Courtesy of Marvel Studios.

Flying toward a $60 million second weekend (domestically), James Cameron’s ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ once again dominates the box office (Friday–Sunday), marking a smooth 33% drop that most blockbusters would hope for. That’s a far better hold than 2022’s ‘Avatar: The Way of Water,’ which slid 52% during a brutal ice-storm Christmas, though Cameron’s original 2009 ‘Avatar’ still holds the all-time flex with a barely-there 1.8% dip in weekend two.

Thanks to the Christmas boost, ‘Fire and Ash’ is eyeing an $84 million four-day frame. The sequel pulled in $22 million on its second Friday alone across 3,800 theaters, pushing its domestic total to a glowing $213.7 million (domestic) by Sunday.

Zoom out, and the holiday box office is looking downright festive. This week marks the biggest Christmas frame since theaters reopened post-pandemic, with an estimated $342.3 million—up 10% from last year’s $311.4 million, per Box Office Mojo. Sure, it’s still 29% behind the pre-Covid glory days of 2019 ($485.5 million, powered by ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’), but momentum is clearly back on Hollywood’s nice list.

Disney, naturally, is loving life. ‘Zootopia 2’ continues to sprint well past expectations a full month into release. Still playing in 3,370 theaters, the animated sequel is hopping to $19 million in its fifth weekend—a 28% bump—with a running total of $320.3 million. That puts it just $20.9 million away from topping the original Zootopia’s $341.2 million domestic haul. Not bad for a movie that simply refuses to go into its cage. As reported earlier this week, Disney is also the only studio to cross $6 billion globally this year.

Over at A24, chaos is profitable. Josh Safdie’s ‘Marty Supreme’ is shaping up to earn $25.7 million over four days, outpacing Timothée Chalamet’s ‘A Complete Unknown’ from last Christmas, which made $23.2 million over five. Friday clocked in at $6 million, down from Christmas Day’s $9.5 million, for a projected $15 million three-day total from 2,668 theaters—and don’t be surprised if that number creeps higher.

For context, the Safdie Brothers’ ‘Uncut Gems’ opened to $18.8 million over a five-day Christmas stretch in 2019 and finished at $50 million domestic. ‘Marty Supreme’ may be on a similar trajectory, especially with a pre-release social media reach of 197 million across TikTok, X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. That includes Chalamet posing atop the Las Vegas Sphere and, yes, an actual ‘Marty Supreme’ blimp floating over Beverly Hills. Subtlety is overrated anyways…

Fourth place is a straight-up cage match. Lionsgate’s ‘The Housemaid’ is holding strong with $12.5 million to $15 million over three days (and $16–$18 million over four), following a Friday in the $4.8–$5.2 million range. At the high end, that’s a rock-solid 21% second-weekend drop.

Angel Studios’ ‘David’ is close behind with a projected $14 million second weekend, down 36%, after a $5 million Friday. And then there’s Sony’s sneaky surprise: Anaconda, which is slithering its way to $13 million for the three-day weekend and a hefty $22 million over four days from 3,509 theaters.

Social buzz for ‘Anaconda’ is powered largely by Jack Black’s 48.7 million followers and Selton Mello’s 9.9 million (Paul Rudd remains charmingly offline). According to RelishMix, fans are leaning hard into the film’s self-aware, comedy-first vibe—comparing it to ‘Tropic Thunder’ and ‘Jumanji’ rather than traditional creature horror.

Meanwhile, Paramount’s ‘The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants’ is soaking up family crowds with $3.4 million on its second Friday. That translates to a $10 million three-day weekend, down 36%, and a running total of $36.9 million.

Rounding things out, Focus Features’ ‘Song Sung Blue’ is quietly winning hearts. The Craig Brewer–directed musical is pulling in $2.6 million Friday, $7.6 million over three days, and $12 million for the four-day frame across 2,587 theaters. Audiences are clearly feeling the love, awarding it a stellar 98% Rotten Tomatoes audience score. With a $30 million net production cost and a social reach of 128 million, the Kate Hudson–Hugh Jackman pairing is doing just fine—especially with Jackman blasting the movie to his 80.5 million followers.

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