James Cameron Admits ‘Avatar: Fire And Ash’ Has Him At “Crossroads” With Franchise Future: “Do I Want It To Be A Wild Success Or To Fail Just Enough That I Can Justify Doing Something Else?”
Where he once envisioned at least five entries in his cinematic sci-fi vision, James Cameron has apparently found himself at such a “crossroads” when it comes to Pandora’s post-Avatar: Fire and Ash future that he’s recently come to accept the idea of the upcoming third film being the franchise’s last.
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Reflecting on his overall Avatar efforts during a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter‘s James Hibberd, the esteemed director at one point found himself speaking to the regular criticisms leveled towards the franchise’s three-hour average run time, asserting, “There’s a wisdom that’s a carryover from decades ago that if we can have more [screenings per day], we’ll make more money. But if you engage people, the word will spread. We proved it with Titanic, which is exactly the same length as Fire and Ash.
Following the quick clarification that “This doesn’t mean Fire and Ash will make as much money as Titanic,” Cameron confirmed that the sequel’s box office performance would be a major, if not the deciding factor in whether or not he continues his dancing with the Na’vi.
“This can be the last one. There’s only one [unanswered question] in the story. We may find that the release of Avatar 3 proves how diminished the cinematic experience is these days, or we may find it proves the case that it’s as strong as it ever was — but only for certain types of films. It’s a coin toss right now. We won’t know until the middle of January.”
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In turn pressed by Hibberd as to “What do you want to happen? [emphasis his]”, Cameron admitted, “That’s an interesting question. I feel I’m at a bit of a crossroads. Do I want it to be a wild success — which almost compels me to continue and make two more Avatar movies? Or do I want it to fail just enough that I can justify doing something else?”
“I’ve got other stories to tell, and I’ve got other stories to tell within Avatar. What won’t happen is, I won’t go down the rabbit hole of exclusively making only Avatar for multiple years. I’m going to figure out another way that involves more collaboration. I’m not saying I’m going to step away as a director, but I’m going to pull back from being as hands-on with every tiny aspect of the process.”
Offering an interesting addendum to his Avatar musings, Cameron expressed frustration at both how little of an effect the film’s pro-conservation message has had in advancing real-world ecological protections, as well as the Trump administration’s ongoing attack to roll back those that already exist within the United States at the behest of its current oligarchy.
Beginning with the declaration that Trump was the “most narcissitic asshole in history since f–king Nero; Yeah, you can quote me on that”, the director explained, “I’m not frustrated that Avatar isn’t solving it. I’m frustrated because the human race seems to be delusional about what they think is going to happen next.”
“We are going backwards. But who’s to say we wouldn’t be going backwards even faster if it wasn’t for these films? There isn’t an alternative Earth without Avatar we can point to and say, ‘It made this measurable difference.’ What we can say is the Avatar films are on the right side of history.”
Regardless of the franchise’s overall fate, Avatar: Fire and Ash is currently on track to make landfall this Friday, December 19th.
