Avatar changed the cinema-viewing experience forever. The groundbreaking movie turns 15 this year, and on that occasion, we have brought to you some of the remarkable feats achieved by James Cameron’s movie. It featured Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, and Sigourney Weaver in crucial roles. Scroll below for the deets.
The epic sci-fi saga’s development began in 1994, and the filming was supposed to start filming after the completion of Titanic. It was planned to be released in 1999. It is the first film in the film franchise. It is set in the mid-22nd century when humans colonize Pandora, a lush habitable moon of a gas giant in the Alpha Centauri star system, to mine the valuable unobtanium. It is a room-temperature superconductor mineral. The movie changed the movie industry by pushing the boundaries of visual effects technology, sparking renewed interest in environmental activism themes in cinema and setting a new benchmark for box office success.
Avatar reportedly introduced motion capture and 3D technology, paving the way for more immersive and visually complex films and encouraging other studios to invest heavily in similar advancements. The movie’s box office is a different kind of success story, and it achieved a few titles, including being the highest-grossing film of all time.
According to Box Office Mojo’s data, James Cameron’s film collected a solid $77.02 million in its opening weekend. The movie’s domestic total is $785.22 million and $2.138 billion international gross. Therefore, Avatar’s worldwide total is a whopping $2.92 billion. It is the highest-grossing film of all time at the worldwide box office. A few more records are set in the film’s box office collections.
It was the only movie that grossed over $1 billion, released in 2009. James Cameron’s movie is the highest-grossing non-sequel movie and the highest-grossing science fiction flick, and it is the first film to gross more than $2 billion. It was the best-selling video title of 2010 in the US. In 2019, Avengers: Endgame took the film’s title briefly, but after the re-release in China, the movie regained the title. Adjusted for inflation, James Cameron’s movie is the second-highest-grossing movie of all time behind Gone with the Wind.
The film was followed by a sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, which was released in 2022. The sequel is the third highest-grossing movie of all time, with its $2.32 billion worldwide collection. A third installment is in the making, and Avatar: Fire and Ash is expected to be released in 2025. It will feature Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang again.
Note: Box office numbers are based on estimates and various sources. Numbers have not been independently verified by Koimoi.
