The Walt Disney Co. is facing a box-office disaster as the new Avatar sequel plunged 58 percent in its second weekend of domestic release — a huge drop-off considering the first Avatar only declined 2 percent in its second weekend back in 2009.
Avatar: The Way of Water brought in $56 million for the weekend ending Sunday, representing a 58.2 percent decline from its debut last weekend. The bomb cyclone prevented much of the country from heading to cinemas over the weekend as bitter cold and snow blanketed much of the midwest and east coast.
So far, Avatar 2 has grossed $279.7 domestically — a weak beginning for the most hyped movie of the year. The figure suggests the movie is having trouble generating the kind of repeat viewing that propelled the first Avatar to become the highest grossing movie of all time.
Globally, Avatar 2 has so far grossed $881.4 million. The movie had an estimated production budget of $460 million, which doesn’t include marketing costs, meaning it will have to gross between $1.5 billion to $2 billion just to break even.
Perhaps most worryingly for Disney, the movie is the latest in a growing line of Hollywood blockbusters to flop in China, bringing in $57.1 million on its opening weekend there, far below the approximately $120 million it was expected to earn.
The first Avatar was a smash hit it China in 2009, grossing more than $200 million.
Avatar 2‘s box-office troubles represent the latest financial woes for Disney.
The company, whose stock is on track for its worst performance since 1974, has experienced a blitz of bad news this year, including weak profitability that prompted the firing of CEO Bob Chapek and the return of former CEO Bob Iger.
Disney also picked an ill-advised fight with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) over the state’s anti-grooming Parental Rights in Education Law. The company has increasingly embraced radical LGBTQ activism and has incorporated transgender ideology into its entertainment for children.
Disney shares are down more than 40 percent so far this year.
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