James Cameron gives worrying update on Avatar 4 ahead of Fire and Ash release
Due to "spiralling" production costs, James Cameron has hinted the fourth and fifth Avatar movies might be delayed.
James Cameron has suggested the fourth Avatar movie could be delayed.
The 71-year-old director had previously confirmed he was working on a fourth and fifth instalment in his blockbuster sci-fi series, but Cameron has now cast doubt on the future of Avatar due to its “spiralling” production costs.
During an interview with Variety, he said: “The big swing in all of this is, do we make any money with Avatar 3? I mean, we’ll make some money. But the question is, what kind of a profit margin, if any, is there, and how much of an inducement is that to continue on in this universe?
“Or maybe we wait a while until we figure out how to bring costs down. Because production costs have spiraled over the last few years, especially in VFX.
“Everything’s gone up an enormous amount, and it’s starting to close out the type of films that I like to make.”
The Titanic director added it may be sensible for him to “pause” work on the next Avatar so the production process can be “figured out”.
He continued: “So there’s an argument for taking a pause and figuring that out. There’s an argument for going out and doing some smaller, more personal film in the meantime, while that gets figured out.
“There’s an argument, in wild success, for us just launching and just going straight into [Avatar 4 and Avatar 5] and I figure out a production methodology where I have a bit of a hiatus where I can make another film.
“And there’s another argument that says just go make those two damn movies and figure everything else out when I’m 80.”
Cameron admitted he was “at a bit of a crossroads” with the future of Avatar, though insisted his time as a director was far from over.
He explained: “You know, life isn’t like that. I am at a bit of a crossroads here, and I’m going to have to see what draws me to what as I go forward. The only thing I can tell you right now, I’m not going to stop being a director and a storyteller. That’s the only thing I can confirm at this stage.”
The next Avatar film, Fire and Ash, is set to release on December 19, 2025, and will pick up after the events of 2022’s The Way of Water.
The blockbuster will follow Na'vi Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) and their family as they face a fierce new threat from the fire‑wielding ‘Ash People’ tribe led by Varang (Oona Chaplin) - reigniting conflict on a turbulent Pandora.
As grief and old enemies resurface, alliances with the Metkayina clan will test their strength, faith, and survival.
Cameron said the relationship between Jake and Neytiri will be pushed to its limits in Fire and Ash after the couple lost their eldest son Neteyam (Jamie Flatters) in The Way of Water.
The Terminator director explained: “In the typical universe of superheroes and so on, grief is not really dealt with, because it’s an impediment to all the cool stuff you want to see.
“But I thought, ‘Nah, I want to be very authentic about these people emotionally. I want them to be real. I want that to inform and put pressure on their relationship.’
“Because in the real world, when parents lose a child - I’m a parent of five. Sam has three. Zoe has three sons. You know, it’s the inconceivable thing for all of us that we all fear.
“What would that do? In the real world, it tears marriages apart. There’s blame, there’s grief that gets in the way and a lot of marriages don’t survive that.
“So we got the ultimate love story, kind of Romeo and Juliet, you know, Smith and Pocahontas on another planet. And then it gets challenged. Are they going to survive as a relationship?”
