Undoubtedly, James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way of Water is one of the most commercially successful movies of all time. Ever since the first movie was released in 2009, audiences had doubts regarding whether the sequel would be able to live up to its reputation.
Much to their delight, the latest installment has proven to be a great addition to the first, thanks largely to brilliant performances and dazzling visuals. Once again, we meet Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his family preparing to protect themselves from the advancing threats of humans.
Balancing its phenomenally positive reception against complaints about its long theatrical run, viewers have been eagerly looking forward to watching the movie in the comfort of their homes. This raises the question of which streaming platform(s) would add the second installment of Cameron’s popular franchise to its roster.
Well, much to many a movie fans’ surprise, Avatar: The Way of Water has made its simultaneous streaming debut on both Disney Plus and Max on June 7. Normally, it’s pretty common to see the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe movie making an exclusive debut on Disney Plus and the same usually goes for DC films coming to Max. But for one movie to land on both of these seemingly opposed platforms on the same day is unusual, so why did this happen in the first place?
It turns out, this was the result of a streaming deal that was made between 20th Century Fox (now called 20th Century Studios) and Max. You see, the deal was likely made before Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox in 2019. Avatar: The Way of Water famously took years and years of development because, just like the first film, new technology had to be invented to film it. Therefore, it’s not totally surprising that the studio’s ownership changing hands during that time would have had an unusual effect on its streaming distribution.
Whether you prefer Disney Plus or Max, Avatar: The Way of Water is now streaming on both platforms.
