James Cameron's AVATAR discussion thread

[Something Sexy]

And how many different releases did that have?

I don't think number of releases has anything to do with most popular film.

 

[barbelith]

Although star wars was in the theater for a year- it was something special for the time

That was fairly typical for movies back then. Movies opened on far fewer screens and generally opening weekend was nothing special. The "first weekend" smash is a modern phenomenon as studios try to push for maximum revenue up front (this is why marketing budgets are now often as large as the film budget). That's affected the longevity of movies in release, as they burn through their audiences much faster. (And before anyone tries to complain about comparisons, it's worth keeping in mind studios made this paradigm shift because they thought it would make them more money than the previous way.)

Movies also weren't released on many screens back in the day, so initial release grosses don't give the full picture. A big part of the industry was the small town getting a film six months later. That doesn't exist now, because films open on thousands of screens rather than hundreds, and everything is geared toward that first weekend and first month. If you study recent blockbusters, you'll usually discover a press release touting its release on more screens than ever before. Avatar debuted on around 7,000 US screens, which is massive. Just under half those were 3D screens, although 3D ticket sales accounted for a little more than 2/3 of its opening weekend gross (you can see just how influential the 3D surcharge is right there).

 

[barbelith]

I don't think number of releases has anything to do with most popular film.

If anything, it underlines how popular the film really is! It's incredible that Star Wars performed as it did on re-release in the '90s, and I daresay no other film could possibly hope to achieve such success in that context.

 

[The Ween]

I don't think number of releases has anything to do with most popular film.

That's what I think too, but.........

 

[barbelith]

To put things in perspective, the 1997 Star Wars SE release earned a little under half what Avatar did in its first weekend ... but on fewer than a third of the screens and without the following 12 years of inflation or 3D surcharges.

Utterly incredible. Avatar is certainly a juggernaut, but does anyone here truly believe it's capable of having the pop culture impact that makes a similar SE release possible 20 years from now?

 

[LChinoz]

To put things in perspective, the 1997 Star Wars SE release earned a little under half what Avatar did in its first weekend ... but on fewer than a third of the screens and without the following 12 years of inflation or 3D surcharges.

Utterly incredible. Avatar is certainly a juggernaut, but does anyone here truly believe it's capable of having the pop culture impact that makes a similar SE release possible 20 years from now?

Disclaimer: I have never seen a Star Wars film. Just have no interest in the franchise.

I do not think Avatar will have such a lasting effect simply because Star Wars did what Avatar is doing first, had the luxury of sequels and prequels, and let's face it, is a pop culture phenomenon. With that said, the prequels themselves couldn't even make a dent in Titanic's BO numbers, and they came out after Titanic. In any case, only time will tell.

 

[barbelith]

With that said, the prequels themselves couldn't even make a dent in Titanic's BO numbers, and they came out after Titanic.

The Phantom Menace came out 18 months after Titanic and made a pretty sizable dent despite sucking. I imagine that suck factor had a lot to do with the other two prequels' returns.

 

[Bannister]

The Phantom Menace came out 18 months after Titanic and made a pretty sizable dent despite sucking. I imagine that suck factor had a lot to do with the other two prequels' returns.

Especially AOTC. ROTS got a bump since it was the last Star Wars flick.

 

[BadMoon]

Disclaimer: I have never seen a Star Wars film. Just have no interest in the franchise.

I do not think Avatar will have such a lasting effect simply because Star Wars did what Avatar is doing first, had the luxury of sequels and prequels, and let's face it, is a pop culture phenomenon. With that said, the prequels themselves couldn't even make a dent in Titanic's BO numbers, and they came out after Titanic. In any case, only time will tell.

 

[LChinoz]

I've done Star Tours like 20 times though

 

[lightwave000]

On this website called the Numbers, it shows you top grossing movies due to inflation. Star wars is #1 i believe, but even with inflation for Avatar, it still has a LONG time to go, with it still being #1 for 6 weeks in a row, it will be in theaters for a long time, only time will tell.

Boxofficemojo.com has that as well and breaks it down just about anyway you can think of.

 

[lightwave000]

I think the prequels hurt the franchise a bit. It put a sour taste in the mouth of most of the purists but on the other hand opened the universe to kids and a new generation. I dont think there will ever be anything that has the effect and longevity that Star Wars has had in my lifetime.

 

[Red]

On this website called the Numbers, it shows you top grossing movies due to inflation. Star wars is #1 i believe, but even with inflation for Avatar, it still has a LONG time to go, with it still being #1 for 6 weeks in a row, it will be in theaters for a long time, only time will tell.

SW comes in at 2 behind Gone With the Wind.

I loved Av but really now that the technology is down they should be able to produce a better sequel story line wise....can't wait.

 

[Khev]

Jesus......okay.....I give.....

enjoy Avatar......YOUR best movie of all time.

You're no more qualified to state what ranks as my best movie of all time than you are to critique a movie you've never seen.

 

[pixletwin]

pixletwin here reporting that before we saw Avatar my youngest boy wanted Doctor Who toys and legos for his birthday... After seeing Avatar in 3D XD guess what....

He wants Doctor Who and legos for his birthday. He let the dog have his McDonalds avatar toys as well.

Just saying....

 

[DinoLast]

pixletwin here reporting that before we saw Avatar my youngest boy wanted Doctor Who toys and legos for his birthday... After seeing Avatar in 3D XD guess what....

He wants Doctor Who and legos for his birthday. He let the dog have his McDonalds avatar toys as well.

Just saying....

Like Father like Son. Or Daughter for that matter

My 2 year old daughter wants to play with my Indiana Jones stuff and knows what his name is.

 

[IrishJedi]

Did you guys hear about China renaming a mountain in honor of Avatar!?

https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8480954.stm

Wow. Avatardation is truly worldwide epidemic.

Incidentally, it took just over a month for another piece of sci-fi media (Mass Effect 2) to come out that makes AVATAR look like it was written by a 12 year old.

 

[Something Sexy]

Wow. Avatardation is truly worldwide epidemic.

Incidentally, it took just over a month for another piece of sci-fi media (Mass Effect 2) to come out that makes AVATAR look like it was written by a 12 year old.

I will need to pick this up. Grrrrrrrrr.

 

[barbelith]

pixletwin here reporting that before we saw Avatar my youngest boy wanted Doctor Who toys and legos for his birthday...

You know how to raise 'em right.

 

[ironwez20]

pixletwin here reporting that before we saw Avatar my youngest boy wanted Doctor Who toys and legos for his birthday... After seeing Avatar in 3D XD guess what....

He wants Doctor Who and legos for his birthday. He let the dog have his McDonalds avatar toys as well.

Just saying....

well not all kids will love avatar, althogh the toys are selling out left and right.