James Cameron drops BOMBSHELL: Director says he may not helm 'Avatar' 4 and 5

Filmmaker James Cameron teased the possibility of not directing the future 'Avatar' sequels. They 'are kind of all-consuming,' he revealed
UPDATED JUL 5, 2022
James Cameron reveals he may give up directing 'Avatar' sequels for other things that are 'more exciting'  (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for CinemaCon)
James Cameron reveals he may give up directing 'Avatar' sequels for other things that are 'more exciting' (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for CinemaCon)

Legendary filmmaker James Cameron, in a recent interview, shared his ideas for the later films which are a part of his ‘epic four films saga’ set in the vibrant ‘Avatar’ universe on the glowing planet of Pandora. First of those, ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ would be globally released in theatres in December 2022. The second one in that franchise is still untitled and is set for a 2024 release as they both have been shot back to back.

So when can we expect ‘Avatar’ sequels 4 and 5? Whilst the entire idea of this Pandora universe themed four films franchise had been Cameron’s brainchild, the Oscar award-winning filmmaker is definitely considering the idea of not directing the ‘Avatar’ 4 and 5 and speaking about the same to The Empire he said, “I don’t know if that’s after three or after four. I’ll want to pass the baton to a director that I trust to take over, so I can go do some other stuff that I’m also interested in. Or maybe not. I don’t know.”

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Director James Cameron winner of Best Motion Picture, Drama award for "Avatar" poses in the press room at the 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards held at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 17, 2010 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Furthermore, while talking about ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’, Cameron opened up on his plans related to the later films in the series. Elaborating on the same, he said, “The Avatar films themselves are kind of all-consuming. I’ve got some other things I’m developing as well that are exciting.”

If this happens, it's not going to be the first time that the director would be handing over his project to some other filmmaker to be adapted on the screens. Not many might know this but previously, Cameron handed over ‘Alita: Battle Angel’, a project that he had originally planned to adapt on the screens to Robert Rodriguez while being on board as the co-writer and executive producer.

'Avatar: The Way of Water' (IMDb)

Giving a hint about where he can be seen going with the storyline of the Pandora film saga set in the Avatar universe, James said, “Everything I need to say about family, about sustainability, about climate, about the natural world, the themes that are important to me in real life and in my cinematic life, I can say on this canvas." He also added, “I got more excited as I went along. Movie four is a corker. It’s a motherfucker. I actually hope I get to make it. But it depends on market forces. Three is in the can so it’s coming out regardless. I really hope that we get to make four and five because it’s one big story, ultimately.”

The 67-year-old legendary icon is considered one of Hollywood's industry’s finest directors. He enamored the world back in 2009 with the cult fantasy animation film ‘Avatar’ which got him globally recognition as a filmmaker and broke all the global box-office records as well. He has given some incredible films in his illustrious career spanning more than three decades now which include ‘Titanic’, ‘The Terminator’, ‘Aliens’, ‘The Abyss’, ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’ and ‘True Lies’.

Not many people might know this, but Cameron is an Oscar award-winning filmmaker who won the Academy awards in three categories for Best Picture, Best Director and Best film editing for the timeless classic ‘Titanic’. Also, both ‘Avatar’ and ‘Titanic’ today are considered as one of the highest and third highest-grossing films of all time helmed by  Cameron which have garnered almost $2.85 billion and $2.19 billion. Besides being one of the most cult films today, 'Avatar' has also won three Academy Awards which include Best Visual Effects, Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction.

The star cast for 'Avatar: The Way of Water' includes Kate Winslet, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldaña, Sam Worthington and several others. The film is one of the much talked about sequels to the 2009 classic 'Avatar'.

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