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Producer Jon Landau Says 'Avatar' Sequel Not Coming for Four Years

by Ethan Anderton
January 11, 2012
Source: Bleeding Cool

The last solid talk about the forthcoming back-to-back sequels to James Cameron box office blockbuster Avatar was the director himself talking about the pressure and script progress on the double follow-up. But no matter how enveloped in Pandora the director might be, audiences will be waiting a decent chunk of time before hanging out with the Na'vi again. Bleeding Cool recently checked out footage of the forthcoming 3D re-release of Titanic where producer Jon Landau had a brief moment to deliver the potentially heart-breaking news that Avatar 2, which was rumored for a 2013 or 2014 release, is still four years away.

Of course, it's not entirely surprising considering how long it takes to shoot a special effects intensive, 3D, motion-capture film like this, let alone two back-to-back sequels. The good news is that likely means once Avatar 2 hits the big screen, the second sequel will likely be only a year behind. There's even the chance of The Matrix sequels route that separates them only by six months. So as of now, expect to see Avatar 2 in theaters by 2016 at the earliest. Hopefully that's not crippling news to the fanbase that has come to loyally follow James Cameron into whatever 3D world he ventures.

Filed under Development, Movie News

From around the web:

DAVIDPD

Meh. Just in time for everyone to forget about it...and then remember how "good" it was.
- http://www.momomesh.com/ Free Movies Online
  
  ya it was. but the duration of wait is so long.
rich

good news to me! now I know they're not rushing to get a sequel out and taking their time to do a good job. Also the technology only keeps on improving the longer the wait.
Kaim

I was holding off suicide so I could see this. Guess I'll go ahead and get it over with at this rate.
http://twitter.com/KyleAKiek Kyle A. Kiekintveld

Yeah. I enjoyed Avatar a lot..but in retrospect it was one of the most over hyped movies. And the promotional campaign for the Blu-Ray release? Holy crap they could not of gotten more in love with themselves.
http://twitter.com/rltuva Robert L. Tuva

And, in four years time there could be no gimmick 3D cinema left.
- http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1454815633 Michael Baldwin
  
  no but a new bullshit money maker could be around... I personally think 4D movies are the best. but thats just me..
  - Jericho
    
    5D BITCH, WHERE ENTERING THE ATMOSPHERE COULD BURN YOU ALIVE WHILE WATCHING IT!!!!!!!!!!
JediBilly

Too long to wait! I might as well get over it and forget about it as it never existed. And I'll probably keel over by then
Xerxexx

Hurry up and wait...and it will be very easy to wait.
Ziggy Star Wars

Considering the long waits for some wanted sequels, 7 years is no big deal... 16 years for Phantom Menace 19 years for Crystal Skull 25+ for Tron Legacy
- Ege Sönmez
  
  okay which one of these sequels did you find better than the originals, or thought worth the wait?
  - Anonymous
    
    And which one of those sequels was directed by Cameron? Alien (1979) --> Aliens (1986) = 7yrs. Worth the wait. Terminator (1984) --> Terminator 2 (1991) = 7yrs. Worth the wait. Avatar (2009) --> Avatar 2 (2016) = 7yrs.
    - peloquin
      
      Couldn't agree more tsode, thanks for doing the math for me. I think Cameron shines more with his sequels so I'm glad this one is going to take the same amount of time as Aliens and T2.
      - David
        
        "James cameron" died after "T-2" and buried in pandora.
    - Buzzfunk
      
      That math is flawed...you forgot that back then he had balls. Avatar was the most over-hyped POS movie ever. It plot sucked, acting sucked and while the 3d was really cool it couldn't save the movie. Even if the 3d BR would cost $1 I wouldn't buy it.
      - Gohikeone
        
        I liked it better when it was called "Dances With Wolves"...haha.
      - Anonymous
        
        So you wouldn't buy something that was "really cool" for $1?
Drejhead

The biggest difference is Alien and Terminator could stand on their own based on stories and not a visual gimmick. I never heard anyone say the story of Avatar would have made a great movie without the effects.
- Anonymous
  
  So those movies would have "stood on their own", without the huge amount of non-CGI modelling, puppetry and special effects artistry that were so crucial to making their stories even remotely believable?
  - Drejhead
    
    They stood on their own based on the stories, and even if the effects had been weaker, the stories themselves still would have rocked. Everyone loves the stories to Aliens and Temrinator. Avatar on the other hand was sold based solely on the visuals. The story was secondary to Cameron, and pretty dull all around. Anyone here who thinks Avatar had a better story than Aliens or Terminator please speak up. Anyone who thinks Avatar's story was even close to as good as Terminator or Alien please speak up. I've yet to find many people who even think Avatar's story is nearly as good as Dances with Wolves or Last Samurai, which it completely ripped off. At least when Cameron was ripping off story ideas for Terminator he had enough creativity to improve on them.
    - Anonymous
      
      Yes, just about everyone hates/hated Avatar, Cameron has "lost it", the movie was "dull" and inadequate, AND it ripped off many other movies. Of course, the 8.1 score on IMDB, the 83% score on RT, and the 83 score on Metacritic all tend to suggest the opposite. But let's overlook the broader public's response because other people are idiots. Only bitter movie blog commenters know the real truth about Avatar.
      - Drejhead
        
