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Hollywood Avatar: Fire and Ash topped the box office for a third consecutive week, kicking off 2026 with hopes of a year filled with box-office blockbusters after a disappointing 2025.
Three weeks after “Fire and Ashes” was released, the global box office has exceeded $1 billion. Chapter 3 by James Cameron Pandora “Epic” grossed $40 million in its third weekend in North American theaters, the studio estimated Sunday.
“Fire and Ashes” is doing its biggest business overseas; to date, the film has grossed $777.1 million at the international box office. The Walt Disney Company surpassed the $1 billion milestone on Sunday, “cementing another landmark achievement for James Cameron’s groundbreaking film franchise.”
But during the holidays, it’s not just about weekend ticket sales. It’s a lucrative week for Hollywood as most schools remain closed. What drives ticket sales besides Avatar? Sidney SweeneyTimothée Chalamet and “Zootopia 2.”
The most enduring success of the holiday showdown is a movie released in November. Yet Disney’s “Zootopia 2” has remarkable staying power. It ranked second with $19 million, down just 4% from last weekend.
The animated sequel grossed $1.59 billion in six weeks. This makes “Zootopia 2” Disney’s second-highest-grossing animated film of all time, behind only 2019’s realistic “The Lion King” ($1.66 billion).
The twisty thriller “Maid,” starring Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried, also became a holiday hit for Lionsgate. The film grossed $14.9 million over the weekend and $75.7 million domestically over three weeks. It was down only 3% from the end of last week. Internationally, “The Handmaiden” cost just $35 million to make, but has made $57.3 million more.
Just as Sweeney’s star power propelled “Maided,” so did Chalamet’s “Marty Supreme.” “A24” also performed well in its third week, grossing an estimated $12.6 million. After two weeks of wide release, Josh Safdie’s riveting table tennis tale has grossed $56 million at the North American box office, surpassing the director’s last film, Uncut Gems, which grossed $50 million worldwide.
Nearly every film in theaters is down slightly from last weekend. Sony’s action comedy “Anaconda,” starring Jack Black and Paul Rudd, fell 31% in its second weekend, taking in $10 million at the box office. Focus Features’ “Song Sung Blue” fell just 17% in its second weekend, taking in $5.9 million. The Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson-Neil Diamond cover has made $25 million domestically.
Hollywood started 2026 strong with Avatar: Fire and Ash and a slew of minor hits. Data from data companies show that overall sales will increase by 26.5% on the same weekend in 2025 Comsk.
In 2025, the film industry performed poorly, with domestic moviegoing numbers continuing to decline. Ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada will reach $8.9 billion in 2025, up 2% from the previous year but about 20% below pre-pandemic levels, according to Comscore. The small improvement was significantly lower than expected and was also driven by rising fares. Actual tickets sold will drop from more than 800 million in 2024 to about 780 million in 2025.
Currently, the industry is awaiting a potential sea change when Warner Bros., one of the most theater-friendly studios around, agrees to sell to Netflix. The $83 billion deal is awaiting regulatory approval.
However, studios are cautiously optimistic that 2026 could be the best box office year in a decade. A string of blockbuster releases, including new “Toy Story,” “Avengers,” “Spider-Man,” “Super Mario Bros.” and “Dune” movies, have raised hopes of a turnaround.
Top 10 domestic box office movies
With final domestic data released on Monday, the list takes into account projected ticket sales at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Sunday, according to Comscore:
1. “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” $40 million.
2. “Zootopia 2”, $19 million.
3. “The Handmaiden,” $14.9 million.
4. “Marty Supreme,” $12.6 million.
5. “Anaconda,” $10 million.
6. “The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie: The Search for Cube Pants,” $8.2 million.
7. “David,” $8 million.
8. “Song Sung Blue,” $5.9 million.
9. “Wicked: Forever,” $3.3 million.
10. “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2,” $2.7 million.