“
Avatar 2
” achieved one of the 20 best starts of the century, and the best of the year in France, giving hope for a rebound in cinema in theaters after the pandemic years, which were more favorable to streaming platforms.
Thirteen years after
Avatar
, which approached three billion euros in revenue,
Avatar: the way of the water
gathered more than 2.7 million spectators.
According to CBO Box Office data Wednesday, Dec. 21, it's one of the top 20 starts of the century, while
Avatar
was just 24th.
Read alsoAvatar 2: should we really go see the sequel to James Cameron's masterpiece?
With its 2.740 million admissions, this second episode of James Cameron's saga did slightly better than the first in 2009, which had reached 2.648 million admissions in the first week.
It is the 18th best seven-day start in France since 2001, and the best since
Spider-Man: No Way Home
in December 2021, with 2.779 million admissions.
Before that, we have to go back to 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic, to find such a level of entries in the first week.
Avatar: The Way of the Water
crushed the competition during the week of December 14-20, marked by the end of the FIFA World Cup, and the semi-final and final played by France.
The second episode, with 3:12, is half an hour longer than the first.
Set again on the planet Pandora, "
The Way of the Water
" is a sequel more than a decade after the events of the inaugural installment.
Released Friday in North America, it had totaled some $134 million in revenue over the first three days.
Avatar
, presented as a technological revolution by its use of 3D, had been one of the greatest successes in the history of cinema.
In France it had totaled 14.775 million admissions, after 19 weeks of operation.
And throughout the world, it had dethroned the revenue record already established by the same James Cameron with
Titanic
in 1997. About two thirds of French spectators saw the film in theaters offering 3D HDR and HFR technology, and in the majority of cases, in premium theaters, highlighted 20th Century studios at the start of the week.
James Cameron at
Figaro
:
“For
Avatar 2,
I am nervous and proud”
James Cameron plans five
Avatars
The director plans five episodes, but has already warned that he won't necessarily be behind the camera every time.
The 68-year-old Canadian never ceases to proclaim his fascination with the seabed, which had already found a very successful expression in
Titanic
, and which flourishes on a planet threatened by human greed.
Before conquering the public, the blue universe of
Avatar 2
fascinated film critics in France.
Le Figaro
, under the pen of Étienne Sorin, underlined the visionary qualities of filmmaker James Cameron: "...From film to film, Cameron pushes the limits of gigantism and technological innovation, constantly renewing the invention of the brothers Light in the manner of a modern-day Méliès (digital special effects, 3D).
Avatar
thus brings “
performance capture
” into another dimension, anticipating in passing the advent of metaverses”.
While
Liberation
wrote: "
Masterful blockbuster projecting us into a sublimated nature threatened by ecocidal imperialism, James Cameron's film takes the viewer beyond the known borders of cinema
".
For
Humanity
Avatar 2 is “
a stunning three-hour epic.
A great show that metaphorically pays homage to the beauty of our blue planet
”.
Finally,
Le Parisien
also expressed his admiration: "
This hyper-immersive family show, where we see, dumbfounded, fantastic images of unreal beauty and staggering aquatic creatures, owes a lot to its director, to his scientific genius, his sense of romance and his love of beautiful images
”.
The filming required colossal technical means, with perilous aquatic filming, in apnea, and an extremely wide range of special effects.
James Cameron did not fail to salute the work of the immense team with which he surrounded himself: “
I like to think that the film production is like a big hippie community with a bunch of great artists.
Technology does not create art.
It is the artists who create the art
”.
Avatar: The Waterway
by James Cameron 2022 Trailer
