While $88 million would normally be considered a slow start for a movie on the scale of "Fire and Ash," the box-office run for "Avatar" movies tends to be a marathon, not a sprint. The series is known for having significant staying power in theaters for several weeks.

Avatar: Fire and Ash” ignited with $88 million in its domestic box office debut. It’s a decent start, albeit a significant decline from the opening weekend of 2022’s sequel “Avatar: The Way of Water” with $134 million.

"Pre-Covid, everybody thought the Chinese box office was going to be the savior of Hollywood," one international executive said. "Post-Covid, that has all changed."