James Cameron still plans to direct ‘Avatar 4’ and ‘Avatar 5’
Avatar creator James Cameron has provided an update on his plans to extend the franchise into five films.
The original Avatar film was first released in 2009. It took home three Academy Award wins and pulled in almost $3billion at the box office, overtaking Cameron’s previous offering, Titanic, as the highest-grossing movie ever made. 15 years on, it still holds that title.
In 2022, over a decade after the first film hit cinemas, Cameron delivered a follow-up film titled Avatar: The Way of Water.
The long-awaited sequel performed similarly well at the box office, becoming the third highest-grossing film ever made. Now, Cameron is in the post-production stage for a third instalment into the series.
Avatar: Fire and Ash is set to hit cinemas in December 2025, and Cameron has promised The Hollywood Reporter that it’s a “really fucking cool” film.
Stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña and Sigourney Weaver are set to return to their roles in the franchise, while new additions to the cast include David Thewlis and Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh.
“You’re going to love it,” the director enthused, “And I can’t talk about it.” Cameron then spoke about his plans to direct the fourth and fifth instalments into the series, declaring, “they’re going to have to stop me.”
“I got plenty of energy,” he added, “love doing what I’m doing. Why would I not?” Both films have already been written, the fourth in collaboration with Josh Friedman and the fifth with Shane Salerno.
“I just reread both of them about a month ago,” Cameron shared, “They’re cracking stories. They’ve got to get made. Look, if I get hit by a bus and I’m in an iron lung, somebody else is going to do it.”
The titles of the fourth and fifth films are yet to be revealed, but they have been scheduled for release in the winter of 2029 and 2031, respectively. Worthington and Saldaña are set to return for the fourth film.
Cameron’s plans for ‘Avatar’ beyond the fifth movie
Earlier this year, the director even suggested that he might extend the franchise beyond five movies. The director stated that he had “ideas” for Avatar 6 and Avatar 7, though he admitted that he would likely pass over directorial duties to another filmmaker.
“We’re fully written through movie five, and I’ve got ideas for six and seven,” he shared during an interview with People, “although I’ll probably be handing the baton on at that point. Mortality catches up. But I mean, we’re enjoying what we’re doing. We’re loving it. We get to work with great people.”
It remains to be seen who Cameron will pass the baton of the Avatar franchise to if he decides to eventually step away from the director’s chair for later instalments. However, due to the meteoric success of the film’s release from the series so far and the chance to follow in Cameron’s footsteps, filmmakers will be pursuing the opportunity to delve into the world of Pandora.
By 2031, when the sixth Avatar movie is released, Cameron will be in his late 70s, which is still younger than active director’s such as Francis Ford Coppola and Ridley Scott. Therefore, there is a possibility that he’ll continue to devote himself to Avatar, and finishes the story on his own terms.
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