‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ Day 1 box office: James Cameron's film mints ₹30 crore

James Cameron's 'Avatar: Fire and Ash,' the third film in the immensely popular sci-fi franchise 'Avatar' trilogy, began its theatrical run amid much expectation with strong advance ticket sales and early box office action on its first day of release in India and abroad.

Based on pre-release excitement and franchise familiarity, industry forecasts had projected that Fire and Ash might launch to about ₹30–35 crore gross in India on Day 1. However, early live data from box office tracker Sacnilk showed a relatively modest ₹0.78 crore net during the initial evening estimates.

Ahead of its December 19 release, the movie's advance booking numbers in India indicated a strong crowd turnout. Strong pre-release demand is highlighted by reports that the highly anticipated science fiction blockbuster sold over 1,65,000 tickets in leading national chains, including PVR Inox and Cinepolis, on its first day alone.

Furthermore, over 4,35,000 admissions were sold in these chains throughout the course of the weekend, indicating strong demand across all geographies and formats. Its worldwide release began on December 17 and is expected to debut with $250 million to $275 million.

Avatar: The Way of Water, also known as Avatar 2, made around to ₹50 crore on its first day of release in 2022 and approximately ₹500 crore during its whole run. Way of Water began with $441 million in 2022, whereas the original Avatar series earned in $232 million globally in 2009.

The latest instalment in the trilogy is expected to earn between $340 million and $365 million worldwide, making it one of the year's biggest earning movies. Avatar 2 made $2.3 billion in revenue worldwide, compared to $2.92 billion for the original film.

In a competitive landscape that also includes Ranveer Singh's Dhurandhar — a domestic hit that has amassed significant revenue over the last two weeks and continues to draw strong box office crowds during the holiday season — Avatar: Fire and Ash's ticket sales and opening performance are being closely watched.

“AvatarFireAndAsh Day 1: ₹24–28 crore nett (all versions included) India Biz," wrote film trade analyst Sumit Kadel in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

“The new Avatar instalment is tracking an opening 30–35% lower than Avatar: The Way of Water (₹40 crore nett opening day) in India. A major portion of the collections is expected to come from the South, while in North India, #Dhurandhar is on a phenomenal run and is likely to dent the film’s box-office prospects significantly outside metro centres,” Kadel added.

About ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’

Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Kate Winslet, Stephen Lang, Oona Chaplin, and Cliff Curtis play important parts in this third instalment. Besides navigating difficult relationships, elemental forces, and the actual cost of defending a burning world, Jake Sully, Neytiri, and their children must face a terrifying new enemy that is both human and Na'vi.

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