‘Avatar’ Opens with $89M Domestic Haul

The weekend box office was led by Avatar: Fire and Ash, which opened slightly higher than expected with $89 million domestically and $347 million worldwide, thanks to a strong Sunday performance. Internationally, the film earned $258 million, showing better hold than Avatar: The Way of Water. Meanwhile, David and The Housemaid stayed steady with weekend totals of $22 million and $19 million, respectively, and The SpongeBob Movie: The Search for Squarepants followed with $15.6 million for its debut opening.

In continued efforts to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount is escalating its hostile bid by having Larry Ellison personally guarantee the $40.4 billion in equity financing for the $78 billion deal and open up the Ellison family trust to scrutiny. This move aims to counter WBD’s claims that Paramount’s financing was unreliable and inferior to Netflix’s offer. To sweeten the deal, Paramount also raised its breakup fee to $5.8 billion, matching Netflix’s.

On Monday, NBA and FIBA confirmed plans to move ahead in January with exploring a new pan-European professional men’s basketball league by engaging potential teams and owners. The league would include permanent teams while also offering merit-based qualification through existing FIBA competitions and would align with domestic and national team schedules. The NBA and FIBA also plan to invest in developing Europe’s broader basketball ecosystem, with more details to come in the coming months.

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly and the Kansas City Chiefs announced a deal to build a $3 billion domed stadium in Wyandotte County, along with a new team headquarters, training facility, and mixed-use developments in Olathe. The project, a public-private partnership requiring no new state funds or taxes, is expected to create over 20,000 construction jobs, generate $4.4 billion during construction, and produce more than $1 billion in annual economic impact. The stadium is slated to open for the 2031 NFL season, and both sites will include entertainment, dining, retail, office, hotel, and residential spaces.

The Detroit Pistons have expanded their partnership with Detroit native Big Sean, naming the rapper Creative Director of Global Experience. In this role, he will help connect basketball, music, fashion, and art while promoting Motor City’s culture and expanding the team’s global fanbase. The collab also includes community engagement, international events, and fan initiatives, highlighted by the launch of “Creatives Across Continents,” a global creative program inviting artists to produce Detroit basketball-inspired work for a 2026 retail collection.

Continuing his growing relationship with NBC, Snoop Dogg will serve as a game analyst for Peacock’s broadcast of the Los Angeles Clippers vs. Golden State Warriors game on Jan. 5, calling the second half alongside Terry Gannon and Reggie Miller. He will attend pregame meetings and watch the first half before joining the commentary. Snoop will also have a key role in NBC’s coverage of the Milan-Cortina Winter Games. This week, catch the hip-hop legend on Netflix’s Christmas Day halftime show during the Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings game.

The first Saturday Night Live episode of 2026 will air on Jan. 17, hosted by Finn Wolfhard with musical guest A$AP Rocky. The episode follows the finale of Wolfhard’s series Stranger Things. Rocky will perform music from his new album Don’t Be Dumb, releasing the day before. The announcement was made during the Saturday SNL episode hosted by Ariana Grande with Cher as the musical guest.

Jisoo, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Willow Smith are the faces of three new Dior Addict fragrances: Rosy Glow, Peachy Glow, and Purple Glow. Created by Dior’s perfume director Francis Kurkdjian, each scent reinvents the brand’s signature flowers – rose, jasmine, and iris. Dior says the fragrances capture “the radiant facets of carefree youth on a quest for deliciously spontaneous olfactory pleasure.” They will launch globally starting Jan. 1.

Drake hosted the first of three live streams on Stake over the weekend, aiming to end his gambling year on a high note. He announced plans to give 10% of his betting winnings to a lucky fan as part of the promotion. During the stream, he also gave an update on his project Iceman, saying work is ongoing but no release date has been set. The remaining two streams are scheduled for today and tomorrow.

Chanel will present the first specialty craft-focused Métiers d’Art collection by artistic director Matthieu Blazy in Seoul on May 26, though the exact location is not yet revealed. The collection debuted on Dec. 2 in New York on a decommissioned subway platform, with a front row featuring stars like A$AP Rocky and Margaret Qualley, alongside a short film by Michel Gondry. Chanel has a long history in Seoul, opening its first fragrance and beauty store in 1992 followed by an apparel shop inside the Galleria department store in 1997.

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