AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH Ignites the Global Box Office with $345M as ZOOTOPIA 2 Bounds Past $1.27B Worldwide
James Cameron’s return to Pandora is made a big splash at the global box office. Avatar: Fire and Ash powered its way to a $345 million worldwide debut, marking one of the biggest openings of 2025.
While that number falls short of the $435 million launch posted by Avatar: The Way of Water in 2022, it still cements the third chapter as a major theatrical success for Disney and 20th Century.
The new Avatar entry pulled in $257 million overseas and $88 million domestically, landing it as the second-largest global opening of the year. Only one film stands above it so far, Disney’s animated sequel Zootopia 2, which posted an enormous $500 million three-day debut earlier in its run.
Expectations are super high for Fire and Ash, and for good reason. The first two trips to Pandora each soared past $2 billion worldwide, setting an almost unfair benchmark. This third installment also carries a massive financial weight, with Disney spending around $350 million on production and roughly $150 million on marketing. That kind of investment means the film needs long legs to fully justify its price tag.
Historically, the franchise has thrived on endurance rather than explosive openings. Neither 2009’s Avatar nor The Way of Water dominated their initial weekends, yet both became box office juggernauts that stayed popular deep into the holiday season and beyond. Those films now sit among the highest-grossing movies ever, with $2.9 billion and $2.3 billion respectively.
International markets will once again be the driving force behind Fire and Ash. The original Avatar earned an astonishing $2.1 billion overseas, while the sequel collected $1.65 billion from foreign territories alone.
“The first two movies earned over 70% of their box office overseas,” says David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. “So far, the foreign openings are extremely strong again.”
China is leading the charge, where Fire and Ash debuted with $57.6 million, edging out the $56 million start of The Way of Water. Other top international markets include France at $21.4 million, Germany with $18 million, Korea with $13.6 million, and the United Kingdom with $11.9 million.
As expected, audiences leaned hard into premium formats to experience the film’s visual spectacle. IMAX and 3D accounted for a hefty 66% of total ticket sales. IMAX alone generated $43.6 million globally, nearly 14% of the film’s worldwide opening on less than 1% of total screens. That performance marks IMAX’s biggest opening of 2025 and the fifth-largest debut in the company’s history.
“As James Cameron continues to break new ground with Avatar, the indelible connection between Imax and this one-of-a-kind franchise endures, with Imax delivering an outsized share of the box office across virtually every market worldwide,” said Rich Gelfond, CEO of IMAX.
“Avatar films have historically played with longevity like few other franchises, and we look forward to fans continuing to enjoy Avatar: Fire and Ash in big numbers in Imax throughout the holiday season and beyond.”
Disney also had plenty to celebrate thanks to Zootopia 2, which added $76.6 million overseas and $91 million globally in its fourth weekend. The animated sequel has been an international powerhouse, now sitting at $990 million overseas. It’s on the verge of becoming only the second animated film ever, following Inside Out 2, to cross $1 billion internationally.
With an additional $282 million from North America, Zootopia 2 has officially hopped to $1.27 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing Hollywood release of the year.