Avatar became the highest-grossing film of all time back in 2009, soaring past not only the bn. mark, but also the bn., and even further beyond the .5bn. mark.
In the years since, writer-director James Cameron has said that he plans to make at least two sequels in the coming years, with an eye to have Avatar 2 in theatres in 2015.
Whilst at the premiere last night for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The West Australian report that Cameron spoke about his plans for the second and third film:
“He said he hoped to have the scripts completed by February and begin filming by the end of next year.
“I want to get these scripts nailed down, I don’t want to be writing the movie in post production,” the director said.
“We kind of did that on the first picture, I ended up cutting out a lot of scenes and so on and I don’t want to do that again.””
And not only that, but speaking about Jackson’s technological development in using 48 frames-per-second for The Hobbit, he added that if it gets a warm reception, it will pave the way for its use in Avatar 2 and 3:
“If there is acceptance of 48, then that will pave the way for Avatar (sequels) to take advantage of it.”
Little is known about the upcoming sequels, but Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, and Sigourney Weaver are all set to reprise their roles from the first film, with the two films expected to have an overarching arc to their story, but be complete in themselves.
If all goes well for Cameron over the next few months, we’re hoping that he’ll be on track to finish the scripts for both 2 and 3 by his February schedule, and get the sequels in front of cameras before the year’s end, on target for a 2015 release.
2015 is already set to feature the likes of The Avengers 2, Justice League, and Star Wars Episode VII – if Avatar 2 gets into theaters in the same year, smart money says it will be the highest-grossing year in the history of cinema at the box office.
