With the release of Avatar: The Way of Water, one detail already has film fans and folks in the know excited: the giant budget. The official number of how much the sequel will cost hasn’t been confirmed, but in a hint, director James Cameron said the sequel is among the most expensive films ever made.
Cameron’s response to inquiries about the cost was simply, “Very [expensive],” when speaking with GQ. The stakes are sky-high for this much-anticipated follow-up.
The breaking point for Avatar: The Way of Water
The most striking revelation from Cameron is that Avatar: The Way of Water will have to pull in extraordinary numbers just to break even. The director said the movie needs to be the fourth or fifth highest-grossing film of all time to cover its production costs. He told Disney and 20th Century Studios that this project might be “the worst business case in movie history.” For context, the current global box office chart, unadjusted for inflation, places Cameron’s original Avatar at the top, with $2.9 billion, while Avengers: $2.7 billion close behind would be Endgame. To meet its financial demands, Avatar: The Way of Water, in other words, will have to surpass the record set by films like Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Avengers: Infinity War, both of which comfortably passed the $2 billion mark.
So far, only five films have reached the elusive $2 billion milestone. But while the bar may not be too high for Cameron’s latest venture, Spider-Man: No Way Home and Top Gun: Maverick hit record-breaking numbers even in a post-pandemic environment could bode well for Cameron’s latest movie.
How the original Avatar set the stage
In 2009, the original Avatar was a new release and a big hit, bringing in some $2.9 billion globally, making it the highest-grossing film of all time. Internationally, it made $539 million, the second biggest in its home market behind Home Alone, which eventually climbed to number 12 on the all-time U.S. box office chart. The setup for these numbers has high expectations for the sequel, but Cameron’s latest project seems like an entirely different bugaboo regarding costs. If The Way of Water can achieve even a fraction of what its predecessor went on to do, it may do enough to hit the numbers it needs.
With the December 16 release date fast approaching, all eyes are on whether this financial gamble will pay off or it’s destined to be the riskiest move in movie history. The challenge ahead is clear: Avatar: The Way of Water must make out at the top of the box office for its enormous budget to be calculated.
Image credits: Avatar: The Way of Water
