It's been six years and counting since James Cameron's "Avatar," the film that reinvented the wheel in terms of 3D viewing and 3D technology. Very little has been heard of since but Cameron is busy working on three sequels, which will be filmed back to back. The directly recently spoke with Entertainment Weekly to give an update.
According to Cameron, all the characters, locations and creatures have been decided and that the design process is running parallel with his latest run through the scripts for all three films. Cameron states that the scripts are done and are simply undergoing refinements.
Hearing this from Cameron himself confirms that the films are about to begin production soon. It is expected that the films will begin filming by early next year. This will allow "Avatar 2" to hit its December 2017 release date. "Avatar 3" will release one year later in 2018 and the final entry, "Avatar 4," will release in 2019.
Cameron also addressed the difficulty and pressure he and the rest of the production team face in following up the success of the first film. 2009's "Avatar" had a tumultuous production, with the studios nearly backing out, but in the end the film garnered nine Oscar awards and earned $2.7 billion worldwide, a record that has yet to be broken.
"Obviously, expectations are going to be very high on these films, especially on 'Avatar 2,' to make sure it wasn't just some big fluke the first time. So we've got to deliver. I've created a nice rod for my own back, so they say," he told EW.
According to a report from Screen Rant, Cameron is a well-known perfectionist, which may partly explain why the sequels have taken this long to enter production. 3D films are no longer as big as they were back in 2009 but the report cites Cameron is looking to propel his films forward by filming them in 48 frames per second.
This is still a sketchy idea given that the reception to all three "Hobbit" films, which were also shown in 48 FPS, was lukewarm at best. However, it is stated that if there is any director capable of doing the impossible with film technology, it's James Cameron.
"Avatar 2" will release in December 2017.
