There’s a war being waged between two titans locked in a bitter rivalry, and no, we’re not referring to the burgeoning feud between Godzilla and King Kong. For years, Avatar held the title of the all-time highest-grossing movie with a whopping sum of $2.790 billion, only to be dethroned in 2019 by Avengers: Endgame and its $2.797 billion take. Soon, however, the scales may shift.
The Hollywood Reporter has today confirmed that Avatar will be re-released in China this coming Friday, with official approval from the Chinese Film Board now secured. Opening wide across the nation in both IMAX 3D, normal 3D, and 2D versions, it could be a resuscitating force to an exhibition industry slowed by the pandemic.
More to the point, it will almost definitely return Avatar to the number-one spot, with only a meager $7.4 million required to boost James Cameron‘s saga of big blue people and space miners over Marvel’s superhero posse cut. Shouldn’t be difficult for the film that generated a hefty $202.6 million in its initial run, and that was back in 2009, when China still trailed Japan as the third-largest movie market on the planet.
Cameron’s still hard at work on the expansive series of sequels to his blockbusting sci-fi opus and last completed feature, with the second installment oh-so-tentatively slated for 16 December, 2022. Photography was announced as complete back in September, so maybe this time it will really happen, though slow worker Cameron has yanked the football away from the viewing public on a few occasions in the past.
In the end, this back-and-forth between imagined nemeses Avatar and Avenger doesn’t count for much, as both properties are now owned by Disney, since their acquisition of Fox in 2019. No matter who comes out on top, the true winner will be the Mouse.
Published 9 Mar 2021
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