Hollywood kicked off 2026 with “Avatar: Fire and Ash” atop the box office for the third straight week and with hopes for a blockbuster-filled year after a disappointing 2025.

Lisa Kudrow stars in “Time Bandits,” an upcoming Apple TV+ series based on the 1981 movie written by Monty Python legends.

To a large degree, modern blockbuster moviemaking has depended on the appeasement of fans to keep franchise juggernauts smoothly humming.