Avatar: The Way of Water, the sequel to James Cameron's smash 2009 hit, Avatar, is already making waves at the box office. The movie officially opened on December 16, 2022, with many theaters screening early showings on the evening of December 15. Domestically and internationally Avatar: The Way of Water got off to a strong start, and within its first two weeks, Avatar: The Way of Water hit over a billion dollars at the worldwide box office.
Cameron is the king of box office successes, having set the record for the highest-grossing movie of all time with 1997's Titanic only to outdo himself in 2009 with the first Avatar. Avatar: The Way of Water's expensive budget made it financially risky from the off, and even Cameron has stated that it will need to be among the top three or four highest-grossing movies of all time just to break even. While it is still very early to tell how it will do long term, the Avatar sequel has opened to promising numbers at the box office. Here's how much Avatar 2 has made as of 12/29/22.
Avatar: The Way Of Water's Total Box Office As Of Thursday, December 29
As of Thursday, December 29, 2022, Avatar: The Way of Water has grossed about $1.28 billion total at the worldwide box office, including a reported $104.5 million from China. With no comparable movies that will provide fierce competition on the horizon, James Cameron may just pull off dethroning himself once again for the highest-grossing movie of all time. It remains to be seen just how much money Avatar: The Way of Water will make, but given these early numbers, there is no doubt it will be a lot.
However, while Avatar: The Way of Water's initial box office takes have been impressive, they are falling short of expectations. Avatar 2 has only managed to accrue $317 million at the domestic box office so far — impressive, but below what both Disney and industry analysts had previously predicted. However, Avatar: The Way of Water has seen unexpected success in South Korea, France, and India in particular, with $711.3 million of its gross coming from the overseas box office. Nobody attached to the movie seems concerned by these undeniably healthy figures falling slightly behind what was predicted, and Avatar: The Way of Water still has many weeks left in theaters.
It Took Under Two Weeks For Avatar 2 To Hit A Billion Dollars At The Box Office
Much of the speculation around the Avatar 2 box office gross was how long it would take to cross the billion-dollar threshold. Avatar: The Way of Water made officially made it's first billion at the worldwide box office on Tuesday, December 27, 2022. While the hype around Avatar 2 has been such that many in the public take it as a given that the Avatar sequel would perform so well, it's worth noting that The Way of Water is only the 6th movie in history to net $1,000,000 within 14 days of release.
The next box office milestone for Avatar: The Way of Water is when it can catch up to Avengers: Endgame and cross the $2 billion line. If Avatar: The Way of Water's box office performance continues as strongly as it has so far, it could well do so. It's also a testament to just how much Disney is dominating the market for big-budget cinematic releases. Not only is Disney competing against itself by trying to beat a box office record set by a movie it also owns, but 4 of the 6 movies to make a billion at the box office in the first two weeks have been released by the House of Mouse.
Avatar: The Way Of Water Was On Track To Be A Billion Dollar Movie In Its First Week
For Avatar: The Way of Water to be successful it needs to gross at least $2 billion according to James Cameron (via Variety). A tall order, but by its first Avatar 2 was already on track to hitting Cameron's target, and Avatar: The Way of Water becoming a billion-dollar box office sensation was almost unsurprising. During its first 7 days Avatar 2 grossed over half a million, netting in well over $600 million internationally. For comparison, box office dominator Avatar managed to reach billion-dollar movie status in just 19 days, a record back in 2009. Thankfully for James Cameron and Disney, the follow-up managed it in 12 days, including advanced screenings.
Avatar 2 Bucked Holiday Weekend Expectations
As a December release, how Avatar 2 performed over the holiday weekend was another Way of Water box office milestone for many. This was always going to be an uphill battle for the Avatar sequel given the current climate, but despite snow storms and other setbacks, Avatar: The Way of Water did better than expected. The Avatar 2 holiday weekend gross came in at $64 million over the weekend itself, with the long weekend figures (until Monday) settled at just over $90 million at the domestic box office. This actually beat Disney's initial projections, which is a positive sign for the possibility of the Avatar sequel gaining ticket-sale momentum in the run-up to the new year.
Avatar: The Way Of Water's Domestic Opening Weekend Box Office
The domestic opening weekend doesn't define the long-term success of a movie, but all eyes were on how Avatar: The Way of Water performed from December 16-18 nonetheless. Avatar: The Way of Water made a promising $17 million at the North American box office on its evening with the early preview screenings of the three-hour-plus movie. Avatar 2 then went on to make $134 million domestically on its opening weekend. The success of James Cameron's latest epic was a huge test for the 2022 box office, and even if it didn't quite perform as well as hoped, the Avatar sequel proved that cinematic events will still draw a crowd.
Avatar: The Way of Water has already managed to make over $1 billion at the box office, but it's not over the finish line yet. Avatar 2 will have to remain in theaters well into the new year to succeed at the level James Cameron is hoping for. With its lengthy runtime, however, repeat viewings may not be as frequent. While The Way of Water performed better than the original, which opened to a still impressive $77 million at the box office, the secret to the success of Avatar was its staying power in theaters and re-watch value, which drew in repeat customers. Time will tell if Avatar 2 can do the same.
How Much Avatar: The Way Of Water Made Internationally On Its Opening Weekend
Avatar: The Way of Water started off strong in the international market, netting $301 million at the global box office on its opening weekend. The first Avatar movie earned over 70 percent of its total earnings at the global box office, so international performance will be critical to the success of the sequel. China is operating with only 77 percent of its theaters open due to COVID-19, but the movie is still being shown there. Indeed, Avatar: The Way of Water releasing in China is a big deal, and Disney was hopeful that China alone would bring in $100 million over opening weekend. Sadly for Disney however, the total Chinese box-office take was only $57.1 million — just over half what was predicted.
How Did Avatar 2's Opening Weekend Compare To Other 2022 Movies?
Avatar: The Way of Water has already blown 2022's biggest box office openings, well, out of the water. One of the few contestants to beat it out was the 2021 movie, Spider-Man: No Way Home, whose weekend box office grossed $583 million — reportedly the largest box-office performance in the pandemic era. As for 2022, Avatar has surpassed the competition tenfold, save for one exception.
The sequel Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness holds the title of 2022's biggest box office weekend, making $449 million worldwide. With a $15 million lead, Doctor Strange 2 just barely skimmed by Avatar 2, and therefore remains on the throne. That being said, other contenders didn't fare so well. Top Gun: Maverick made $126 million, Jurassic World: Dominion got $145 million, and The Batman has $134 million to its box office name. All in all, it looks like Avatar: The Way of Water is on the way to making a new record, starting out incredibly strong.