“Avatar: Fire and Ash” will continue to dominate the domestic box office this weekend, easily dispensing with a cadre of new releases.
James Cameron’s sci-fi epic, which recently crossed the $1 billion mark, is expected to pull in another $20 million in ticket sales. That should top the $8 million to $11 million that studio sources expect Lionsgate’s “Greenland 2: Migration” and Paramount’s “Primate” to generate. Give a slight edge to “Greenland 2” to outpace “Primate,” though they seem to be running neck and neck.
There’s plenty of competition at the multiplexes. Not only are there holiday holdovers such as “Marty Supreme” and “The Housemaid,” but Angel Studios will debut “I Was a Stranger” in wide release and Searchlight’s “Is This Thing On?” will expand to more than 1,000 venues after debuting in a handful of theaters for an awards qualifying run. Look for “I Was a Stranger” to pull in between $1 million to $3 million.
“Greenland 2,” another entry in Gerard Butler’s action hero canon, is the sequel to 2020’s disaster thriller, “Greenland,” which debuted on demand because of COVID. It carries a budget of $90 million and was produced by STX, the defunct studio that is reportedly trying to revive itself. Morena Baccarin and Roman Griffin Davis co-star in the film, which was directed by Ric Roman Waugh. It follows a family in search of a new home after they emerge from the bunker they hid in during a comet strike.
“Primate” is the story of a group of friends whose tropical vacation turns into a survival odyssey. It’s the first film from 18Hz, the new genre label run by former DC Films chief Walter Hamada. “Primate” is a relatively low risk offering, carrying a production budget of $24 million.