The third “Avatar” movie got off to a comparatively slow start at the North American box office.
“Avatar: Fire and Ash” took in about $88 million at 3,800 theaters in the United States and Canada from Thursday through Sunday, according to Comscore, which compiles ticketing data. In 2022, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” the second movie in the epic science-fiction series, collected $134 million over the same period. In 2009, the first “Avatar” posted $77 million for its debut weekend, or $118 million after adjusting for inflation.
Directed by James Cameron and stretching to three hours and 17 minutes, “Avatar: Fire and Ash” introduces a violent clan that lives in Pandora’s volcanic region. Critics were lukewarm on the film, which cost 20th Century Studios, a division of Disney, an estimated $500 million to make and market. Ticket buyers were more forgiving: The Rotten Tomatoes audience score stood at 91 percent positive on Sunday.
“Avatar: Fire and Ash” collected an additional $257 million overseas, including nearly $58 million in China, for a worldwide opening total of about $345 million. IMAX delivered nearly 13 percent of the global debut of “Avatar: Fire and Ash” on less than 1 percent of screens worldwide.
Initial results for end-of-year openings can be misleading; movies tend to start slower and exhibit more staying power through the Christmas and New Year holidays.
“This isn’t one where you can look at opening weekend and get a sense of, ‘Did this movie work or didn’t it?’” said Richard Gelfond, IMAX’s chief executive. “It’s a question of how long it stays on screens and what repeat business looks like.” Mr. Gelfond noted that IMAX scrambled to install its technology at 27 new locations over the past three weeks.
“Exhibitors know that ‘Avatar’ is going to be such a big part of this year’s box office that they wanted to make sure to get open in time,” he said.
For the weekend in North America, “Avatar: Fire and Ash” was easily No. 1. The animated Bible story “David” (Angel Studios) was second, with estimated ticket sales of $22 million. “David” was independently financed for more than $50 million.
“The Housemaid” (Lionsgate), a well-reviewed thriller that cost about $35 million to make, was third. It stars Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried and sold an estimated $19 million in tickets.
“This is an excellent opening for an original psychological thriller,” David A. Gross, a film consultant who publishes a newsletter on box office numbers, wrote of “The Housemaid.” “The weekend figure is close to three times the average for the genre.”
Brooks Barnes covers all things Hollywood. He joined The Times in 2007 and previously worked at The Wall Street Journal.
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