Fire and Ash’ Is Officially James Cameron’s Fourth Hit in a Row To Pass $1 Billion at the Global Box Office

Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) growling menacingly in ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’Image via 20th Century Studios

You never bet against James Cameron, and you never go into one of his movies with a full bladder; these are rules to live by. The longest film in his Avatar trilogy, Avatar: Fire and Ash, has defied skepticism to become his fourth hit in a row to pass the coveted $1 billion mark at the global box office. This is an unprecedented feat, but you’d expect nothing less of the self-proclaimed “King of the World.” While Avatar 3 is expected to conclude its run as the lowest-grossing installment of the series, it’s still going to emerge as one of the biggest hits of all time. The future of the groundbreaking sci-fi franchise is at stake, with Cameron underplaying expectations ahead of Avatar 3‘s release, and suggesting that it might be the last one of the series that he directs. But he had previously announced two further sequels, whose status we might get some clarity on now that Avatar 3 has passed its presumed break-even point.

By Sunday, the film is projected to hit the $300 million mark at the domestic box office, and the $1.2 billion mark globally. It’s expected to generate around $35 million in its third weekend of release domestically, which would mark its biggest drop yet. By comparison, Avatar: The Way of Water and Avatar both grossed over $60 million at the same stage in their respective runs. Released in 2009, Avatar went on to gross $2.9 billion at the global box office, including revenue from re-releases over the years. It remains the top-grossing film in cinema history. Avatar 2 opened over a decade later, and systematically dismantled pre-release skepticism about the franchise’s perceived lack of cultural relevance. It grossed over $2.3 billion globally, and is currently the third-biggest film ever made.

‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ Is Projected to Conclude Its Run As One of the 20 Biggest Movies Ever Made

Cameron first experienced billion-dollar success with Titanic, which debuted in 1997. The epic romance movie is now sitting at over $2.2 billion at the global box office, also thanks to re-release revenue. Titanic was the most expensive movie ever made at the time of its release, with a reported production budget of $200 million. Avatar 3 reportedly cost over $400 million to produce, making it one of the most expensive films of all time. The movie earned noticeably less-enthusiastic reviews compared to either of its predecessors, and seems to have settled at a 67% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. It’s currently expected to conclude its run at under $2 billion globally, but you never bet against Cameron. Featuring the returning Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang, Avatar 3 is playing in theaters. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

Release Date

December 19, 2025

Runtime

197 Minutes

Director

James Cameron

Writers

Amanda Silver, Rick Jaffa, James Cameron, Josh Friedman, Shane Salerno

Producers

Jon Landau, James Cameron, Brigitte Yorke, Jamie Landau, Maria Battle-Campbell