Avatar: The Way of Water has become the fourth highest-grossing movie of all time, surpassing Star Wars: The Force Awakens at the global box office.
James Cameron’s sci-fi sequel has earned $2.117 billion worldwide. This places the Titanic director behind three of the four highest-grossing films ever. Avatar: The Way of Water now follows Cameron’s Titanic and Avatar, as well as Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame, in the all-time box office rankings.
Avatar remains the highest-grossing film in history, with $2.92 billion in box office revenue. Titanic is set for a 3D Valentine’s Day re-release next month, which will add to its current total of $2.194 billion. Avatar 2 has been the number one film at the box office since its release on December 16, remaining in the top spot for over a month.
The film has consistently outperformed new releases, including Tom Hanks’ comedy-drama A Man Called Otto, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, and the viral horror hit M3gan.
The Way of Water has also been nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, which is expected to extend its cinema run well into March.
In a rare occurrence, another Best Picture nominee has grossed over $1 billion – Top Gun: Maverick. The Tom Cruise-led film topped the global box office for much of 2022 until The Way of Water was released late in the year.
Elvis, which grossed nearly $300 million worldwide, and indie hit Everything Everywhere All At Once were among other financially successful Best Picture nominees. This success comes during a turbulent year for cinema attendance, affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and the rise of streaming services. Women Talking, which had the worst opening of any film in 2022, has seen an increase in box office receipts since receiving a Best Picture nomination last week.
Related topics:
