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James Cameron’s ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ dwarfed all other Christmas movies to finish the year-end holidays with more than $1.4 billion in worldwide ticket sales.
By Pamela McClintock
Senior Film Writer
Avatar: The Way of Water is a powerhouse.
James Cameron’s tentpole is expected to finish the long New Year’s weekend with an estimated $444.4 million domestically, well ahead of the first Avatar, which finished the year-end holidays with $352 million on its way to earning north of $750 million domestically. The 2009 film still ranks as the top-grossing movie of all time globally with $2.92 billion in ticket sales, including rereleases.
Avatar: The Way of Water will cross $1.4 billion in worldwide ticket sales on Monday after sprinting past the $1.37 billion mark on Sunday (Imax accounts for a huge $152.2 million of the gross, the fourth-best showing of all time for the large-format exhibitor). The pricey tentpole is already among the 15 biggest films of all time, not adjusted for inflation.
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Overseas, the sequel grossed a sizable $186.7 million for the three-day weekend for a foreign tally of $956.9 million. That includes $152.8 million from China, where the movie has gained strength, $95.1 million from France, $74.9 million from South Korea, $67.2 million from Germany and $54.2 million from the U.K.
In North America, The Way of Water is on course to gross a better-than-expected $86.3 million for the four-day holiday weekend (final numbers will be revealed on Tuesday). The tentpole has surpassed the $440.9 million grossed by 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story domestically during the same corridor in 2016, when Christmas day and New Year’s likewise fell on a Sunday.
The Way of Water is doing far more business than any other year-end release in what’s been a bummer for other Hollywood studios.
The next closest New Year’s performer is DreamWorks Animation and Universal’s Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, which is looking at a four-day gross of $22.6 million for a muted domestic tally of $67 million. At the foreign box office, the family pic earned another $22.5 million for an international cume of $68.8 million and $135.8 million globally.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has remained a major force and will come in at No. 3 over the weekend with an estimated $6.5 million. That will push the Marvel pic’s global cume to nearly $820 million.
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody is expected to follow with a tepid $4.9 million for the long weekend. The TriStar biopic, alongside Babylon, opened Dec. 23, two days after Puss in Boots 2 launched (Avatar 2 began its run on Dec. 16).
I Wanna Dance With Somebody, which cost $45 million to make before marketing, should finish Monday with a domestic total of $15.5 million. The movie has grossed $8.3 million internationally from 44 markets for an overseas tally of $13.1 million.
From Paramount, Damien Chazelle’s Babylon is an even bigger disappointment, having cost $78 million to produce before marketing. The movie, which will no doubt lose tens of millions, is looking at a four-day gross of just $3.4 million for a domestic total of $10.8 million through Monday (it isn’t launching at the foreign box office until January).
There were no new wide releases over New Year’s weekend.
At the specialty box office, Tom Hanks starrer A Man Called Otto opened in four theaters in New York and Los Angeles. The Sony movie should post a pleasing location average of $20,000 for the four-day holiday weekend.
Among other specialty releases, The Whale expanded into more than 600 theaters. The movie, placing No. 7, earned an estimated $2.1 million for a domestic total of $6.6 million through Monday.
MGM and UAR’s Women Talking, opening over Christmas in eight locations, is reporting a location average of $7,500 for the four-day New Year’s weekend.
Jan. 1, 8 a.m. Updated with revised numbers.
Jan. 2, 9:30 a.m. Updated with revised numbers.
This story was originally published Dec. 31, 2022, at 8:55 a.m.
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