The festive box office season has seen James Cameron's "Avatar: Fire and Ash" leading the charge for its second consecutive weekend, demonstrating remarkable staying power against new holiday releases. The third installment in the landmark Avatar franchise earned an impressive $22.6 million domestically on Friday, marking a roughly 39% decline from its opening day last week. Since its release around Christmas, the film has grossed $46.6 million and is projected to add a total of $75 million to $80 million domestically by Sunday, pushing its North American earnings to an estimated $176 million by the end of the week.

The film's strong box office performance comes amidst comparisons with Matt Damon's sci-fi hit, "The Martian." While "Avatar: Fire and Ash" is set to surpass the $210 million milestone by Sunday, "The Martian," directed by Ridley Scott, concluded its domestic run with a little over $200 million in 2015. Director James Cameron recently clarified a long-standing claim by Matt Damon regarding the original "Avatar," stating that no formal offer was made to Damon for the first film. Damon had previously suggested he turned down the role due to commitments to the Jason Bourne franchise, believing he would earn regular backend points, which Cameron indicated would not have been the case. Despite this, "The Martian" became Damon's biggest blockbuster as a leading man.

Cameron and Scott share a cinematic history, with Cameron having directed the blockbuster "Aliens" as a sequel to Scott's original "Alien." Over their careers, both filmmakers have adopted distinct approaches: Cameron often takes several years between projects, while Scott is known for sometimes directing multiple films within the same year.

Despite the immense success of its predecessors — "Avatar" and "Avatar: The Way of Water" being the first and third-highest-grossing movies in history — "Avatar: Fire and Ash" has opened to slightly more mixed critical reviews. It currently holds a 66% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus noting its "cutting edge of visual effects" but also "repeats the narrative beats of its predecessors to frustrating effect." In stark contrast, "The Martian" was a critical darling, securing seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actor, and boasts a 91% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Nonetheless, "Avatar 3"'s box office performance is tracking ahead of "Avatar 2," indicating critical reception has not deterred audiences.

Beyond "Avatar: Fire and Ash," the holiday box office saw other significant performances. Timothée Chalamet's "Marty Supreme," directed by Josh Safdie, secured second place on Friday, earning $6.73 million domestically from 2,668 locations. The film has accumulated $16.2 million since Christmas and is projected to reach $30 million by Sunday. "Marty Supreme" previously made headlines for its impressive per-screen-average (PSA) of $145,933 from just six screens, the best PSA of the year for any film, the highest ever for A24, and the best for a platform release since "La La Land" in 2016, largely fueled by Chalamet's energetic promotional campaign.

Disney's animated sequel "Zootopia 2" climbed to third place, pulling in $6.7 million on Friday, a significant jump from its fifth-place standing the previous week. The ongoing winter break for schools is believed to be a major factor in its sustained appeal. The film is expected to add $20 million by Sunday, pushing its domestic total to an impressive $308 million by the week's end, despite being released a month ago.

Sony's adventure comedy "Anaconda," starring Jack Black, Paul Rudd, Steve Zahn, Thandiwe Newton, Daniela Melchior, and a meta-reprisal by Ice Cube from the original 1997 film, took fourth place with $5.4 million domestically on Friday. Having earned $9.1 million on Christmas, it is projected to gross $22 million by Sunday.

Rounding out the top five was Paul Feig's psychological thriller "The Housemaid," featuring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried. It grossed $5.2 million on Friday, an uptick from its $3.5 million Christmas Day earnings, and is looking to achieve a domestic total of $45 million by Sunday.