When Avatar: Fire and Ash is released on the 2025 movie schedule on December 19, it will be 16 years since the original Avatar debuted and became the highest-grossing movie ever made. If the final two Avatar movies are released on schedule, which is by no means guaranteed, it will be another six years before the franchise is done. Considering James Cameron would be 76 by the time that happens, it’s worth asking the question: Will he actually direct the final Avatar movies?
That question was recently asked of Cameron directly by Empire, and the now 70-year-old director confirmed that at this point, he certainly has no plans not to direct the final two films himself. The Titanic director said…
I mean, there's no reason not to. I’m healthy, I'm good to go.
That said, while Cameron fully intends to direct the upcoming Avatar 4 and 5 himself right now, he’s aware that things might change over the next half-decade, and he might not ultimately be able to do so. The director says that if he doesn’t have the energy to direct the films in the way that he feels he needs to, he won’t do it. He continued…
I’m not going to rule it out. I mean, I've got to make it in a vigorous way, to handle the kind of volume and energy of the work for another six or seven years. You know what I mean? I might not be able to do that.
Of course, if something does happen and James Cameron feels he needs to step aside, it leads to the obvious question of just who in the world would take over directing the Avatar franchise.
Cameron doesn’t think there will necessarily be a problem finding a director who will execute on his vision, as that’s already happened once recently. He explained…
I had a great working relationship – and I'm using this as an example, not as an answer – with Robert Rodriguez on Alita. He honoured what I had written. We worked very collaboratively.
Of course, the actual process of directing the last two Avatar movies will be a little different than most movies. That's partially because production on both films is expected to take place concurrently. Filming for both projects will start sometime after the release of Avatar: Fire and Ash, so no earlier than 2026.
It’s possible Cameron will be able to do all of the on-set direction for both movies, and if he feels he needs to take a step back later, it will be during the lengthy post-production process of the two films. However, The Terminator director clearly isn’t even thinking about that right now, saying simply…
If I can, I'll just do it.
Considering how often the Avatar sequels have seen delays, there’s every reason to believe that the last two films will take longer than currently planned. However, James Cameron clearly wants to finish out this project, which, if nothing else, might give him the motivation to keep things on track.
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