James Cameron on AVATAR Sequels, FANTASTIC VOYAGE and BATTLE ANGEL

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted:December 11th, 2009 at 7:31 am

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At this afternoon’s press conference for Avatar in London, James Cameron talked about a sequel for Avatar, what’s up with Fantastic Voyage, and answered if Battle Angel was going to be his next project.

The quick info is…he doesn’t know what he’s going to do next.  Depending on how successful Avatar is will determine what project he does next, with Battle Angel still in the running. But he did say when asked about a sequel to Avatar, “I have it mapped out, but I haven’t written the scripts yet.”

The other bit of news is regarding Fantastic Voyage (which we covered yesterday).  When asked if it was a reboot/remake or original story, Cameron said, “It’s quite different…but it’s got enough of the original story that you still recognize it.”

Hit the jump for everything he said:

james_cameron_image1.jpgWhen asked if he had an idea for a sequel to Avatar:

Cameron: We’re going to be spending a lot money and time developing the not only the process but the assets and all the models of every rock and tree and plant and creature and the muscle rigs for all the creatures and the facial rigging for the main characters…this is millions of dollars.  So it really makes sense to think of it as the potential start of a franchise or a saga that plays out over several acts with each movie being an act of that saga.  And I have it mapped out but I haven’t written the scripts yet.  It all depends whether we do well with the first film.  But that was certainly the intention from the beginning, was to create the foundation for a persistent world.

It’s been reported that you are developing Fantastic Voyage.

Cameron: Well, we’ve been working on a script for Fantastic Voyage for a few…but that’s not for me to direct.  That’s just to produce.

Would it be a reboot/remake or an original story?

Cameron: It’s quite different…but it’s got enough of the original story that you still recognize it.

What’s happening with Battle Angel?

Cameron: Battle Angel is one of the films I’ll be considering when I decide what I’m going to do next.

If you were to do a sequel to Avatar, would it be after Battle Angel?

Cameron: Not necessarily, that’s part of the decision making process.

For more on Avatar, here’s a link to six clips from the film.



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    • The Avatar movie sounds good, looks good, 3D looks horrible, and it looks like the actors did a fine job. But guys don't you see it. Avatar it just basically like we humans finds a land of a different world and we humans trying to take over it. Doesn't that sound like when Christopher Columbus (the salior) first found a new world and thought he landed somewhere in Europe. And then years later we took over and killed (or have many wars with them) many of the Native Americans. Thoes blue creatures are basically Native Americans. And the setting in the movie is in the future. Well that's what i'm thinking. Think about. Also the Native Americans had bows and arrows and so does the blue creatures. Movie looks good. But Just looks fimilari (my spelling is not good) back in that time.
    • The movie was wonderful, and it's no surprise that the Academy would snub him, just like they snubbed Spielberg for so many years. The Oscars are basically actors giving awards to themselves to make them feel that their empty lives are meaningful. They hate heroes, they hate endings where you go away feeling good, and they love stories that make us depressed as they are. Sorry to argue with what is obviously such a great intellectual mind as mydownthere, but not everybody agrees with you.
    • srogers2750
      AVATAR ROCKS! Work on that Sequel first! LOL

      Seriously I cant get enough Avatar... Pandora was awesome... Na'Vi were fantastic... the story ...I dont care if it has similarities with Dances with Wolves or Pocahontas...or whatever.. those types of Stories will happen over and over again as long as history continues to repeat itself... The story was perfect! Cant wait for Avatar II and III
    • zk
      AVATAR MOVIE ROCKZ!!!!! any of you want to see more of it??? then join me in signing this petition asking for Avatar 2!!!! http://www.petitiononline.com/Avatar2/petition.... juz click on the link and remember.......sign the petition and post the link on your wall and let's get more signatures!!!!! cheers!!!
    • AkkaBakka
      Since this movie has been such a gigantic success, i'm sertain there WILL be sequels. Maybe even prequels on how it they found the planet, developed the avatar's etc.... Can't wait:-)
    • Alan
      It isn't a perfect film, none ever are but its certainly spectacular on the eyes and ears and very entertaining. The 3D is about as good as you could hope for. No ghosting, no difficulty focussing on objects near or far and superb image depth. The story is classic good guys against the bad guys and as a format it works well enough. If you like James Camerons work, and I love it, you won't be dissapointed with Avatar.
    • patient
      i hear all this bashing about "He took 10 years! thats pathetic" or "this isnt original!"
      Shut up.
      Firsrt. even if he never made another movie after Titanic, he would still be one of the most consistent directors ever. And who says you have to churn out films ever 18 months? thats how Spielberg ends up with Crystal Skull on his resume. Harper Lee wrote one book and no one gives her flack about it. Leave the man alone. And were you listening to what he said? Years of that time was spent laying the ground work for this film. Now itll take 1/4 the time to do it again. Be happy he still makes near perfect films.
      Second. to the person who said he stole warships, trees of life and floating land from Miyazaki. Sorry. Floating lands and warships have been around since before Miyazaki was born. Flash Gordon did it all in the 1930s and 40s. And bioluminescent plant and animal life is science fact not science fiction. it usually only occurs under water but whatever. And trees of life are as old as the Vikings and the bible.
      I dont understand why people can't just relax and enjoy the first film in ages that makes going to the movies a truly fun and immersive experience. Stop looking for something wrong and marvel at how RIGHT it is!
    • AkkaBakka
      Guess everybody "borrows" elements here and there, and maybe buys the copyrights, or atleast get a license to use it..
      Awsome made, fantastic visuals either way....
    • daeng
      floating land, flourescent plants, warships, true of "life", are all images that H. Miyazaki created before -- blatant plagarism; ideas were stolen.
    • AkkaBakka
      How can you make something the way you want, when the technology is not advanced enough????

      Do you think when man first dreamt about flying, it was done over night creating a plane?
      Developing the camera's took 9 years of testing and failing, before they got it to work the way they wanted....

      Sometimes thing takes time...Lots of time
    • Egglesplork D. Donglehump
      _____Heh, you think James Cameron is BACK? Dude takes TWELVE
      YEARS to make ONE movie, and that's called a comeback? A dude can
      earn a college degree and write over ten novels in that amount of time.
      (In fact, I already have done just that. Google my name for an
      example. See what happens.) Not even BOTH previous World Wars
      COMBINED took that long: World War I took four years, and World War
      II took five. World War III may or may not take as long, depending on
      how long China takes to roll out the nukes. Twelve years, one movie, dude must be slowing down in his old age.
      _____Alright, I wanna know something. How many of y'all out there
      thought he was gonna Duke Nukem Forever this thing and not finish?
      Lots of people are all like, "It's done when it's done," then say that good
      work can't be rushed. Guess what? "It's done when it's done" didn't
      work out so well for 3D Realms, DID IT? HAH! James Cameron
      might've gotten away with taking over a decade to make one movie
      THIS time. But let's see what happens to his bank account and his
      legal status the next time he pulls a time-lagged turkey like this again.
      Yeah, and Slate.com did an interesting set of excuses in article-form
      as to why Hollywood directors take so damned long sometimes.
    • Wildwood
      In my life time thus far there are now three movies that are turning points in which there was a leap in visual and story content quality. Star Wars, The Matrix and now Avatar.
      If you have not seen this movie in iMax 3D you are missing a piece cinematic history. A few short years from now our children will describe this movie as others have done with films like The Wizard of Oz that my parents spoke of when they were children or what Star Wars was for me at 13 years old.
    • S.C.
      Spielberg can't compete with Cameron.
    • Avatar Fans
      LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the movie.... I really am keeping my fingers crossed that JC does several sequels to this movie. I went today with my daughter and watched in an IMAX 3D movie theatre, it was amazing. We are going again next week to see it and I will definitely be buying the DVD when it comes out. This movie is amazing visually and the computer generated scenes are fantastic. I hope we do not have to wait long for a sequel.
    • John
      This film is the best fim i have ever seen. The visuals are absolutly AMAZING Went today and the cinema was PACKED to the brim. At the end everyone was like whooooo!!!. Seriosly if you wat to be amazed go and see this, i will garentee you will not be dissapointed
    • Shadow
      I just saw the film today (was intending on seeing it in 2d but the cinema i went to never recieved the 2d copy so i saw the 3d instead) and my god am i glad i did, this movie it completely amazing, the attention to detail is so visually rewarding only, made more incredible by the fact it was 3d, loved the storyline it was really just...wow. me & the girlfriend loved it so much we are going to see it again tomorrow, and im deffinatly buying the dvd when it comes out. & the game lol ive read reviews that the game is pretty average but i want to see a sequal so im backing Avatars sales the best i can : ). there are so few films released today where you can leave the cinema feeling like you got your moneys worth. but Avatar is such a gorgeous film and emotionally moving if theres only one film you see this year it has to be Avatar, you won't regret it. I hope he doesn't waste his time on anything but an Avatar sequal!. This movie is truely amazing!
    • Susan
      If this movie sucks, will anyone have the nerve to stand up and say it out loud?
    • Pete
      jim should take his money and start his own space program. i'd gladly send him a direct check in the mail every month to support his space agency, it'd be more efficient than the government run NASA imo(which will prob be shut down soon since war and oil is more important)

      he'd have probes roaming the Europa ocean in 5 years, and astronauts living safely on mars in less than 20 years.
    • chrisart
      The Chameleon was a famous episode of the old outer limits that has a theme much like Avatar.
      A human is transformed into an alien to spy on other aliens.
    • ron
      Well chrisart,

      you do know that terminator got sued by the writers of outer limits right ?

      coz cameron copied the plot of demon with a glass hand from that show, if this is also copied from that show as well, I am not even 0.00001% surprised!
      its obvious thats where most his fixation with sci-fi comes from! back then not that many sci fi shows were on, and outer limits was pretty good for the 60's!
    • Jojo
      I dare you, Cameron! Direct a film that has a title that doesn't begin with T or A! Go ahead! I dare you!

      But....I love your movies anyway. No hatin'.
    • coolhive
      Piranha 2: The Spawning
      Ghosts of the Abyss
    • prasad
      The News has broke out on market saw.com that Cameron is not making Battle Angle well that's sad .I think he is heading over to Avatar Sequels well that's sad to hear that he is not making Battle Angle.
    • RichF
      I wouldn't worry about sequels yet. The initial reviews I've seen say the story of Avatar is lame, but the effects were great. Pretty much what I assumed from seeing the trailer.
    • Sean
      What reviews have you read? I've only read two out of about 25 that have said the story was "lame". Most said the story was good but not GREAT. In this day and age, a "good" story is head and shoulders above 95% of the other things out there...
    • carl
      totally agree!! couldnt agree more
    • prasad
      I knew it the movement James Cameron got back he had something great to show .I fell happy for James Cameron because he is being my favourite director of all time and happy to see good reviews are coming out.I have been waiting for long 12 years for Cameron movie and happy that he is back .Would like to see BATTLE ANGEL as his next movie.
    • joe
      Video Blog on Avatar before or after the release weekend plz I am dying to hear your and Peter's thoughts on this movie plz give us a video blog Steve.I am catching it on opening night have already booked my tickets.James Cameron is back baby .
    • good idea. I will email Peter right now
    • joe
      You and Peter are the perfect online geeks I could find anywhere thanks for replying I hope you liked the movie too.I am a big James Cameron fan and love all of his movies just happy to hear that positive buzz came out of the premier review and would be glad to hear and peter thoughts on it and on 3d .
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