\n Moviegoers escaped into director James Cameron\u2019s sci-fi universe this weekend, driving the third installment of the \u201cAvatar\u201d franchise to an estimated $88 million domestically.\n <\/p>\n
\n The opening was shy of analysts\u2019 expectations that it could earn more than $100 million in its first weekend. The first \u201cAvatar\u201d movie debuted in 2009 to $115 million, adjusted for inflation. The second film, \u201cAvatar: The Way of Water,\u201d opened in 2022 to $134 million domestically.\n <\/p>\n
\n But \u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash\u201d also earned roughly $257 million internationally, bringing its global opening to $345 million. It will likely remain a top draw for moviegoers during the holidays and as it plays into January, said Paul Dergarabedian, head of marketplace trends at Comscore.\n <\/p>\n
\n \u201cAs an international, especially 3D phenomenon, and in IMAX and the other premium formats, \u2018Avatar\u2019 is an event movie,\u201d he said.\n <\/p>\n
\n The movie\u2019s nearly $400 million budget may weaken the chances for a fourth film if it has a disappointing return compared with more popular live-action formats, Cameron told CNN\u2019s Jason Carroll last week. The franchise\u2019s fate will be determined by \u201cFire and Ash\u2019s\u201d success over the coming weeks, Cameron said.\n <\/p>\n
\n Movie theater attendance has declined in recent years as streaming services have proliferated and Americans have scaled back on discretionary spending. But blockbuster films like the \u201cAvatar\u201d franchise often lure back audiences who prefer the big screen, IMAX or 3D experiences.\n <\/p>\n
\n \u201cThe theater is a sacred space for me as a filmmaker,\u201d Cameron told CNN. \u201cIt\u2019s never going to go away. But I think it could fall below a threshold where the kinds of movies that I like to make, and I like to see, won\u2019t be sustainable. They won\u2019t be economically viable. We\u2019re very close to that right now.\u201d\n <\/p>\n
\n Despite a strong December, Hollywood failed to return to pre-pandemic levels this year. The domestic box office is down 22.5% compared with 2019, and up just 1.3% year-over-year, with earnings totaling $8.37 billion, according to Comscore.\n <\/p>\n
\n Theaters, analysts and movie studios rejoiced in 2023, when the release of \u201cBarbie\u201d and \u201cOppenheimer\u201d revived hope<\/a> that the theater experience could still thrive. The box office surpassed $9 billion that year<\/a>, the first and only time since the Covid-19 pandemic.\n <\/p>\n \n Though audiences are still showing up to theaters, it \u201cremains to be seen\u201d whether the box office will reach $9 billion again, Dergarabedian said.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cThe box office, considering all the ups and downs this year, is going to turn out just fine, and actually lead into what I think could be the biggest post-pandemic year, in 2026,\u201d he said.\n <\/p>\n \n This weekend got a boost from Angel Studios\u2019 \u201cDavid.\u201d The biblical animation adventure movie raked in $22 million and came in second overall.\n <\/p>\n \n Lionsgate Films\u2019 psychological thriller \u201cThe Housemaid\u201d earned $19 million domestically to finish third this weekend. And family audiences were drawn to theaters for Paramount Pictures\u2019 \u201cThe SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants,\u201d which earned $16 million.\n <\/p>\n \n The three openers could have been major hits if they were released during a slow month like October, said Boxoffice Pro\u2019s editorial director, Daniel Loria. They instead \u201ccomplement\u201d one another and have time to attract the right audiences through the holidays, he said.\n <\/p>\n \n A24\u2019s \u201cMarty Supreme,\u201d Focus Features\u2019 \u201cSong Sung Blue\u201d and Sony Pictures\u2019 \u201cAnaconda\u201d all open in wide release next weekend.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cMarty Supreme,\u201d an awards contender, opened in six theaters this weekend. It finished ninth overall with $875,000 in domestic earnings.\n <\/p>\n \n Meanwhile, \u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash\u201d may continue to attract big audiences.\n <\/p>\n \n Theaters have seen an uptick in the frequency of moviegoers. There were 33% habitual moviegoers \u2014 people who watch at least six movies a year \u2014 in August, up from 25% last year, according to Cinema United.\n <\/p>\n \n The gains in frequent moviegoers come as theater owners invested $1.5 billion in upgrades over the past year, according to Cinema United. And investments in premium large screens that show movies like \u201cAvatar: Fire and Ash,\u201d as well as deluxe seats and concessions, have driven Gen Zers to theaters.\n <\/p>\n \n Courting those young audiences, both through family-friendly movies and adaptations like Warner Bros. Pictures\u2019 \u201cA Minecraft Movie\u201d and Universal\u2019s \u201cFive Nights at Freddy\u2019s 2,\u201d has always been difficult, said Shawn Robbins, an analyst at Box Office Theory. Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cWhat it takes to bring people out to theaters is a little different than it used to be, and I think studios are finally starting to hone in on how to make that really work for the current and future generations,\u201d Robbins said.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Moviegoers escaped into director James Cameron\u2019s sci-fi universe this weekend, driving the third installment of the \u201cAvatar\u201d franchise…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":362407,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[88,206],"class_list":{"0":"post-362406","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-movies","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-movies"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/362406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=362406"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/362406\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/362407"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=362406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=362406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=362406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}