James Cameron’s science-fiction fantasy Avatar: Fire and Ash has surpassed $US1 billion ‍in global box office proceeds, the director’s fourth film to cross that threshold.

The film, ​which returned audiences to the visually stunning planet of Pandora, has pulled ⁠in $US1.03 billion ($A1.54 billion) in worldwide ticket sales, Walt Disney Studios said on Sunday.

Fire and Ash is the third movie in the Avatar series, which has earned a combined $US6.35 billion ($A9.5 billion) globally. The movie picks up where the second film The Way of ​Water left off, with characters Jake (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) mourning ‍the loss of a son.

“These movies consistently draw audiences to the movie theatre,” said Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore head of marketplace trends, who noted that the visually stunning 3D films are “tailor made” for watching in theatres.

The first ​film in the franchise, Avatar, which opened ‌in 2009 and brought in $US2.9 billion in ticket sales worldwide, was the highest-grossing movie ever in ​absolute dollars, according to Comscore.

It is, however, behind the 1939 classic Gone With the ‍Wind if box office returns are adjusted for inflation and average ticket prices over the decades. The film also stars Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang and Kate Winslet.

Thirteen years later, in 2022, Avatar: ​The ​Way of Water opened, grossed ​more than $US2.3 billion globally and won an ​Oscar for best achievement in visual effects.

The latest instalment, released in time for the holiday season, racked up $US306 million in the US and Canada, and $US777.1 million internationally, Disney reported.

Cameron’s first billion-dollar blockbuster was Titanic, released in 1997, which has brought in nearly $US2.3 billion, worldwide.

–Reuters/AAP