Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: Avatar

  • James Cameron Open to End ‘Avatar’ With Third Entry if ‘The Way of Water’ Bombs

    James Cameron Open to End ‘Avatar’ With Third Entry if ‘The Way of Water’ Bombs

    It’s hard to deny that James Cameron has been quite ambitious when it was first revealed that he was not only returning to the Avatar series but also had four more sequels in some form of development. After a long wait since the first film made box office history ever since it was released in 2009, The Way of Water is finally set to release next month in December. Cameron has already filmed the third entry and it seems that they may not move forward if the upcoming Avatar sequel bombs.

    In an interview with Film Total, Cameron discussed the possibility of not going forward with his five-film plan but rather wrapping up the story with its already filmed third entry. There’s no word if Disney is also setting its eyes on the upcoming release to set the benchmark on what to expect for the franchise, but it definitely seems like the record-breaking director is set to keep a close eye on how it performs.

    The market could be telling us we’re done in three months, or we might be semi-done, meaning: ‘OK, let’s complete the story within movie three, and not go on endlessly’, if it’s just not profitable. We’re in a different world now than we were when I wrote this stuff, even. It’s the one-two punch – the pandemic and streaming. Or, conversely, maybe we’ll remind people what going to the theatre is all about. This film definitely does that. The question is: how many people give a shit now?

    James Cameron

    Cameron is very likely to not disappoint at the box office, especially as early projections already have the film set to break some records even if it might not get close to the first entry. Given that the four films have a billion dollars behind it, it’s no wonder that they hope to make some money off of the new entries and we’ll have to wait a bit longer before we know if a lot more Avatar is heading our way.

    Source: Film Total

  • New Zealand Cinema May Have Revealed ‘Avatar: The Way of the Water’s 3-Hour+ Runtime

    New Zealand Cinema May Have Revealed ‘Avatar: The Way of the Water’s 3-Hour+ Runtime

    We’ve all wondered just how long Avatar: The Way of the Water might end up being. James Cameron is famous for trying to incorporate as many shots as he can to offer a living experience through his films. It’s one of the reasons why the first Avatar became such a success in addition to its use of 3D technology; pioneering the model before it became a cinema regular offering.

    Now, if a listing from Monterey Lounge Cinema in New Zealand is to believe, the second of many entries in this franchise, The Way of the Water, is likely to run for 190 minutes. That would put the film at a runtime of around 3 hours and 10 minutes. As such, it would be even longer than the first entry, which ran for around 162 minutes when it was released in 2009.

    A Chinese outlet, Sohu, also had it at the same runtime, as pointed out by The Direct in their report on the potential runtime. The Avatar director also didn’t mince any words when he discussed that people shouldn’t complain about long theatrical experiences given the current climate of binge-watching multiple hours of television; though one could discuss that being at home gives you more freedom than in a theater. Still, it does seems safe to say that Avatar: The Way of the Water is going to be a lengthy entry.

    Source: Monterey Loung Cinema via The Direct

  • ‘Avatar’ Re-Release Earns Over $70M at Global Box Office

    ‘Avatar’ Re-Release Earns Over $70M at Global Box Office

    The re-release of Avatar in the buildup to the highly anticipated James Cameron-directed sequel has been a large financial success for Disney and 20th Century Studios. The past weekend alone has brought in nearly $4 million from 51 different international markets. This moves the total earned to $23.3 million across North America and $71.9 million globally. Overall, this should be a promising sign that Avatar: The Way of Water can become another major needle-mover at the box office. It also has the best chance to beat out the current 2022 earnings record-holder in Top Gun: Maverick.

    The success of the Avatar is good news for Disney in relation to the unmitigated flop that has been David O. Russell’s Amsterdam. Despite the star-studded cast led by Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, and John David Washington, the film has bombed internationally only earning $3.5 million in 30 international markets. And the domestic release has barely been any better in raking in only $6.5 million in North America’s opening weekend.

    The biggest winners at the box office currently have been in the romantic comedy and horror genres. Ticket to Paradise, starring George Clooney and Julia Roberts, has met a respectable $60 million in international box office earnings. The movie continues the trend of romantic comedies mildly returning to prominence at theaters (i.e. The Lost City and Marry Me), though that is in relation to how much the genre has recently been in dire straits theatrically and is assumedly more boosted from the massive A-list talent starring in them. 

    Meanwhile, Paramount Pictures’ Smile has been the largest winner at the box office having earned $17.5 million globally, which is up 19% from its premiere. This totals the global earnings to approximately $90 million, which is a massive boon with the $17 million budget. Overall, it’s continued the trend of Paramount being far and away the biggest winner in the theatrical film industry in 2022.

