Avatar: The Way of Water Box Office approaches $900 million, weighs Rs. 300 Crore in India

Avatar: The Way of Water has grossed $889.4 million (roughly Rs. 7,355 crore) at the worldwide box office, after its second weekend. Director James Cameron’s second Avatar entry has collected $601.7 million (roughly Rs. 4,976 crore) from markets outside the US, with China continuing to be a top market, while India contributed more than Rs. 300 crores (about $36.2 million). In the United States and Canada, the second Avatar movie grossed a total of $287.6 million (approximately Rs. 2,379 crore). With those numbers, the Disney-owned movie overtook Black Panther: Wakanda Forever to claim the fifth position among the year’s highest-grossing movies.

According to Deadline, the Chinese market fell 55% last weekend, due to renewed concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it was still able to maintain its highest position, adding $25.9 million (approx. Rs. 214 crore) for a local cumulative of $100.5 million (approx. Rs. 831 crore). Korea overtook France’s figures in second place this week, jumping to a total of $53 million (around Rs. 438 crore). In France, Avatar: The Way of Water has grossed $52.3 million (about Rs. 433 crore), while India is in fourth place with $36.2 million (over Rs. 300 crore) . The first five regions of Avatar 2 have been completed by Germany with $35.7 million (about Rs.295 crore) in ticket sales so far.

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As previously reported, the $889.4 million collection pushed Black Panther: Wakanda Forever down one position. The Ryan Coogler-directed sequel grossed $801.7 million (about Rs 6,632 crore) at the worldwide box office and is still running in theaters. Now, to be fair, unlike the 2018 original Black Panther, the sequel was banned from theatrical release in China, which is usually a major market for Hollywood films. The prequel has grossed over $100 million (roughly Rs. 827 crore) in the country alone. In the US and Canada, Black Panther 2 has collected $427.9 million (approx. Rs. 3,540 crore) – a case where the figures top the collection of $373.8 million (approx. Rs. 3 092 crore) outside North America. Avatar: The Way of Water, on the other hand, shows larger numbers outside the home front, driven by a strong push from China.

That said, Avatar: The Way of Water is also exceeding studio expectations in the United States, according to a report. The first Avatar sequel grossed $29.5 million (about Rs. 244 crore) over the Christmas weekend, instead of the expected $21.5 million (about Rs. 178 crore). “This is of course a major positive sign for the film, as December 26 is also a public holiday which usually pays even better than Christmas,” the report notes. The drop for the Christmas weekend was 52%, which is expected given the harsh weather conditions in the region at the moment.

Neither Disney nor 20th Century Studios have disclosed details on the budget, although reports suggest it is around $400 million (roughly Rs. 33.10 crore). For Avatar 2 to break even, the film must become the “third or fourth highest-grossing film in history,” as Cameron said earlier. Currently, these positions are occupied by his own disaster love film Titanic, and JJ Abrams’ Star Wars: The Force Awakens, both raising over $2 billion (about Rs. 16,550 crore) each. The long duration of 3 hours and 12 minutes was also mentioned as a hindrance, although the results, so far, seem somewhat positive.

Avatar: The Way of Water is now in theaters worldwide. In India, Avatar 2 is available in English, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu.

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