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Avatar: The Way of Water looks to make a splash once it officially lands in theaters this December. The sequel to 2009's ground-breaking film Avatar will likely attract massive crowds to witness the continuation of the Pandora narrative, but analysts are foreshadowing a performance that will fall short of the numbers achieved by the original and the year's current top-performing film, Top Gun: Maverick.
Avatar: The Way of Water comes from notable director James Cameron, who brought the transformative world of Pandora to life for audiences over a decade ago. The brand-new film is one of four upcoming projects expected to accumulate significant revenue at the domestic box office to end the year, which includes Black Adam, Halloween Ends, and Marvel Studios' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Of course, only time will tell how these films will fair at the box office when they officially arrive, but projections have Avatar: The Way of Water standing atop the pack once the dust settles.
According to a predictive financial forecast published by Variety, the Cameron-directed film is expected to earn roughly $650 million at the domestic box office, which would be an outstanding performance for the film and by far one of the best of the theatrical year. The number, however, would fall incredibly short of Cameron's 2009 original Avatar, which accumulated $772 million. The report pointed to the thirteen-year gap between the releases as a factor that may affect the sequel's success, along with the utilization of 3D, which lacks the same fascinating effect it generated years ago.
The estimated box office output would also place the sequel behind Paramount's Top Gun: Maverick, which is currently the year's top-performing film at the domestic box office. The Tom Cruise-led film has generated over $700 million since its May release and recently passed Marvel Studios' Avengers: Infinity War and Black Panther to become the fifth highest-grossing film of all time domestically. Cameron's 2009 Avatar is currently the fourth on the list, but globally the film's nearly $3 billion performance is the best of all time. The sequel carries hefty expectations and will look to match the output of its predecessor, but an early forecast sees the film falling short of its aspirations.
Avatar: The Way of Water will usher in the return of Sam Worthington and Zoë Saldaña as Jake Sully and Neytiri. The film will center around the two emblematic characters and their fight to protect their home and newly established family from an ancient resurfacing threat. Unfortunately, the limited Avatar: The Way of Water footage has not revealed much about the story, but the visual spectacle nonetheless looks incredibly captivating. It will be interesting to see where the sequel finds itself on the box office standings once the year concludes and if it can outmatch the star power that elevated Top Gun: Maverick to record-breaking heights.
Avatar: The Way of Water will hit theaters December 16, 2022.
Source: Variety