The highly anticipated sequel to the 2009 sci-fi blockbuster grossed $90 million between Friday and Monday, a public holiday in the United States and Canada, in its second week of release.
Including international admissions, James Cameron's film has grossed a total of more than $881 million since its release, according to figures from box office mojo.
Again set on the planet Pandora, "Avatar: The Way of Water" tells a story set more than a decade after the events of the first film.
U.S. Marine Jake Sully, played by Sam Worthington, has transitioned into the body of a Na'vi, the tall, blue-skinned people of Pandora, and works with them to protect their habitat from a dire threat.
Another sequel, the children's film "Puss in Boots 2: The Last Quest" slips into second place on the podium, despite falling short of expectations with $17.5 million over four days in its first weekend indoors.
In this children's film, Puss in Boots, voiced by actor Antonio Banderas, embarks on an epic adventure to restore his nine lives.
The biopic on singer Whitney Houston "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" lands him in third position with only $ 6.8 million in receipts for its first weekend.
Excessive work, the feature film "Babylon" with Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt barely raised $ 5.3 million for its start, another performance "disappointing due to external conditions", underlines David Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research .
Six years after the triumph of "La La Land", the gifted Damien Chazelle offers with this film a vibrant tribute to the Hollywood of the 1920s, at a time when sound began to appear, condemning the silent world to oblivion.
"Black Panther: Wakanda Forever", the sequel to the afro-futuristic Marvel film which hit the screens in 2018, tumbles to fifth place with $ 5.3 million for its seventh week on screens.
Here's the rest of the top 10:
6- "Violent Night" ($4.3 million)
7- "The Whale" (1.5 million)
8- "The Menu" (1 million)
9- "The Fabelmans" ($900,000)
10- "Avalonia, the strange journey" (675,000 dollars)
© 2022 AFP