Going into the release of Avatar: The Way of Water, writer/director James Cameron has been his usual bombastic self while hyping up the sequel that’s been 13 years in the making. On top of claiming that the movie will make you “sh*t yourself with your mouth wide open,” he’s also taken swings at the Marvel movies that have dominated theaters in the years since the first Avatar shattered box office records.
However, in a surprisingly candid move, Cameron has revealed that he’s ready to end the Avatar franchise early if The Way of Water underperforms at the box office. It appears the Box Office King has taken a hard look at the current theatrical landscape, and it would seem he has some concerns.
“The market could be telling us we’re done in three months, or we might be semi-done, meaning: ‘OK, let’s complete the story within movie three, and not go on endlessly’, if it’s just not profitable,” Cameron told Total Film before sharing his thoughts on the state of the industry:
“We’re in a different world now than we were when I wrote this stuff, even,” Cameron says. “It’s the one-two punch – the pandemic and streaming. Or, conversely, maybe we’ll remind people what going to the theatre is all about. This film definitely does that. The question is: how many people give a shit now?”
While the cost of the Avatar films and making a profit seem to be weighing heavily on Cameron’s mind, it didn’t take long for his trademark bombast to return. Although, there was no talk of people sh*tting themselves, so it’s really starting to look like Cameron is shook.
“These are hideously expensive movies. It was a sketchy business case before the pandemic to make a movie that cost this much,” Cameron told Total Film. “At this point, we just have to play it out to see what happens. But what I know right now is: we’re delivering three hours of a pretty much insane experience.”
(Via Total Film)
