James Cameron provides update on ‘Avatar 3’: “You’ve got to break the mould”
James Cameron has provided an update on Avatar: Fire and Ash, the third instalment of his proposed epic five-film saga, and confirmed he will take some risks this time.
In a recent interview with Empire magazine, the legendary writer/director revealed that his team is much further along in their schedule with Fire and Ash, compared to where they were at the same point in the leadup to the second film, Avatar: The Way of Water. Both movies were predominantly shot more than five years ago, before they entered extremely lengthy post-production processes.
“It’s in strong shape, I think,” a relaxed Cameron confirmed. “We’ve doubled the number of shots finished at this stage of the game than we had on movie two [and] the films are about equal length. So, that puts us well ahead of the curve, which is something I’ve never, frankly, experienced before.”
On top of what audiences will expect – namely, eye-popping CGI and incredible action sequences – Cameron claims he’s taking some genuine story and character risks with this third film. He revealed, “Yeah, we’ve got some really clever action set-pieces. You can get your blood up in this movie. But what excites me as an artist who recently turned 70 and has kind of done all that stuff is not only the opportunity to get to do it again but to get to a level of character and intrigue you haven’t seen before in an Avatar movie.”
Cameron confessed there is an inherent risk in changing a successful formula, but believes that he wouldn’t be true to himself as an artist if he didn’t try to stretch himself with each new movie. “We’re just starting to riff on it and twist it and turn it,” the director mused. “It’s a tricky thing. We could be getting high on our own supply here, and everybody who looks at it goes, ‘Fuck, that’s not what I signed up for.’ But if you’re not making brave choices, you’re wasting everybody’s time and money. That alone is not sufficient to create success, but it’s necessary. You’ve got to break the mould every fricking time.”
Avatar: Fire and Ash is set to be released on December 19th, 2025.
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