Disney shares have dropped on Monday morning after James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water underperformed at the box office.
Shares at Disney closed down more than 4%, a 52-week low. Over the past year, Disney stocks have fallen by more than 40%, marking a troubling time for the company.
Analysts had previously predicted that the sequel to Avatar would be a box office success for Disney. The holidays were considered the make-or-break period for the movie.
However, Avatar: The Way of Water only made $134 million in the domestic box office during its opening weekend. That fell short of analyst expectations of $175 million. It also fell short of Disney’s expectations of anywhere between $135 million and $150 million.
However, internationally, Avatar: The Way of Water did bring in $300.5 million. That brings its box office weekend opening total to just about $434.5 million. The original Avatar, which released back in 2009, went on to be the highest-grossing movie ever released and only made $77 million in its opening weekend.
Disney has been facing increasing challenges with revenue and the movie theater industry at large. Since the pandemic, movie theaters and theme parks were shut down and only recently re-opened. Additionally, the movie theater industry seems to be struggling. Prices and soaring inflation are also making it harder to enjoy Disney’s theme parks as ticket prices continue to rise.
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Zainah Yousef
Zainah Yousef is the author of The Fallen Age Saga and specializes in gaming, social media advice, and reviews. She's been writing all her life and she probably won't stop anytime soon.
