Another weekend at the movie box office, and it's unlikely that any films will overtake the Avatar train anytime soon.
Avatar: The Way of Water ( NYSE: DIS ) added nearly $70M to its coffers on Wednesday alone ($20M domestic, nearly $48M internationally). The day made it the highest-grossing international release of 2022, with an overseas total of more than $810M.
The heavy day-to-day takes mean the film has now reached $1.17B on a total worldwide basis - the second-biggest global take of 2022 (behind Top Gun: Maverick's ( PARA ) ( PARAA ) $1.49B), and third-biggest of the pandemic (adding in the $1.91B of late 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home ( NYSE: SONY )).
And with the sequel soaking up more than 4,200 theaters in North America, and dominating large-format screens, only a couple of Sony/Columbia ( SONY ) limited releases roll out this weekend, including Tom Hanks in novel adaptation A Man Called Otto, and literary documentary Turn Every Page: The Adventures of Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb.
It's likely the Avatar sequel will hold up strong even against some wider releases to come Jan. 6 - drama Women Talking ( AMZN ) and robot doll-horror story M3gan ( CMCSA ) - not to mention a film slate light on big names at least through January.
Cinema tickers: AMC Entertainment ( NYSE: AMC ); Cineworld ( OTCPK:CNNWQ ); Cinemark ( NYSE: CNK ); ( IMAX ); Marcus ( MCS ); Reading International ( RDI ); Cineplex ( CGX:CA ); National CineMedia ( NCMI ).
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'Avatar' sequel set to roll on, claiming year's overseas box-office crown