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James Cameron's much-anticipated sci-fi epic 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' has finally arrived in cinemas worldwide on 19th December, opening to a strong yet somewhat restrained Day 1 box office performance. On its first day of release, the third film in the popular 'Avatar' franchise made about $136 million worldwide, indicating strong audience enthusiasm but falling short of expectations set by previous movies.
Disney's 'Zootopia 2,' which maintained its dominant theatrical run and emerged as the bigger box office victor, presented the movie with fierce opposition as well, creating an exciting Christmas season matchup between two major franchises.
Day 1 Numbers and Box Office Reality
The third installment of James Cameron's renowned science fiction series, 'Avatar: Fire and Ash,' debuted in theaters across the globe on 19th December, with a modest but calculated opening. Early reports state that the movie made approximately $136.9 million worldwide on its opening day, including previews and receipts from overseas markets, pushing the total past $100 million.
Although this is a positive beginning, it was not as successful as its predecessors' enormous beginnings.
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In contrast, Avatar: The Way of Water's 2022 weekend box office debut created extremely high expectations for this threequel. 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' also opened around ₹20 crore on Day 1 in India, a decent showing but impacted by strong local competition from the Bollywood hit 'Dhurandhar.'
Audiences showed up for the spectacle despite conflicting early reviews, maintaining the 'Avatar' brand as one of Hollywood's tentpole franchises.
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Image Courtesy: Variety
'Zootopia 2' Pulls Ahead with Record Success
The bigger box office storyline this weekend isn't just Avatar's total—it's how it compares with 'Zootopia 2.' Since its Thanksgiving debut, the Disney sequel has been dominating charts: it has earned over $1 billion worldwide, recovered the top spot at the American box office in its third weekend, and is still far ahead of Fire and Ash in terms of overall earnings. With 'Zootopia 2' breaking records as one of the year's top grossers, the film's performance highlights larger trends in 2025: cartoon franchises are attracting large numbers of family audiences.
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On the other hand, despite its continued success, 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' is being evaluated not only on its own merits but also on its ability to meet these exceptional standards. That said, the holiday season—typically the strongest stretch for cinema—gives Fire and Ash ample runway to build momentum.
Franchise Legacy and Future Prospects
Even if a few analysts were disappointed by Day 1 numbers, 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' is still a crucial part of one of the most successful movie franchises. With around $2.9 billion in global box office receipts, the original 'Avatar' became the highest-grossing movie ever, and 'The Way of Water' also surpassed $2 billion.
This legacy means that even a "modest" opening—relative to past 'Avatar' benchmarks—can still evolve into a long, lucrative run, especially across global markets where sci-fi spectacle tends to perform strongly.
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Projections from industry observers suggested a possible $340 million+ opening weekend worldwide, buoyed by strong international turnout and premium formats like IMAX and 3D. Fire and Ash might continue to advance into the billion-plus club and sustain the franchise's momentum into the upcoming fourth and fifth sequels if it holds up over the next several weeks.
In the end, 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' may not have beaten 'Zootopia 2' on Day 1, but it still has substantial box office firepower—and a fan base eager to keep returning to Pandora.