    Source: Variety

  • ‘Avatar 2’ Eyeing $650M Domestic Run, Unlikely to Dehtrone ‘Top Gun Maverick’

    ‘Avatar 2’ Eyeing $650M Domestic Run, Unlikely to Dehtrone ‘Top Gun Maverick’

    While there have been many discussions surrounding the slow recovery of the box office since the pandemic started back in 2020, there have been some massive successes even through these unpredictable times. Spider-Man: No Way Home and Top Gun: Maverick went on to break far past any expectations set on the projects, and there has been a lot of hope that Avatar: The Way of Water would do exactly the same later this year. It’s the first sequel to James Cameron‘s passion project from 2009. While the film is set to make a big splash in the box office, it may not surpass its predecessor.

    Variety’s early predictions based on Cinelytic believe that The Way of Water is likely to make around $650M but likely won’t come near the first Avatar‘s $772M. The reasonings are quite simple. A lot has happened since that film was released and we’ve seen quite a few CG-heavy worlds being created. So, it’s no longer as unique as it once was, as we’ve entered an era inspired by the technology that was established through that film’s release.

    If it does end up going below $700M, it’ll also remain in the second spot for 2022, as Top Gun: Maverick managed to pass the $700M mark not too long ago and still continues to have a strong staying power at the box office. Black Panther Wakanda Forever was predicted to not even make it past the $500M mark but early projections for the Top Gun sequel also had it set for a lower $300M box office run. At this rate, there are a lot of unpredictable elements at play and we’ll have to see how the rest of the year turns out with very little hitting the market moving forward.

    Source: Variety

  • ‘Avatar’s Re-Release Pulls in Mighty $10M, Potentially Hinting at ‘Way of Water’s Performance

    ‘Avatar’s Re-Release Pulls in Mighty $10M, Potentially Hinting at ‘Way of Water’s Performance

    This weekend saw the re-release of James Cameron‘s original Avatar. Not only did it include new elements to better lead into the upcoming sequel The Way of Water, but it also acts as a reminder of one of the biggest releases in theaters many years ago. The film has managed to pull in $10M over the weekend landing in third place and with a higher box office than most of this year’s re-releases.

    Spider-Man: No Way Home was also a massive re-release a few months ago, it did so on around 4,000 theaters while Avatar managed to pull in its numbers on only 1,860. So, it’s looking quite good that Way of the Water is going to open massively worldwide. While it’s unclear if it’ll have the legs to pull off a $2 billion release window, there’s a decent chance at play here.

    As one might expect, the film that established the modern 3D boom also pulled in most of its money through that format. It’s no surprise, especially with Cameron‘s promise to bring a new era to that very technology with his upcoming sequels. It’s fascinating to see the reception to the film that has been coined as “forgotten” for quite some time and likely given the long breaks in-between re-releases. We’ll see if that momentum carries over throughout multiple sequels released every two years.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Avatar’ Earns $3.5M Internationally in Re-Release

    ‘Avatar’ Earns $3.5M Internationally in Re-Release

    As Avatar begins its official theatrical re-release in the United States, the James Cameron-directed film has thus far earned over $3.5 million in the international box office. The film has so far been released in 37 different global markets. In relation to other theatrical re-releases, Avatar has earned 57% more than Star Wars: The Phantom Menace did at this point in 2012. Though it has underperformed by 29% in comparison to the 3D release of James Cameron’s other financial juggernaut in Titanic during 2012’s Easter season.

    The relaunch of Avatar in movie theaters comes just under three months before the highly anticipated sequel project Avatar: The Way of Water arrives. To help drum up interest in the re-release, the original Avatar film has been temporarily removed from the Disney+ streaming platform. The results of this attempt to drum up interest in the franchise could be an indicator of how The Way of Water will be received by audiences by December of this year.

    After well over a decade, questions were had about if Avatar would indeed have any future installments. However, audiences should prepare for an onslaught of new films in the franchise with three additional films arriving in 2024, 2026, and 2028 respectively.

    Avatar: The Way of Water is set to open theatrically on December 16, 2022, and stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, and Kate Winslet.

    Source: Deadline

  • ‘Avatar’ Rerelease Includes Surprise Footage From Sequel 

    ‘Avatar’ Rerelease Includes Surprise Footage From Sequel 

    Avatar is back in theaters, and apparently, it now includes an early look at its upcoming sequel. The film, directed by famed visionary James Cameron, was originally released in 2009 to critical acclaim and one of the largest box office accumulations in worldwide history. It’s once again showing on the big screen in anticipation of Avatar: The Way of Water, the long-awaited second installment of the franchise, which is set to drop in theaters on December 16th. While the new edition of Avatar is not yet available in North America, it has already released in Korea and France, and fans who’ve gone to see it claim they were treated to a surprise taste of scenes from The Way of Water after the credits began to roll.

