Avatar sequel earns more than $1 billion but still hasn't made enough to break even

It's no surprise that Avatar: The Way of Water was an expensive feat - not only was it made using some of the world's most sophisticated filmmaking technology but it spent a whopping 13 years in development.

As expected, James Cameron's epic Avatar sequel has been killing it at the box office, with the latest figures showing it's drawn in well over $1 billion (£828.5 million) in global sales.

But even with this eye-watering amount, it's still not enough to break even. Far from it, if the filmmaker's estimations are anything to go by.

Last month, Cameron explained that he'd warned the film studio the sequel would be 'the worst business case in movie history' because it was 'very f***ing expensive' to make.

The director, who is also the man behind the Terminator films, Point Break, and Titanic, told GQ that if The Way of Water is going to make a profit, 'you have to be the third or fourth highest-grossing film in history'.

He added: "That’s your threshold. That’s your break even."

Since it dropped earlier this month, the movie, from 20th Century and Disney, has been faring incredibly well with audiences around the world.

Rich Gold/Alamy Stock Photo

The latest figures show it crossed the one billion dollar mark this week, finishing Thursday (29 December) with a global sum of $1.17 billion (£969.5 million).

But if Cameron's estimations are accurate, then The Way of Water will need to cross the $2 billion (£1.65 billion) mark if it wants to break even, let alone make a profit.

We know this thanks to the list of the world's highest-grossing movies of all time, which funnily enough sees the first Avatar in top place, having earned $2.9 billion (£2.4 billion) overall.

Since he said it would need to be in third or fourth place, it would need to match Titanic or Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens, which drew in $2.2 billion (£1.8 billion) and $2.06 billion (£1.7 billion) respectively.

There's still some way to go until the movie hits figures like this, but considering it's only been in cinemas for just a couple of weeks, there's plenty of time to achieve that milestone.

20th Century Studios

As for the film itself, it truly is a feast for the eyes, and is set around 14 years after the original.

The synopsis reads: "[Former human] Jake Sully lives with his newfound family formed on the planet of Pandora.

"Once a familiar threat returns to finish what was previously started, Jake must work with Neytiri and the army of the Na'vi race to protect their planet."

The creators say that the next film, Avatar 3, is also nearly complete and will come out on 20 December 2024.

And for those who just can’t get enough of the Na’vi’s adventures, Cameron says there will be five Avatar films in total, the last one coming out in December 2028.