Black Panther: Wakanda Forever continues to top the domestic box office fir the fifth week in a row, though this will likely change once James Cameron's Avatar: The Way of Water hits theaters.
According to Variety, Wakanda Forever leads the box office in one of the lowest-earning weekends of 2022. Box office analysts have projected $38.5 million in ticket sales for all current theatrical releases over the course of three days and Wakanda Forever made $2.8 million of that number so far in its Friday ticket sales. It's estimated the Marvel Studios sequel will pull in $11 million this weekend overall. The box office is expected to boost significantly by the time Way of Water arrives on Dec. 16.
Overall, Wakanda Forever has earned $401 million at the domestic box office since it premiered in November and will soon surpass the earnings for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($411 million) and has already overtaken the total earnings for Thor: Love and Thunder. This will make the Black Panther sequel the second-highest domestic release of the year behind Top Gun: Maverick.
Avatar: The Way of Water, an upcoming sequel to 2009's Avatar, is set a decade after the events of the original film and sees Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña reprise their respective roles as Jake Sulley and Neytiri. Other returning cast members include Stephen Lang as Colonel Quaritch and Sigourney Weaver. While Weaver will not reprise her 2009 role as Dr. Grace Augustine, she will appear as a young Na'vi female, Kiri.
Way of Water Expected to Double the Box Office Opening of the Original
Avatar remains the highest-grossing film of all time and its sequel is reportedly one of the most expensive films ever made with a budget between $350 million and $400 million. It has been implied by Cameron that The Way of Water will need to make over $2 billion worldwide in order to break even. Already, the sequel is projected to double the box office opening of the original film, with analysts estimating the domestic debut of The Way of Water could range from $150 million to $200 million.
Cameron has planned three other films in the Avatar saga, though the director has stated that Avatar 4 and 5 will depend on the success of the first two sequels, including The Way of Water. Should the sequel underperform, Cameron is prepared for the possibility that the franchise could be canceled. "The market could be telling us we're done in three months, or we might be semi-done, meaning: 'Okay, let's complete the story within movie three, and not go on endlessly,' if it's just not profitable," he said.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is now in theaters. Avatar: The Way of Water is set to release in theaters on Dec. 16, 2022.
Source: Variety