Published Sep 19, 2022
With Avatar 2 (aka Avatar: The Way of Water) now t-minus 88 days from release and promotional activity ramping up, beginning with this week’s (9/23) reissue of the original Avatar, it’s set me to reflecting.
Let’s set the stage. The year is 2009. As head of marketing & strategic development at AMC, I had spent the last couple of years working on…
the formation of Digital Cinema Implementation Partners (“DCIP”), a joint venture with Regal and Cinemark designed to procure and deploy digital technology across our three circuits (over 14,000 screens), including negotiating studio and technology manufacturer contracts, and working to secure over $800M in financing to actually bring the joint venture to life
negotiating terms and launching the world’s largest IMAX joint venture
negotiating terms and preparing for deployment of new state-of-the-art digital RealD 3D technology across our circuit
By Dec 2009, all the pieces of transitioning the industry away from 35mm film and into the digital age, including the debut of premium IMAX and 3D screens, were FINALLY in place and in the very early stages of actual deployment. Then, a little film titled Avatar was released on Dec 18, 2009, and the world of theatrical exhibition changed.
Avatar debuted on 3,452 screens and generated an opening weekend gross of only $77M. The first weekend’s gross wasn’t overly impressive, ranking as the 18th highest opening at the time, less than half of The Dark Night (’08), the #1 title.
What did catch everyone’s attention was that over 70% of the film's gross was generated by 3D presentations, clearly signaling the rebirth of 3D, powered by its new digital format. Equally exciting…the emerging IMAX format accounted for approximately 15% of the gross. There is NO DOUBT that Avatar propelled both IMAX and RealD to the world stage, but only made possible by the industry’s transition to digital technology.
Conversely, those technologies allowed Avatar to grind away for the next 48 weeks, becoming the highest grossing title of all-time for the next 6 years, until Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens ($937M) earned the new #1 slot. Today, 13 years after its release, with an amazing 10x opening weekend multiple, Avatar ($760M) still ranks #4 on the all-time highest grossing list, nearly $50M ahead of Top Gun: Maverick at #5. Avatar remains the #1 grossing IMAX and 3D film of all-time.
Now, back to my 2009 world. Avatar’s performance was a jarring cultural phenomenon and pushed us to immediately and dramatically overhaul and accelerate our deployment schedule for both digital projection and IMAX systems and led to AMC doubling the number of originally slated 3D screens across the circuit (we also ran out of 3D glasses and literally sourced every vendor on the planet to secure inventory...and we quickly modified our ongoing supply chain logistics). The result…2010 was one of the most impactful, industry-changing years in exhibition history (ranking right up there with the 1962 debut of the first multiplex and the first megaplex in 1995...both AMC accomplishments, by the way); the digital race was on, and the industry was transformed.
Avatar 2 is slated to open Dec 16. The trailer has been wooing moviegoers for several weeks and is arguably one of the most visually beautiful ever produced. Although not yet screened, I don’t believe Avatar 2 will be able to recapture the original’s magic or come close to matching its success; however, I do sense it may have a shot at cracking the top 15 on the all-time grossing list…to do so, the minimum ante is $500M, which, if true, could mean an opening weekend in the range of $125M to $200M (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opened Dec 20, 2019 to $177M, and is the reigning #1 Christmas title; it went on to earn $515M). With Avatar sequels 3, 4 and 5 tentatively slated for Dec 2024, 2026, and 2028, respectively, Disney is clearly looking to solidify the franchise’s future.
Click To Watch Avatar: The Way of Water Trailer !
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