesson for other studios to not strictly try and replicate Marvel.

The thing I most care about frankly though is that I'm now invested in seeing this franchise through. I'd like it to do well because a director (without studio handcuffs) is overly dedicated to his quite ridiculous, but ambitious 5 film arc plan. Emphasis on the planned part, when many (not Marvel) series seem to simply be making it up as they go along. I want to see where this goes and an underperformance would not get us there.

Finally... from a self-serving parks perspective, this does actually get us closer to another Pandora ride. The stars are starting to align, particularly because Pandora was an Iger legacy project.

I agree. I want this to do well because I want to see more of the Pandora world, and want Disney to build more.

 

[doctornick]

Yeah a Pandora version of the 20K subs from Japan I think would be a great addition to the park.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

All this box office Avatar mumbo jumbo is great until you realize that its success all hinges on a technological and visual experience that it monopolizes. No other film can nor is even allowed to do what Avatar/Cameron do and thus raise an unfair bar. Now, with 3D pretty much being dead EXCEPT for Avatar, it is even more difficult for any movie to truly be a monstrous success outside a Spiderman and Avengers movie (not even that latter any more). So is this movie's success really going to mean anything significant to anything other than itself? The answer is a big fat NOPE.

Lol.

 

[Jedijax719]

Lol.

What's LOL about that?
@Ghost93 The point is that, no, other filmmakers are not given the opportunity or even allowed to do what Cameron has done with Avatar. No studio executive alive would ever give another filmmaker the opportunity (aka funding) to do it. Period. It's too much of a risk to do it with anything new. Heck, most new ideas and original story concept are rejected out of hand by studio execs which is why we are not seeing anything original in theaters these days. Forget putting forth the budget for the tech used in Avatar. The reason the first one was even allowed to be made is because of Cameron's monstrous success with Titanic.

Maybe Joe Krasinki or the Russo Brothers could put something together BUT it would be for an existing franchise. What is left? Maybe the next two Avengers movies or Fantastic Four or another X-Men reboot? That's all MCU (getting tired at this point). But really, what else is left if anyone is to have success with an existing or past franchise? Back to the Future?

 

[CaptainAmerica]

What's LOL about that?

The success of The Way of Water is not just because of visual spectacle. It's one of the best movies about family in decades.

 

[The Lochness Monsta]

I liked the original, but for some reason I don't really want to see this one. At least not for a long time, maybe when I go through a dry spell of content in the summer.