The original Avatar was the biggest movie of all-time at the worldwide box office until its record was broken by Avengers: Endgame — will the sequel Avatar 2 reclaim the record? With a gargantuan $1.798 billion haul, Endgame managed to outgross Avatar, which reigned atop the worldwide box office for a decade. This means all eyes are on the next entry in the Avatar saga to see if it can replicate the record-breaking box office of its predecessor.
That second Avatar feature will be released theatrically on December 17, 2021. James Cameron will return to the directors' chair from a script penned by himself and Josh Friedman. Plot details on Avatar 2 are scarce, but it has been revealed that a tribe of Na'vi that reside underwater will factor into the plot. It's also known that Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana and Stephen Lang, among others, will reprise their roles from the original Avatar. Meanwhile, new cast members include the likes of Kate Winslet, David Thewlis and Vin Diesel.
While its cast may be set in stone, Avatar 2's box office fortunes are far less certain. Though Avatar 2 looks unlikely to become the biggest movie of all-time, that doesn't mean all hope is lost for the franchise in this regard: the original could still reclaim that title.
Even though Avatar 2 likely won't beat out the worldwide box office haul of Avengers: Endgame, that doesn't mean it won't be a box office juggernaut in its own right. Save for Piranha II: The Spawning, each of James Cameron's directorial efforts have been box office hits. It's highly likely Avatar 2 will continue this trend, especially when paired up with the inevitable hype over whatever new technological achievements Cameron has put together for this production. To boot, tentpole titles released in late December, like Aquaman, the recent Star Wars movies, and the last two James Cameron movies, tend to do remarkable business in this timeframe.
Even given all of those factors, though, it's doubtful the newest journey to Pandora will be able to beat out the $2.798 billion worldwide haul of Endgame. That Marvel Cinematic Universe entry benefited from being the culmination of over a decade of storytelling. That generates the kind of once-in-a-lifetime hype that the first of four further Avatar adventure won't be able to replicate. Plus, thanks to titles like Black Adam and Wicked, Avatar 2 is opening against far stiffer competition than anything Endgame faced. While those factors may keep Avatar 2 out of the top spot at the worldwide box office charts, its predecessor appears assured to reclaim its title of the biggest movie of all-time worldwide.
Currently, only $7.4 million separates Avengers: Endgame and Avatar on the worldwide box office chart. That's a minimal gap that could be closed by a theatrical re-release of Avatar. Such an event has precedent in the form of an August 2010 re-release of Avatar. That managed to bring in an additional $45 million to Avatar's worldwide box office haul. Furthermore, Jurassic Park was given a 3D theatrical re-release in 2013 ahead of 2015's Jurassic World. Considering that, it shouldn't be a problem in the slightest for another Avatar re-release to generate the extra $7.4 million needed to outgross Endgame. Though Avatar 2 is facing the kind of challenges that make it unlikely to outgross Avengers: Endgame, its predecessor seems poised to once again emerge as the king of the worldwide box office.