Avatar: Fire and Ash Reaches $1.231 Billion Globally

Avatar: Fire and Ash has now grossed $1.231 billion globally after four weekends in theaters. The film added $21.3 million domestically and $65.6 million internationally this weekend. In total, the movie has made $342.6 million domestically, with the majority of its box office—$888 million—coming from international markets.

The film is performing particularly well in China, where it has earned $149 million to date. This places it behind only Zootopia 2 among films released in 2025. While the film is showing staying power, it is trailing both Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water at similar points in their theatrical runs. The question remains whether its performance will be strong enough to convince Disney to proceed with planned sequels.

Avatar: Fire and Ash continues to perform strongly at the global box office, crossing the $1.2 billion mark. The film's earnings are heavily weighted toward international markets, which is consistent with previous entries in the franchise. The movie has demonstrated staying power in theaters, particularly in key markets like China.

The film's international earnings currently stand at $888 million, compared to $342.6 million domestically. In China specifically, the movie has grossed $149 million, making it one of the top-performing films of the year in that territory. The Avatar franchise has historically performed exceptionally well in international markets, and this installment follows that trend.

Despite its strong earnings, Avatar: Fire and Ash is currently trailing its predecessors. After four weekends, Avatar: The Way of Water had earned $1.713 billion, while the original Avatar had made $1.335 billion. It appears increasingly unlikely that Fire and Ash will match the lifetime grosses of the first two films.

The original Avatar remains the highest-grossing movie of all time with $2.9 billion earned across several theatrical runs. Avatar: The Way of Water earned $2.3 billion, cementing its place as the third-highest-grossing film of all time. These massive successes set a high bar for the third installment.

Disney has already scheduled release dates for future installments. Avatar 4 is set for December 21, 2029, with Avatar 5 scheduled for December 19, 2031. However, the box office performance of Fire and Ash may influence whether these films move forward as planned. Director James Cameron, now 71, would be close to 80 years old by the time the series concludes.

Before the release of Fire and Ash, Cameron admitted to feeling nervous about the film's box office potential. He expressed concern about the "forces" working against theatrical releases in 2025. Speaking on a podcast, Cameron noted the potential for "sequelitis," stating: "people tend to dismiss sequels unless it’s the third Lord of the Rings film and you want to see what happens to everybody, which in my mind this is — this is the culmination of a story arc, but that may not be how the public sees it."

Cameron also highlighted the "one-two punch" of streaming and Covid, suggesting that theater attendance is at approximately 75% of 2019 levels. To boost attendance, Disney has used Avengers: Doomsday teaser trailers to encourage repeat viewings of Avatar: Fire and Ash.

While Avatar: Fire and Ash dominates headlines, other films are also performing well. Zootopia 2 has grossed $1.655 billion worldwide after six weekends. It has earned $1.276 billion internationally, with $611 million coming from China. It is Walt Disney Animation's highest-grossing movie of all time.

Other notable films include:

• The Housemaid starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried, nearing $200 million globally
• Anaconda starring Jack Black and Paul Rudd, at $110.1 million globally
• Marty Supreme starring Timothée Chalamet, at $84.1 million globally

A sequel to The Housemaid has already been confirmed.