'Avatar: The Way of Water' is the Third James Cameron Movie to Gross $2 Billion

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The global box office for Disney's "Avatar: The Way of Water" has surpassed $2 billion, making it the third James Cameron film to reach this milestone. Only five previous movies have achieved this feat—the original "Avatar," "Avengers: Endgame," Cameron's "Titanic," "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," and "Avengers: Infinity War."

"The Way of Water" has earned $598 million in domestic ticket sales as of Sunday and $1.426 billion from international ones. The movie currently holds the sixth-highest worldwide box office position and is expected to rise in the rankings as long as it stays in theaters. After the pandemic, the box office failed to rebound as more people watching television at home and fewer movies were released in theaters. Films like "The Way of Water" have shown that audiences are eager to return for large blockbuster spectacles when the industry recovers. And many people are willing to pay more for premium viewing like IMAX or large format screens, which are frequently more expensive. Due to an increase in COVID cases and hospitalizations brought on by the virus, "The Way of Water" has performed less well than anticipated in China, although it has done well in France, Germany, and Korea.

The Avatar franchise, which has three more films planned for release over the next five years, is doing well as it passes the $2 billion mark. Without accounting for marketing expenses, estimates for the film's production budget range from $250 million to $350 million. "The Way of Water" could steadily continue to earn box office receipts as there isn't any direct competition in theaters until mid-February when Marvel Studios' "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania," another Disney film, is released.