LOS ANGELES — ''Avatar: Fire and Ash'' kept on smoldering at the box office, taking the top spot for a fourth straight week on a relatively quiet weekend as the January doldrums began setting in for the industry.
The third chapter in James Cameron's Pandora epic brought in $21.3 million in North American theaters for The Walt Disney Co., according to studio estimates Sunday.
In total after four weeks, ''Fire and Ash'' has grossed $342.6 million in North America and $888 million in the rest of the world. Last week it joined its two predecessors as a billion-dollar earner.
The week's top-grossing new release was Paramount Pictures rampaging-chimp horror film ''Primate,'' which earned $11.3 million domestically and $13.4 worldwide.
Disney's ''Zootopia 2'' has shown remarkable staying power since its November release. It continues to be a global juggernaut and a sensation in China. Globally, the animated sequel has piled up $1.65 billion. That put it just on the edge of becoming Disney's highest grossing animated movie ever, trailing only the $1.66 billion brought in by 2019's photorealistic ''The Lion King.''
In its seventh week, it was fourth at the North American box office with $10.1 million for a domestic total of $378.8 million.
The Sydney Sweeney-driven thriller ''The Housemaid'' continues to be a good earner for Lionsgate, which earlier this week greenlit a sequel. It collected $11.2 million in North America in its fourth weekend for a total of $94.15 million and has brought in $192.5 million worldwide after costing just $35 million to make.
The figures came on a Sunday when much of Hollywood's attention is on the Golden Globe Awards. ''Avatar: Fire and Ash'' and ''Zootopia 2'' are nominated for two awards apiece.
