The latest installment of the “Avatar” franchise, “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” has arrived to mixed reviews. The film currently holds a 68% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 61% on Metacritic, a continuation in the downward trend in reviews for James Cameron’s sci-fi epic.
The Rotten Tomatoes critics’ consensus reads, “Remaining on the cutting edge of visual effects, ‘Fire and Ash’ repeats the narrative beats of its predecessors to frustrating effect, but its grand spectacle continues to stoke one-of-a-kind thrills.” While the film’s visual ambition remains largely unquestioned, critics appear increasingly divided on whether the franchise’s storytelling is keeping pace.
The original “Avatar” (2009) set a high bar, earning an 81% on Rotten Tomatoes and an 83% on Metacritic, and was widely praised for redefining blockbuster filmmaking, per Forbes. Its sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” saw review scores dip to 76% on Rotten Tomatoes and 67% on Metacritic, a decline that has continued with the third installment.
Critic responses to “Fire and Ash” have been lukewarm at best. IndieWire film critic David Ehrlich wrote that the third franchise entry “isn’t just more of the same, it’s also a significant amount less.”
However, not all critics agree. Matt Singer of ScreenCrush offered a more positive write-up, saying that “Avatar: Fire and Ash” “weds the best of cutting-edge moviemaking technology with old-fashioned Hollywood storytelling for a tale of the wild frontier (in space).” Singer went on to say it “puts every other large-scale blockbuster of 2025 to shame.”
Despite the mixed critic reviews, some fans are still excited. On X, one user wrote the film had become their favorite of the trilogy, and hopes “James Cameron doesn’t leave us without Avatar 4 and 5. It would be a sin.”
Previous franchise films’ box office performance
Despite its mixed reviews, the “Avatar” franchise has historically proven its staying power in the box office.
The original “Avatar” earned $77 million during its domestic opening weekend in 2009 before going on to generate $2.9 billion worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. “Avatar: The Way of Water” debuted in 2022 with a much stronger $134.1 million domestic opening weekend, ultimately finishing its run with $2.3 billion globally, per Box Office Mojo.
“Avatar: Fire and Ash,” which opens in theaters Friday, is projected to earn between $90 million and $105 million in its domestic debut, as Variety reported.