‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ could break box office records. Do critics like it?

Much like how the character Jack Dawson proudly proclaims to be king of the world after boarding the Titanic, film director James Cameron could claim to be king of the box office.

Cameron chooses to take a mellower approach, letting the numbers do the talking. His latest film, Avatar: Fire and Ash, hits theaters this Friday and is primed to break even more box office records.

Let’s take a look at the history of this franchise before we discuss industry projections.

The first Avatar film came out in 2009 and received generally positive reviews. “Cameron and his artists have so lovingly imagined the moon of Pandora that every shot of the film contains new wonders. One can lose oneself in this world,” gushed Vulture’s Bilge Ebiri.

On both the domestic and world stages, Avatar became the highest grossing film of all time.

Domestically, Star Wars: Episode VII—The Force Awakens dethroned it in 2015, and........

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