After the success of Avatar: The Waterway, James Cameron he now has the distinction of being the only director to direct three films that exceed $2 billion at the worldwide box office, according to TMZ.
The long-awaited Avatar sequel passed the massive money milestone on Sunday, which comes just six weeks after its release, earning $2.024 billion in latest check against a budget of between $350-460 million.
Cameron’s other two films on the illustrious list include the original Avatar (2009), which is number one of all time, with $2.923 billion on a budget of $237 million, and Titanic (1997), after it grossed $2,195. billion against a budget of $200 million.
Making history: James Cameron, 68, now has the distinction of being the only director in history with three movies to have surpassed $2 billion at the global box office.
Along with Cameron’s three epic films, only three others have surpassed the $2 billion benchmark, and all of them are from Disney.
Coming in second on the all-time earnings list is Avengers: Endgame (2019), with $2.798 billion on a budget of $356-400 million.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) now sits at number four earning $2.071 billion against a budget of $306 million.
And then there’s Avengers: Infinity War (2018), which ranks fifth, grossing $2.052B on a budget of $325-400 million.
Crossing $2 billion last weekend, Avatar 2 is now the sixth highest-grossing movie ever.
Bona Fide Hit: The long-awaited Avatar sequel passed the $2 billion milestone on Sunday, coming just six weeks after its release, on a budget of between $350-460 million.
Time to hit $2 billion at the box office: TV personality Jon Erlichman tweeted that Avengers: Endgame reached the fastest milestone in 11 days; the Avatar sequel hit the mark in 37 days, which is 10 days earlier than the original
While the original Avatar tops the all-time earnings list, it took 47 days after its release for the movie to cross the $2B milestone, according to a tweet from TV personality Jon Erlichman.
By comparison, the Avatar sequel only needed 37 days to surpass that mark.
Showcasing its superhero power, Avengers: Endgame was the fastest to hit the exclusive list, at just 11 days.
Cameron’s Titanic took the longest to reach $2 billion at the box office after 5,233 days after hitting theaters.
The success of Avatar: The Way Of Water assures fans that there will be more sequels to follow.
Cameron had previously announced plans for three more installments in 2024, 2026 and 2028, but stipulated that the last two would be contingent on commercial reception for The Way Of Water.
The original Avatar remains first at the all-time box office, earning $2.923 billion on a budget of $237 million, while the sequels sit at number six with $2.024 billion at last review.
After the success of Avatar 2, the Canadian filmmaker revealed on HBO Max Who’s talking to Chris Wallace? that he looked like he was going to do three more planned sequels
Earlier this month, the Canadian filmmaker revealed on HBO Max Who’s Talking To Chris Wallace? that it looked like he would be making the last two movies after all.
“It looks like with the momentum the movie has right now, we’ll easily get through our break even in the next few days, so it feels like I can’t get out of this and I’ll have to do these other sequels.” ‘ he said, adding: ‘I know what I’m going to do in the next six or seven years.’
Previously, the filmmaker made no secret of the astronomical costs of making the film, describing it as “very expensive.”
Cameron even said before the release of the third installment that he would end the entire franchise early if audiences don’t seem to “like ***”.
He also addressed the misunderstanding about his comments regarding the necessary earnings from The Way Of Water.
His Plan: Cameron had previously announced plans for three more Avatar installments in 2024, 2026 and 2028, but stipulated that the last two would be contingent on The Way Of Water’s commercial reception.
Subway reported that the famed director had said that the film needed to be among the highest-grossing films ever to break even.
In response, the Kapuskasing, Ontario, Canada native shared how he thought many had taken his comments differently, thinking The Way Of Water needed to reach $2bn (£1.65bn) and be in the top 10 to reach the equilibrium point.
‘[I] he never actually gave her a number. I said it would have to be among the highest grossing movies ever and someone else applied that number and it went up. The number is actually lower,” she said.
Cameron went on to add that he hopes to have a discussion with Disney soon about what will happen with Avatar 3.
“We’ve already captured and photographed the entire movie, so we’re in extended post-production to do all that CGI magic,” he announced, adding, “And then Avatar 4 and 5 are written.” We even have some 4 in the can.
Sequel update: “We’ve already captured and photographed the entire movie, so we’re in extended post-production to do all that CGI magic,” Cameron announced, adding, “And then Avatar 4 and 5 are written.” We even have some 4 in the can