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‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ climbing the list of highest-grossing films

Director James Cameron poses for photographers upon arrival at the World premiere of the film 'Avatar: The Way of Water' in London, Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

The ultra-expensive Avatar sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” has continued to make a splash at the box office.  

Recent reports have indicated that the movie has surpassed the $1.4 billion mark at the global box office. However, Business Insider reported that the movie needs to become the third or fourth highest-grossing film in history to break even due to its high production costs.


While director James Cameron didn’t reveal how much it cost to make the movie, he did say that the production budget alone was in the $250 million range, Variety reported.

So, what movies does the Avatar sequel need to perform better than to make a profit?

It’s between “Titanic” and “Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens.”

“Titanic,” the third highest-grossing film, has accumulated $2.2 billion, while “Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens,” ranked fourth, has amassed $2 billion, according to Box Office Mojo.

Currently, “Avatar: The Way of Water” is listed as the 14th highest-grossing film.

Here are the top 10 highest-gross films of all time (unadjusted for inflation)

  1. Avatar – $2.9 billion
  2. Avengers: Endgame – $2.7 billion
  3. Titanic – $2.2 billion
  4. Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens – $2.069 billion
  5. Avengers-Infinity War – $2.048 billion
  6. Spider-Man: No Way Home – 1.9 billion
  7. Jurassic World – 1.671 billion
  8. Lion King (2019) – 1.663 billion
  9. The Avengers – 1.518 billion
  10. Furious 7 – 1.515 billion

“Avatar: The Way of Water” has already overtaken “Black Panther,” “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” and “Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi.”