20th Century Studios’ Avatar assumed the #1 position at the global box office this weekend 13 years after its original release in 2009, earning $30.5M ($10M domestically and $20.5M internationally) according to Comscore.
Re-released around most of the world, Avatar is reminding audiences of the amazing and immersive 3D world of Pandora leading into December’s long-anticipated release of Avatar: The Way of Water. The first film in the blockbuster franchise also added to its worldwide box office record as the highest-grossing film of all-time.
International Highlights:
- Opened #1 in France, Italy, Belgium, Bosnia, Croatia, Hungary, Oman, Qatar, Romania, Slovenia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Ecuador.
- Opened as the #1 non-local title in Czech Rep, Norway, Serbia, Turkey, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Korea, and Vietnam.
- Avatar (re-release) posted higher openings than Titanic (2012 3D re-release) in France, Brazil, Mexico, Qatar, Romania, Czech Rep, Israel, Turkey, Ukraine, Kuwait, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Philippines, Vietnam, Chile, Colombia, Peru, and many smaller European markets.
- Looking at like-for-like territories, the opening weekend of $20.5M was higher than the entire run of Spider-Man: No Way Home (2022 re-release), +37% ahead of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (2012 3D re-release) and -19% below Titanic (2012 3D re-release), which opened during the Easter holidays.
- Internationally, around 75% of box office came from 3D/4D/IMAX formats, with many markets posting especially high % shares. As a comparison, Avengers: Endgame was around 27%.
Domestic Highlights:
- Avatar (re-release) opened #3 domestically with $10.0M for the weekend.
- Playing in a select 1,860 theatres, Avatar’s $10.0M weekend is +85% ahead of the re-release for Spider-Man: No Way Home from Labor Day weekend ($5.4M from 3,935 theatres).
- The overwhelming 93% 3D share compares to the opening weekend of 2009’s Avatar (74% 3D | 26% 2D). The 3D support is encouraging considering the usual 2D-dominant shares of recent tentpoles released in both formats (Thor: Love and Thunder – 90% 2D | 10% 3D).
Written and directed by Academy Award winner James Cameron, Avatar stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, and Sigourney Weaver. James Cameron and Jon Landau produced the film. Nominated for nine Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director, the film won three Oscars®, for Best Cinematography, Production Design, and Visual Effects.
