Slow and steady wins the race, especially if you’re James Cameron and the world always seems to be skeptical about your chances. It’s been said never to bet against Cameron.
22.12.2022 - 05:23 / deadline.com
Warning: This podcast contains minor spoilers about Avatar: The Way of WaterDespite being the highest grossing movie ever at $2.9 billion, Avatar isn’t your run-of-the-mill franchise.
It doesn’t have the Star Wars toys sales, nor does it have the rabid fandom associated with Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. How can a series like this maintain its momentum 13 years after the first movie was released? Especially a movie about blue aliens? Producer Jon Landau provides insight to the series’ appeal on Crew Call today.
You can listen to our conversation below:
Avatar: The Way of Water has survived a corporate merger, multiple delays, the year-long closure of exhibition and the pandemic itself.
In regards to the sequel staying relevant, Landau likes to say, “If you make a good movie, people are going to come back.”
“We’re a third of the amount of time that it took for (Top Gun): Maverick to come back,” he adds.
“What Jim has done in the Avatar Pandora world, he’s put in timeless stories with universal themes,” Landau tells us.
“Imperial forces coming back and invading an indigenous population. Those things don’t go away. In some ways what he wrote years ago, is more timely today,” the producer explains.
“If you think about this, the Sullys are refugees. They are forced to flee their home and seek refuge in a clan that doesn’t look like them,” explains Landau.
While Avatar: The Way of Water came in under its weekend projections, opening at $134.1M stateside and under a half billion worldwide, many consider that largely due to the high demand for and low supply of premium auditoriums (i.e. Imax and Dolby) which is where audiences are buying out seats. The pic’s midweek grosses have held up and all eyes are on Avatar
Slow and steady wins the race, especially if you’re James Cameron and the world always seems to be skeptical about your chances. It’s been said never to bet against Cameron.
EXCLUSIVE: Damien Chazelle will be recognized with the Advanced Imaging Society’s Gene Kelly Visionary Award at the 13th annual Lumiere Awards, taking place at The Beverly Hills Hotel on February 10.
SUNDAY AM, NEW YEAR’S DAY: Refresh for more analysis and chart While New Year’s Eve is typically a better moviegoing day than Christmas Eve, business was still down yesterday at -27% from Friday for all movies. That’s a similar decline to last weekend’s Friday-to-Christmas Eve (-26%), however New Year’s Eve made more than Christmas Eve, $27.9M to $22.2M. Moviegoing is expected to be +19% on New Year’s Day, and there will be an extra cushion in Monday, Jan. 2 as many typically have off in honor of the Sunday holiday. Per our sources, weather wasn’t an issue this weekend.
After earning the highest grossing Tuesday of 2022 with $24.1M, 20th Century Studios/Disney/Lightstorm’s Avatar: The Way of Water also notched the best Wednesday of the year yesterday with $20.4M beating Top Gun: Maverick‘s June 1 take of $14.8M, and Avatar 2‘s first Wednesday of $14.4M. At a running total of $337.9M through 13 days, the James Cameron directed, Jon Landau produced sequel is pacing 1% ahead of Top Gun: Maverick at the same point in time.
Any cynicism about a broken down Christmas box office, impacted by weather, was wiped away Tuesday as 20th Century Studios/Disney/Lightstorm’s Avatar: The Way of Water racked up $23.8M sending its domestic cume to $317.1M. In addition, the sequel flew past the $1 billion mark at the worldwide box office. Director James Cameron has told the media that the breakeven point for Avatar: The Way of Water stands at $2 billion global mark.
Never bet against James Cameron, they said. And while “Avatar: The Way Of Water” got off to somewhat of a slow box office start—or at least it fell under some of the early projections which made pundits quickly skeptical of its chances—the Cameron maxim seems to be coming true.
“I had a bit of a crisis of faith as we were cutting the movie together,” admitted James Cameron of his billion-dollar-grossing Avatar: The Way of Water. “It was too violent. I wanted a balance between the beauty, the epiphany, the kind of spiritual aspect of the film, with the action, and I felt it had gotten a little too grim.”
Refresh for latest…: James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water is close on its way to the $1B global box office mark, having more than handily crossed $900M worldwide through its second Monday. This is the latest benchmark for the highly-anticipated sequel, and comes just 13 days after global rollout began. With $955.1M through Monday, The Way of Water has become the No. 3 highest-grosser of 2022 and the No. 4 biggest film of the pandemic era. What’s more, it is expected to hit the $1B worldwide milestone with today’s turnout.
It’s no secret that James Cameron wants the world of Pandora in his “Avatar” franchise to look as realistic as possible. But it’s not all about digital verisimilitude for the director; it’s a practical feature in casting, too.
“Avatar: The Way Of Water” is now in theaters, and only time will tell if it’s another massive financial success for James Cameron. It’s off to a good start, in any case: $550 million at the global box office so far.
As Avatar: The Way of Water continues to blow up worldwide, James Cameron has indicated he’s game-planning far into the future.
As Avatar: The Way of Water continues to blow up worldwide, James Cameron has indicated he’s game-planning far into the future.
EXCLUSIVE: Buttressing the $441.6M global opening of Avatar: The Way of Water this past weekend –the 11th best ever– is a curated promo partner campaign assembled by Disney; a lineup that reflects the eco-friendly and technologically advanced sensibilities of the James Cameron directed epic.
James Cameron likes his female heroines as strong and capable as possible. For instance, take Sigourney Weaver‘s Ellen Ripley in “Aliens” or Linda Hamilton‘s Sarah Connor in “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.” But according to Cameron, Kate Winslet‘s Ronal in “Avatar: The Way Of Water” is the director’s most “empowering” female action hero yet.
EXCLUSIVE: We are hearing from our sources that James Cameron’s sequel to his highest grossing movie in the world, Avatar: The Way of Water, is currently on its way to a $17M Thursday night from showtimes that began at 7PM.