You can enjoy “Avatar” at home in HiDef Blu-ray but the only way to see it again in 3D before November will be a return limited two-week theatrical re-release exclusively in about 400 3D theaters, including at least dozens of IMAX screens, beginning Aug. 27.
That will also be your first chance to see eight minutes of additional footage featuring new creatures and action scenes, all in 3D, bringing the already lengthy movie even closer to a full three-hours at about 170 -minutes.
The theatrical re-release strategy had been revealed earlier this year but specific dates and confirmation of the extended edition have just been officially announced today by IMAX Corp. and 20th Century Fox.
The earliest that a 3D version would be available for the home will be later this fall. We reported here earlier this year that a 3D Blu-ray version of “Avatar” from Fox and Panasonic was being planned for release in November but only with the purchase of Panasonic 3D equipment. There has been no official confirmation of that plan but “Avatar” producer John Landau did announce an “ultimate edition” of “Avatar” to be released on Blu-ray in November lots of bonus features, presumably also including the extra eight minutes of footage. A general retail release of “Avatar” in 3D Blu-ray was not expected until 2011, but that could change given the backlash surrounding the original report of the strategy.
The two-week theatrical re-release will serve as a nice teaser for whatever Blu-ray ultimate edition is to come in November, but it will also surely add significantly — probably tens of milions of dollars — to the record grosses the movie has already achieved with $749.6 million in domestic ticket sales and $2.7 billion worldwide. The 2D version released on Blu-ray with no bonus features quickly became the all-time top-selling Blu-ray disc title.
“Avatar” is also the top-grossing IMAX release of all-time, having generated $235 million in the large format theaters.
Many industry observers felt “Avatar” may have generated significantly more than it did if had not been bumped from 3D theaters of all types to make room for Disney’s “Alice in Wonderland,” which also became a blockbuster.
— By Scott Hettrick