The numbers keep coming in for James Cameron’s science-fiction epic “Avatar: The Way of Water” and after softer-than-expected estimates on Friday, the weekend numbers have been pushing things back towards initial projections early last week.
The film came in at $134 million at the domestic box office – tying with “The Batman” for the fifth biggest opening of the year. Though less than the $150-175 million range it was projected to open in, it’s a very strong showing for an over three-hour film that’s not expected to be front-loaded.
Internationally the film pulled in a pretty stunning $301 million in its global box office debut across multiple territories – the third biggest opening of the pandemic era behind only “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and the “Doctor Strange” sequel.
Thus its global opening weekend tally stands at $435 million. Korea ($24.7M), Germany ($19.9M), France ($19.3M), India ($18.1M) and the UK ($14.2M) all had strong debuts.
China offered the biggest start with $57.1 million, which is seen as an underwhelming turnout as hopes were that ticket sales could reach $100 million in China. However, a COVID flare-up and theater closures have had an impact.
One big thing is premium formatting. Around 67% of overseas ticket sales came from 3D, IMAX and other premium formats – compared to 27% for something like “Avengers: Endgame”. In China, 99% of ticket sales were for 3D screenings, whilst $50 million of that worldwide haul came from IMAX cinemas.
“Avatar: The Way of Water” reportedly cost at least $350 million to produce and millions more to market. Cameron previously stated he estimates that it needs to become one of the top-grossing releases in history to break even.
Source: Variety
