That’s it: less than two weeks after its release, Avatar: the Way of Water is a billionaire. Directed by James Cameron, the feature film reached the prestigious milestone on Tuesday, December 27, after 12 days of release.
Posted at 3:49pm
In 2022, the films Top Gun: Maverick and Jurassic World: Dominion also hit 10-figure profits, but more slowly: in 31 days and three and a half months, respectively.
At the end of the day last Tuesday, the Disney and 20th Century blockbuster had grossed $317 million in North America and $713 million elsewhere in the world. So the blue avatars of the Exomonds Pandora seem to have survived the winter storm in the US. However, in China, where manufacturers have had big ambitions, concerns related to COVID-19 have limited revenue to $108 million so far.
Avatar: The Way of Water is the sixth film in history to hit the billion-dollar box office in two weeks.
In an interview with GQ magazine in November, Canadian director James Cameron said his film needs to gross at least $2 billion at the global box office to break even. The production budget is estimated at $250 million to half a billion.
The premiere volume of The Avatar Saga (2009), which officially went for $237 million, remains the highest-grossing film in cinema history, grossing $2.92 billion.