Avatar: The Way of Water Crosses $2 Billion at Worldwide Box Office

01/22/2023 11:47 am EST

Avatar: The Way of Water is continuing its domination of the box office both in North America and around the globe. The film has officially become only the sixth movie in history to earn $2 billion worldwide. James Cameron has now directed half of those movies, with the original Avatar and Titanic previously achieving the milestone. According to Disney, Avatar: The Way of Water will close its sixth weekend with $2.024 billion, making it the highest-grossing film since the COVID-19 pandemic started and the sixth-highest-grossing movie of all time. Avatar: The Way of Water's global box office total includes just shy of $598 million at the domestic box office and $1.426 billion from overseas, including $230 million made in China alone.

At this rate, the film will soon climb higher, passing Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Avengers: Infinity War to become the fourth-highest-grossing film of all time. The original Avatar is the highest-grossing film ever, with $2.9 billion. The film reclaimed that position in 2021 from Avengers: Endgame, which had taken the top spot on the chart during its release in 2019. Endgame remains the second-highest-grossing film of all time with $2.79 billion. Titanic is the third-highest-grossing film with $2.194 billion.

Avatar: The Way of Water has gotten a mostly positive reception from critics, though its Rotten Tomatoes score dipped following its debut. The consensus on the review aggregator reads, "Narratively, it might be fairly standard stuff -- but visually speaking, Avatar: The Way of Water is a stunningly immersive experience."

ComicBook.com's Liam Crowley had high praise for the film, awarding it a 5-out-of-5 review: "Film is an ever-evolving medium that, for better or worse, demands a "what have you done for me lately" hunger from its audience. In the 13 years between Avatar films, fans have been treated to a rebirth of Star Wars, the meteoric rise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and an overall box office boom that has made billion-dollar pictures a regular occurrence. With an abundance of theatrical treats over the past decade, the magic of Avatar (2009) has been somewhat overlooked. If there was any doubt, James Cameron reminds audiences exactly what he's capable of. Words don't do Avatar: The Way of Water justice. While this film has all the makings of a once-in-a-lifetime theatrical experience, audiences should relish in the fact that there is much more to come."

Avatar: The Way of Water is now playing in theatres.

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