$7.4 million in a normal box office market doesn’t feel like that bad of a benchmark, especially for a groundbreaking film like Avatar.
But let’s just keep one thing in mind for the long run: Avatar 2 doesn’t come out until December 16, 2022; and a domestic, if not worldwide release of Avatar is incredibly likely in the ramp-up to that big event.
Avatar returns to Chinese theaters this Friday, whereas the rest of the world will have to rely on their physical copies or whatever regional streaming service has the rights to bring the film to them, should they want to relive the fun.
But we’re not exactly in a typical frame of business, and as the folks who rallied behind the domestic re-issue of Alita: Battle Angel will tell you, even with high hopes and a low bar to cross, the results might not be what you hoped.