    Perhaps most interesting is that not all showings of the film featured the same exclusive footage. The tweets revealing the unexpected tags indicated different theaters had different sneak peeks at the sequel, meaning not everyone has seen the same content. However, nearly all the reactions were positive, giving those who’ve yet to see anything a lot of hope for a quality Avatar follow-up. It’s unknown if every theatrical market will include the exciting post-credits footage, but it does seem likely that Disney will want to increase discussion surrounding the big-budget blockbuster in as many places as they can.

    Avatar: The Way of Water has been in production for years and was also directed by Cameron. Most of the first film’s cast, including Zoë Saldana and Sam Worthington, will return, alongside newcomers like Jemaine Clement and Michelle Yeoh.

    Source: Deadline

  • The Cast of ‘Avatar’ on What They Love About the Films

    The Cast of ‘Avatar’ on What They Love About the Films

    Back in 2009, when Avatar flew into theaters, no one expected the James Cameron flick to become the megahit it would go on to be. Now, thirteen years later, the cast is readying for the release of the film’s long-awaited sequel, Avatar: The Way of the Water. Before the sequel hits theaters in December, however, Avatar will return to theaters for two weeks to allow new fans to experience the film on the big screen in 4K High Dynamic Range.

    To promote the upcoming re-release, Cameron gathered alongside the cast for a virtual press conference to discuss the franchise — both past and future. While the writer and director had plenty to say regarding how Avatar impacted blockbusters, the cast got a chance to talk about the films as a whole and why they enjoyed working on them.

    According to actor Stephen Lang, he is just grateful to have been a part of such a talented group of people. “I think I’m proud to be just part of a team of such talented, creative, generous people,” he explained. “And I think over the years that we’ve been together and apart and together, we’ve been able to kinda maintain a collegial and a forward kind of feeling amongst us. And that kind of, you know, spirit. That kind of team spirit I guess is something that I feel so pleased and gratified to be part of. And I’m just proud to be on the team.”

    While Michelle Rodriguez, who is also busy starring in the Fast & Furious franchise, it all comes down to the effort put into the storytelling. The actress feels that Cameron has put so much “mind and attention” into the storytelling, which she doesn’t feel is as valued by society these days. “I feel like Jim’s decision to tell this story is a decision also to show love and respect for life. And I feel like that’s rare,” she explained. “And I’m proudest of just being a part of that. Because I feel like it’s not done enough, you know? And for it to be as impactful as it was says a lot.”

    Sigourney Weaver, who has a long history of working with Cameron, noted she loves the character she gets to play most of all. She notes that Cameron is a bit of a scientist himself, which helped him create the character of Dr. Augustine. “I guess I’m proud that I got to play Dr. Augustine who is a scientist.  A woman scientist.  And Jim had given the world, the audience, and certainly my character this whole universe of a new flora and fauna, taking it so seriously… And so I was so proud to be part of the science of this so that you’re not dumbing down something for the mass audience.”

    Last but not least was Zoe Saldaña, who explained her excitement over belonging to a group she has much in common with and feeling as though she belongs. She also explained getting to work with Cameron has been a great experience because he’s “not an elitist,” but more of a “curious” person. “I got an opportunity to belong to a group of people that, you know, that I just, I feel I have so much in common with… You know, like jigsaw that you’re searching to belong,” she explained. “And you meet the ultimate curious person who’s Jim, and he extends, he shares, he’s curious. He’s not an elitist. And I just, you know, you get to be an artist.  I was given an opportunity, and I honestly feel that I ran with it. And then to be able to come back to that opportunity, it feels like it’s the gift that continues to give.”

    Avatar will be temporarily removed from Disney+ ahead of its re-release in theaters. The re-release will be for two weeks only beginning on Sept. 23rd and will see the film available in stunning 4K High Dynamic Range. Written and directed by Cameron, Avatar stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez and Sigourney Weaver. The film was produced by Cameron and Jon Landau. The long-awaited sequel, Avatar: The Way of the Water, will finally be released in theaters this December, just in time for the holidays.

