'Avatar 4' And '5' May Not Be Directed By James Cameron

Given how many years it’s been since the first film, it’s quite easy to forget that there are a further four instalments of the Avatar series on the way. After many, many delays, the sequel, The Way of Water, is set to release in cinemas on 16 December, with the next three movies supposedly landing every two years after that. How likely that is to actually happen is another matter. 

Regardless, director James Cameron has clearly always had big plans for the series, but in a recent interview with Empire, he revealed that he might not be the one at the helm for the later films - but another director who he trusts.

Take a look at the trailer for Avatar: The Way of Water right here.

“The Avatar films themselves are kind of all-consuming,” he said. “I’ve got some other things I’m developing as well that are exciting. I think eventually over time - I don’t know if that’s after three or after four - I’ll want to pass the baton to a director that I trust to take over, so I can go do some other stuff that I’m also interested in. Or maybe not. I don’t know.” 

So it’s not a given, but even so. It’s pretty surprising that the creator of the series would even consider not seeing it through to the end, but then again, The Way of Water has taken 13 years to come to fruition - you can understand him having some hesitation about committing himself to the long haul. Either way, it sounds like he’s still super excited about the future films.

“Everything I need to say about family, about sustainability, about climate, about the natural world, the themes that are important to me in real life and in my cinematic life, I can say on this canvas,” he continued. “I got more excited as I went along. Movie four is a corker. It’s a motherf**ker. I actually hope I get to make it. But it depends on market forces. Three is in the can so it’s coming out regardless. I really hope that we get to make four and five because it’s one big story, ultimately.”

We’ll just have to wait and see what happens. For now, it’s only a few more months to go until the sequel - don’t miss it.