James Cameron’s “Avatar: Fire and Ash” races past $760M worldwide, proving Pandora still rules the global box office.
James Cameron’s return to Pandora is once again paying off in a big way. After just two weekends in theaters, Avatar: Fire and Ash has crossed an impressive $760 million at the global box office, showing strong staying power during the competitive Christmas movie season.
Over the holiday stretch, the sci-fi epic brought in $245.2 million worldwide, including $181.2 million from 51 international markets. What’s especially notable is the small drop from its opening weekend overseas — just 25% — a sign that audiences are sticking around rather than rushing in and leaving. In North America, the film has earned $217 million so far, while international markets account for a massive $542 million of its total haul.
Outside the U.S. and Canada, Fire and Ash is performing best in China with $99.6 million, followed by France ($54.4 million), Germany ($43.1 million), and South Korea ($32.1 million). These numbers underline how global the Avatar brand remains more than a decade after the first film changed the box office game.
Thanks to its strong momentum, Avatar: Fire and Ash is already the sixth-highest-grossing Hollywood movie of the year. It is quickly closing in on other major releases like Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle ($714 million), Jurassic World: Rebirth ($869 million), and A Minecraft Movie ($958 million).
Industry watchers widely expect the film to pass the $1 billion mark in the coming weeks, making it one of 2025’s biggest hits.
If that happens, Avatar 3 will join Disney’s already stacked billion-dollar club this year, alongside the Lilo & Stitch live-action remake ($1.03 billion) and Zootopia 2, which has soared past $1.3 billion and is still climbing. Notably, Disney remains the only studio consistently hitting these milestones, with no rival studio releasing a billion-dollar film since 2023.
While Fire and Ash isn’t expected to reach the towering heights of Avatar ($2.9 billion) or The Way of Water ($2.3 billion), it doesn’t need to. The film’s long theatrical life — something the franchise is famous for — should help justify its massive budget over time.
Elsewhere at the box office, Zootopia 2 continues to thrive, now sitting at $1.42 billion globally, while Universal’s musical Wicked: For Good has crossed $500 million worldwide. Though profitable, it’s still trailing behind the first Wicked film.
For now, Pandora remains one of Hollywood’s safest bets and audiences clearly aren’t ready to leave.
