Not only is “Avatar” setting new records each weekend for total gross and tiny drop-offs (only 29% in its fourth weekend), the 3D component continues to accelerate as a major factor for the film’s unprecedented success.
Several reports put the 3D percentage of the $48.5 million in domestic gross over the past weekend at a whopping 80%. That’s up from an already high 71%.
Moviegoers who saw it the first time in 2D and want to see it again appear to be checking out the 3D version on their subsequent visit.
Fox says 3D ticket sales account for $340 million of the film’s $429 million in North America this far, according to a Daniel Frankel story at Moviefone.
It has not been unusual in the past year or two for 3D ticket sales to account for the majority of revenue on a movie issued in both 2D and 3D even though there have heretofore been fewer 3D screens. Most have ranged between 55% – 75%. Part of that is due to the premium price for a 3D ticket — typically $3 in most theaters and even more for IMAX showings. A week ago IMAX showings accounted for 25% of the overall gross on Monday, January 4th, despite representing only 2% of the theaters showing “Avatar.” This past weekend IMAX theaters accounted for $7.5 million of the $48.5 mil., or nearly 16%.
“Avatar” has the added advantage of being shown in more 3D theaters than 2D theaters – more than 2,000 of the overall nearly 3,500 — a first in the industry.
That has helped push the film to a domestic total of $429 mil. and $1.335 billion worldwide, second all-time ahead of the $1.129 bil. of “Lord of the Rings: Return of the King” and behind the $1.842 of “Titanic,” according to Paul Dergarabedian’s Hollywood.com Box Office.
In just three weeks the movie became the top grosser of 2009. Internationally, it’s actually increasing business as “Avatar” opened to record numbers in China last week with $40.2 mil. in its opening week, propelling overall overseas markets to an increased cumulative gross of $143 million.
But Degarabedian says it could be tough for “Avatar” to catch “Titanic.” Not only does it still have $500 million more to go, but it will begin to compete for 3D and IMAX 3D theater screens in about seven weeks when Disney’s “Alice in Wonderland” opens on March 5.
“Two months is an eternity in this marketplace but I think there could be a traffic jam (for available 3D screens),” says Dergarabedian, noting it will become an ever-increasing issue as more movies get released in 3D. Case in point: just three weeks after “Alice in Wonderland,” DreamWorks will release “How to Train Your Dragon” in 3D.
Even without 3D, the availability of important IMAX screens became an issue last summer when “Transformers 2” was still performing so well that “Harry Potter 6” had to be delayed longer than traditional movie theaters for its IMAX debut.
– By Scott Hettrick