James Cameron’s ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ is powering through the global box office ahead of the Christmas holiday, crossing the $450 million mark just a week after its release.
The third instalment in the Avatar franchise has so far earned $119 million in North America and $331 million from international markets. Strong midweek takings on Tuesday, with $16.5 million domestically and $34.3 million overseas, suggest the film is holding well beyond its opening weekend and is well placed for the festive rush.
Industry projections indicate the film could collect between $75 million and $80 million over the four-day Christmas frame, a figure likely to keep it at the top of the North American box office despite fresh competition. Several new releases, including A24’s ‘Marty Supreme’, Focus Features’ ‘Song Sung Blue’ and Sony’s ‘Anaconda’, enter cinemas on Christmas Eve, with box office reporting beginning on Christmas Day.
Elsewhere, Disney’s ‘Zootopia 2’ continues to dominate the holiday marketplace. The animated sequel has earned $1.3 billion worldwide, driven by an extraordinary $993 million from international audiences. It has already surpassed the total gross of the original 2016 film and is on track to become only the second animated feature to cross $1 billion overseas.
The strong performance of Zootopia 2, alongside titles such as ‘Lilo & Stitch’, has also delivered a major milestone for Disney. The studio has now exceeded $6 billion in global ticket sales for the first time since the pandemic, marking its fifth such achievement overall and underlining a robust return to cinemas during the holiday season.
