Avatar Sequel Sets 2022 Box Office Record

It's the fastest to hit $1B global box office this year
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 29, 2022 8:57 AM CST
Avatar Sequel Cruises Past $1B at Box Office
This image released by 20th Century Studios shows Jake Sully portrayed by Sam Worthington in "Avatar: The Way of Water."   (20th Century Studios via AP)

For the last 25 years, the world box office record has been held by movies directed by James Cameron, and Avatar: The Way of Water could extend the streak. Cameron's 1997 Titanic film was knocked off top spot by the first Avatar movie in early 2010, and the long-awaited sequel has sailed past $1 billion globally in just 14 days, becoming only the sixth movie in history to pass the mark within two weeks of release, Variety reports. The movie is the fastest to hit the $1 billion mark since last year's Spider-Man: No Way Home, which currently holds the pandemic-era global box office record with $1.92 billion, per Deadline.

The sequel has now passed Jurassic World Dominion as the second-biggest global release of 2022 and is on course to take the No. 1 spot from Top Gun: Maverick, reports the Los Angeles Times. Avatar, which was released in 2009, is still history's highest-grossing film with a lifetime gross of $2.9 billion, according to Box Office Mojo. Avengers: Endgame, released in 2019, is in second place with $2.8 billion. The Way of Water is expected to remain strong into next year but several factors may prevent it from surpassing its predecessor at the box office, Variety notes. Global box office numbers still haven't rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, COVID case numbers are surging in China, and the movie won't be released in Russia. (Here's what critics are saying about the sequel.)

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