.jpg)
Avatar: The Way of Water aka Avatar 2, which is the sequel to the record-breaking film Avatar (2009) and the second film in the Avatar franchise, has been registering staggering figures at the box office since releasing on December 16.
James Cameron’s magnum opus, which has a runtime of 190 minutes, was made on a budget of a whopping $350 million (Rs 2895 crore), per TIME. That makes it the fourth-most expensive movie ever made after Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides ($379 million – Rs 3135 crore), Avengers: Age of Ultron ($365 million – Rs 3019 crore), and Avengers: Endgame ($356 million – Rs 2945 crore), per TIME.
Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Kate Winslet and Sigourney Weaver, Avatar 2 follows Jake Sully and Neytiri as they face an ancient threat that leads them to fight against humans. The science fiction film is among the widest releases in Disney history, debuting on over 40,000 screens internationally, including 12,000 screens in the US and Canada, per Mint.
In its first weekend, Avatar: The Way of Water collected $435 million (Rs 3598 crore) globally, including $134 million (Rs 1108 crore) in North America alone, and $59 million (Rs 488 crore) in China, per Variety. Those numbers are great, but not greater than the opening weekend collection of Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, which collected $442 million (Rs 3656 crore) globally, and Spider-Man: No Way Home, which grossed a staggering $600 million (Rs 4964 crore) worldwide in its first three days, per TIME. At the US box office, Avatar 2 tied with The Batman to become the fifth-biggest opener of the year.
On its opening day, the film collected $136.5 million (Rs 1129 crore) worldwide, per DNA, while in its first two days, it crossed the Rs 1500 crore mark worldwide, per Indian Express.
In India, Avatar 2, which was released in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam across 4,000 screens, earned Rs 160 crore in its first three days, per Mint. As per India Today, the film earned around Rs 40 crore at the Indian box office on its opening day, which makes it the second-highest Hollywood opener in the Indian market after Avengers: Endgame which earned Rs 53 crore on its first day. On Saturday, Avatar 2 netted Rs 41 crore, per India.com while on Sunday, it earned another Rs 43 crore, per Hindustan Times, despite facing competition from the FIFA World Cup Final.
On day 4 and 5, however, the numbers took a dip in India. As per Indian Express, Avatar 2 earned between Rs 16 crore and Rs 18 crore on day 4 (Monday), and as per India Today, the film collected Rs 16 crore on day 5 (Tuesday). The numbers are expected to further take a hit, with competition from Rohit Shetty’s Cirkus, starring Ranveer Singh, coming up this Friday.
Despite the plunge in numbers, Avatar 2 has done great at the Indian box office. The movie is soon likely to surpass the lifetime collection of Drishyam 2, which collected Rs 221.35 crore, per Indian Express.
Avatar (2009), is the highest-grossing movie in history, with a collection of $2.8 billion (Rs 23180 crore) worldwide, per USA Today. It remains to be seen if its sequel can breach the $2 billion (Rs 16557 crore) mark.
But for now, the target of entering the elusive $2 billion club looks difficult, more so because Avatar 2 has not been released in Russia, where its predecessor grossed $116 million (Rs 959 crore), per Variety.
There are set to be three more sequels in the Avatar franchise. As per BBC, the next three instalments will be called Avatar: The Seed Bearer, Avatar: The Tulkun Rider and Avatar: The Quest for Eywa.