  • James Cameron on How ‘Avatar’ Impacted Blockbusters

    James Cameron on How ‘Avatar’ Impacted Blockbusters

    When Avatar first hit theaters in 2009, no one could have imagined how big the film would become. Avatar would go on to set the record for the highest-grossing film of all time, passed Titanic‘s gross in a little over a month, and set records for how quickly it hit $500 million and above. To date, Avatar remains the highest-grossing movie of all time with $2.8 billion worldwide. Now, ahead of the long-awaited sequel’s release in December, Disney’s 20th Century Studios is set to re-release Avatar for a limited two-week engagement, allowing fans to see the movie in a brand new light.

    To promote the upcoming re-release, writer and director James Cameron was on hand for a virtual press conference, where he recalled Avatar‘s impact on Hollywood. While Avatar was certainly not the first film to use highly advanced computer effects, Avatar did help Hollywood and audiences embrace 3D – at least for a brief moment in time. Although plenty of films failed to successfully make use of 3D technology, Avatar had been shot with a 3D digital camera and went on to earn best cinematography at the 82nd Academy Awards.

    I think that there was a…  I would say that the 3D was embraced in general for a period of time.  I mean, Avatar won best cinematography with a 3D digital camera.  No digital camera had ever won the best cinematography Oscar before.  And then two out of the three subsequent years, the same cameras were used by the cinematographers that won the Oscars.  So you’ve got three out of four years where digital cinematography was embraced by the Academy. And all three-all three of those films, three out of four, Oscar winners for four years, were in 3D.  So, and then 3D has sort of, appears to most people to sort of be over.  But it’s really not over.  It’s just been accepted.  It’s just now part of the choices that you face when you go to a theater to see a big blockbuster movie.  So you could choose to see it in 2D, choose to see it in 3D, generally speaking these days.  So I liken it to color.

    Cameron

    Cameron goes on to compare the use of 3D to when color was first introduced in movies. While some might’ve attempted the technology prior to Avatar, there is no denying 3D films became popular following the release of Avatar in 3D. Cameron, of course, acknowledges that the 3D format has seemingly died down, but with the release of Avatar: The Way of the Water this December, perhaps that could change yet again.

    When color first came out, it was a big deal.  People used to go see movies because they were in color.  You know, and I think around the time of Avatar, people went to see movies because they were in 3D.  Nobody’s gonna go see a movie today because it’s in 3D.  It’s all the other factors by which we choose a film.  So I think, you know, it had an impact on the way films were presented that’s now just sort of accepted and part of the zeitgeist and how it’s done.  Terms of long-term cultural impact, well, I guess we’ll find out if people show up for Avatar 2.

    Cameron

    Avatar will be temporarily removed from Disney+ ahead of its re-release in theaters. The re-release will be for two weeks only beginning on Sept. 23rd and will see the film available in stunning 4K High Dynamic Range. Written and directed by Cameron, Avatar stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez and Sigourney Weaver. The film was produced by Cameron and Jon Landau. The long-awaited sequel, Avatar: The Way of the Water, will finally be released in theaters this December, just in time for the holidays.

  • James Cameron on the Decision to Re-Release ‘Avatar’

    James Cameron on the Decision to Re-Release ‘Avatar’

    After numerous setbacks, Avatar‘s long-awaited sequel, The Way of the Water, is finally set to hit theaters this December. However, before The Way of the Water finally hits the big screen, Avatar is set to return for a limited run in 3D. While this won’t be the first time Avatar has been re-released into theaters, there’s a good reason behind this re-release. During a virtual press conference to promote the re-release, writer and director James Cameron explained why they’ve decided to release the film again.

    Well, look, I mean, it’s been, you know, 12 years since the release, and so basically if you’re kind of under 22 or 23 years of age, it’s very, very unlikely that you’ve seen the film in a movie theater.  Which in a way kinda means you haven’t seen the film.  I mean, we authored the film for the big screen, for the giant screen, in 3D.  And now we’ve remastered it in 4K, in high-dynamic range and some 48-frame-per-second sections in the film.

    James Cameron

    Released in 2009, Avatar has gone on to become one of the most successful films of all time. The film focused on a paraplegic Marine who is sent to the moon Pandora on a mission but soon finds himself feeling torn between his orders and protecting the place he believes to be his true home. Avatar managed to amass an astounding haul of $2.743 billion at the worldwide box office. $749.7 million of that came from the states, while the other $1.993 million came from international markets. The film remains the highest-grossing movie of all time.

    Avatar will be temporarily removed from Disney+ ahead of its re-release in theaters. The re-release will be for two weeks only beginning on Sept. 23rd and will see the film available in stunning 4K High Dynamic Range. Written and directed by Cameron, Avatar stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez and Sigourney Weaver. The film was produced by Cameron and Jon Landau. The long-awaited sequel, Avatar: The Way of the Water, will finally be released in theaters this December, just in time for the holidays.