NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� led ticket sales in movie theaters for the sixth straight weekend, making it the first film to have such a sustained reign atop the box office since 2009's 鈥淎vatar."
The Walt Disney Co.鈥檚 鈥淭he Way of Water鈥� added $19.7 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Its global total has now surpassed $2 billion, putting it sixth all-time and just ahead of 鈥淪pider-Man: No Way Home.鈥� Domestically, 鈥淭he Way of Water鈥� is up to $598 million. Continued robust international sales ($56.3 million for the weekend) has helped push the 鈥淎vatar鈥� sequel to $2.024 billion worldwide.
A year ago, 鈥淪pider-Man: No Way Home鈥� , but did it over the course of seven weeks. You have to go back to Cameron's original 鈥淎vatar鈥� to find a movie that stayed No. 1 for such a long span. ("Avatar" ultimately topped out at seven weeks.) Before that, the only film in the past 25 years to manage the feat was another Cameron film; 鈥淭itanic鈥� (1997) went undefeated for 15 weeks.
鈥淭he Way of Water鈥� has now reached a target that . Ahead of its release, Cameron said becoming 鈥渢he third or fourth highest-grossing film in history鈥� was 鈥測our break even."
The box-office domination for 鈥淭he Way of Water鈥� has been aided, in part, by a dearth of formidable challengers. The only new wide release from a major studio on the weekend was the thriller from Sony's Screen Gems and Stage 6 Films. A low-budget sequel to 2018's 鈥淪earching," starring Storm Reid as a teenager seeking her missing mother, 鈥淢issing鈥� plays out across computer screens. The film, budgeted at $7 million, debuted with $9.3 million.
January is typically a slow period in theaters, but a handful of strong-performing holdovers have helped prop up sales.
Though it didn't open hugely in December, Universal Pictures' has had long legs as one of the only family options in theaters over the last month. In its fifth week, it came in second place with $11.5 million domestically and $17.8 million overseas. The 鈥淧uss in Boots" sequel has grossed $297.5 million globally.
The creepy doll horror hit also from Universal, has likewise continued to pull in moviegoers. It notched $9.8 million in its third week, bringing its domestic haul to $73.3 million.
And while the popularity of horror titles in theaters is nothing new, Sony Pictures' starring Tom Hanks, has flourished in a marketplace that's been trying for adult-oriented dramas. The film, a remake of the Swedish film 鈥淎 Man Called Ove,鈥� about a retired man whose suicide plans are continually foiled by his neighbors, made $9 million in its second week of wide release. It's taken in $35.3 million domestically through Sunday.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "Avatar: The Way of Water," $19.7 million.
2. 鈥淧uss in Boots: The Last Wish,鈥� $11.5 million.
3. 鈥淢3驳补苍,鈥� $9.8 million
4. 鈥淢issing,鈥� $9.3 million.
5. 鈥淎 Man Called Otto,鈥� $9 million.
6. 鈥淧lane,鈥� $5.3 million.
7. 鈥淗ouse Party,鈥� $1.8 million.
8. 鈥淭hat Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime The Movie,鈥� $1.5 million.
9. 鈥淏lack Panther: Wakanda Forever,鈥� $1.4 million.
10. 鈥淭he Whale,鈥� $1.3 million.
___
Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP
Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
