The now 68-year-old Cameron had failed to understand what audiences want. Well, the critics were wrong. Avatar 2 has not flopped. Released just a month ago, it is the highest grossing film of 2022, and currently the seventh highest grossing film of all time, taking more than $1.7 billion at the box office.
Like the original “Avatar,” the follow-up's success is attributed to its generation-spanning appeal as well as the incentive to watch the film in premium and 3D formats. On Imax screens, the movie has crossed $250 million. That's more coinage than many films manage to earn in their entire theatrical runs.
Avatar 2's domestic gross is $657 million, putting it at No. 9 on the all-time roster (it's still behind Titanic ($672.2 million) in North America. Overseas, The Way of Water has amassed a massive $1.586 billion, the third-best showing ever at the international box office behind Avatar and Endgame.
Total Profit: $531.7M. It should come as no surprise that James Cameron's Avatar: The Way of Water has won Deadline's Most Valuable Movie Blockbuster Tournament for 2022. At the global box office, it beat Paramount/Skydance/New Republic's Top Gun: Maverick, $2.3 billion to $1.49 billion.
How Avatar: The Way of Water Became the 6th Movie in History to Make $2 Billion. After being in theaters for just over a month, Avatar: The Way of Water—the long-awaited sequel to James Cameron's 2009 hit—has officially grossed over $2.024 billion.
Avatar 2 Passes $2 BILLION At The Box Office | No More EXCUSES For Hollywood!
Was Avatar 2 a disappointment?
The biggest issue with "Avatar: The Way of Water" is its lackluster storyline. The plot is thin and predictable, with little to no character development. The film relies heavily on clichéd tropes and predictable twists, leaving the audience feeling underwhelmed and uninvested in the outcome.
It was a major box office success, breaking multiple records, and grossing $2.320 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film of 2022, the highest-grossing film since the COVID-19 pandemic, and the third-highest-grossing film of all time.
Now, Deadline reports that Avatar: The Way of Water's actual profit is $531.7 million. After factoring out the additional costs of filming most of Avatar 3 and parts 4, which were shot concurrently, the film's production budget is pegged at $400 million.
Filming wrapped in December 2020. In February 2024, Cameron gave the following update on Avatar 3: It's pretty much in the can. We're shooting pick-ups on 3, which is just filling in the last 2 or 3%, and we've also got live-action pick-ups in June, that's another couple percent.
How much did Zoe Saldaña make from Avatar 2? According to reports, Zoe Saldaña earned $8 million for appearing in Avatar: The Way of Water. Her co-star, Sam Worthington, earned $10 million for appearing in the film—despite Saldaña's resume and box office history far surpassing his.
How much did James Cameron make from Avatar: Way of Water?
James Cameron reportedly earned a massive check for "Avatar: The Way of Water." The director made at least $95 million for his work on the movie, according to Forbes, based on a deal that nabbed him a portion of the movie's box-office revenue, as well as bonuses for passing certain box office thresholds.
This past weekend, the Disney and 20th Century Studios sci-fi sequel Avatar: The Way of Water surpassed $2B at the global box office, now ranking #6 all time. With $2.02B, the film now ranks only behind: 2009's Avatar ($2.92B) 2019's Avengers: Endgame ($2.79B)
Sources have told Variety that “Avatar: The Way of Water's” break-even point was set at roughly $1.4 billion, a figure the movie has already crossed. Insiders told Variety this week that “The Way of Water” is going to generate a box office total of at least $1.825 billion, though $2 billion certainly remains in reach.
16 according to Box Office Mojo data. The figure makes it the highest-grossing release of 2022, and has allowed it to leapfrog 2015's "Furious 7" to become the No. 10 highest-grossing film of all time. Box office watchers don't expect "Avatar 2" to slow down any time soon.
What are the problems with Avatar 2, according to critics? With the release of Avatar 2, James Cameron has been accused of cultural appropriation and promoting a “white savior” narrative. Some indigenous activists have even called for a boycott of the film.
Her father is not a father, her father is another mother, Eywa, the Great Mother, the sentient life force of Pandora itself that exists in all things there, but is rarely understood. So essentially yes, Kiri was born from Eywa just like Anakin Skywalker was allegedly conceived by the Force itself and its midichlorians.
'Avatar 3': James Cameron Confirms That Kate Winslet Will Be Back As Ronal. leaving the page. confirmed today that he and Kate Winslet are working together again on Avatar 3, the third film in the director's $5 billion-and-counting franchise.
But, the question still remains: Will Neteyam return to Avatar 3? The short and easy answer is, No. But, it's important to note that the Avatar franchise has brought dead characters back in the past. The Way of Water brought Quaritch back as a recombinant.
Taking all of this into account, we now know that Avatar: The Way of Water has indeed managed to break that seemingly impossible $2 billion box office goal, a factor made all the more difficult thanks to a whopping marketing budget that's reported to be between $350-400 million.
The now 68-year-old Cameron had failed to understand what audiences want. Well, the critics were wrong. Avatar 2 has not flopped. Released just a month ago, it is the highest grossing film of 2022, and currently the seventh highest grossing film of all time, taking more than $1.7 billion at the box office.
Disney got the rights to Avatar when it paid $71 billion for 21st Century Fox three years ago, and the franchise—Cameron is planning sequels every two years through 2028—“is certainly one of our biggest priorities since the acquisition,” says Alan Bergman, chairman of Disney's studio division.
Back in 2009, Zoe Saldana earned $4 million for her starring role in James Cameron's Avatar. The movie went on to achieve unparalleled success, becoming the highest-grossing film of all time.
Deadline also reported he made another $350 million from "Avatar's" unprecedented success at the box office, as well. According to Forbes' February 2023 report, Cameron has already made $95 million from "Avatar 2."