        Who said everyone "hated" Avatar? Myself and everyone else is simply saying the general opinion is that it's story is dull and unmemorable. tsode, you may be the most overly defensive movie fan I've ever read. You should try reading some of the reviews of those Metacritics and IMDb reviewers. From what I can tell, even the biggest supporters of Avatar admit that the story is pretty uninspiring. Are you paid to argue in Avatar's defense without even reading comments? Myself and pretty much everyone I know thought Avatar was fun when it first came out, but in retrospect, the story isn't strong enough to make it memorable. Visuals can make a great experience on first view, but only a solid story makes something watchable again and again and again. In my opinion Avatar doesn't have a good story. It has a very dull story. You seem intent on arguing every person's opinion who doesn't worship Avatar.
      - Anonymous
        
        Wow, so I'm the most defensive movie fan you've EVER read? Did you just connect to the internet, Drejhead? If so, welcome. My first day was in 1995. I bothered to post half a dozen times here on this one occasion, as - despite this not being a story called "How much do y'all hate Avatar??" (instead just a notice that the sequel would be delayed) virtually every post seemed to be a whinge and a whine about how awful Avatar was and how terrible James Cameron was. I barely ever post here. But after a few posts in a row, you suspect I'm "paid" to argue for Avatar, or I'm "arguing every person's opinion who doesn't worship Avatar"? Er, no. But silly claims like: "I've yet to find many people who even think Avatar's story is nearly as good as Dances with Wolves or Last Samurai, which it completely ripped off." You've "yet to find *many* people who think Avatar is...nearly as good as...." I mean, what are you even talking about? Apparently SOME people you've met DO think it is NEARLY as good as the movies you claim it ripped off. Are they wrong? There's nothing askew on my part. I don't mind that you - or anyone - didn't like it. I'm not saying you should like it. I would suggest though that the microcosm of rants, criticism and negativity on this tiny article are a tad askew from the general public's view of the film. That being that it was a pretty enjoyable movie on the whole, with an enjoyable story. It's nowhere near the greatest film I've ever seen, but I loved it all the same. And just because some think it's fashionable to rip it apart in the comment section of every article they see about it (not fashionable, guys....SO 2009!), once in a while I figure: why let all that blind cynicism go unchallenged?
    - Arabella
      
      Wasn't the story for "Dances with Wolves" kind of ripped off from that little movie with Dustin Hoffman titled "Little Big Man" ? Seems like most movies today have used and reused storylines. For myself, I can't wait for the sequel to Avatar merely because I want to return to Pandora; which is an incredibly cool place. I watch movies for EVERYTHING they bring to the table. Not too many movies today have storylines that are unique and can stand on their own anyway. The special effects and the landscape alone make the movie Avatar capable of spawning a sequel or two.
Iam_adam1974

Avatar had the same basic story line as FernGully, the animated family movie, the special effects and 3D just didn't make it a good movie. over hyped piece of crap rip-off! story line from IMDB (The fairy people of FernGully have never seen humans before, but when Christa sees one, Zak, she accidentally shrinks him down to her size. But there is trouble in FernGully, for Zak is part of a logging team who is there to cut down the forest.) sound familiar?
- Anonymous
  
  Since when has "having the same basic story line" as something else been a way to conclude outright that a film is "crap"? If you didn't like the movie, that's cool. But being similar to Ferngully (which was in turn probably similar to other stories we are too young to remember) isn't a big deal. A lot of the films we laud and praise were actually inspired by other works, and sampled whole plots, scenes or even character names and locations. Note the similarities between Star Wars and the novel Dune, written much earlier. http://moongadget.com/origins/dune.html It's really interesting stuff. Or watch "It! The Terror From Beyond Space" (1958) or "Them!" (1954), and be amazed as you recognize whole plot devices and even dialogue that was later re-used in Alien and Aliens.
  - Josh Taylor
    
    None of those movies even come close to coming the exact retelling of previous stories that Avatar was.
    - Jericho
      
      whats Fern Gully?
  - Iam_adam1974
    
    Pulling similarities out of thin air is easy, hell even you and I are similar/ we were born, we eat food, drink water, watch movies and post our opinions about movies and some day we will die. quit copying me! Avatar is a complete rip-off of FernGully and pointing out that plot devices and dialogue from earlier films were used in Alien and Aliens reconfirms that Mr. Cameron has no original thought!
    - Anonymous
      
      Er, Cameron didn't direct "Alien". Best not to lecture others on "thought".
      - Jericho
        
        whats Fern Gully?
Josh Taylor

They could never release a sequel to "Fern Gully in Space" and I would be very very happy.
http://twitter.com/QuanahTweets Quanah

I see you...possibly not getting released.
Guest

Jesus Cameron just make Battle Angel already!
David

Mr James Cameron,please leave fucking avatar! you killed everybody with avatar! just make Battle Angel!
Clocker910

Don't really care that much, sure i'm going to be there in the IMAX 3D line when in it comes out but am i gonna be in there for a great movie, no. I'm gonna be in there to have fun for 2 1/2 hours see some mind blowing visuals and some great 3D. But let's all be honest, Avatar was one of the most over hyped movies of all time. Dialogue, not good, acting, ok for what it was, plot, seen it a hundred times before. I have nothing wrong with just having a whole bunch of action scenes and 3D, but make it enjoyable for me when nothing else is going on, I mean at least Transformers tried to just be a fun, dumb action movie and it pulled it off, but Avatar, only times I was enjoying myself was during the bug action scenes. So yeah, I am not looking forward to this nearly as much as movies with good dialogue, acting, and plot (TDKR, The Hobbit) I will still be there to see some good old fashioned eye candy
Clocker910

sorry *big action scenes, not bug action scenes
whats so good about it

Sorry, hated Avatar, will hate sequel too, depending on what script he decides to steal ( borrow from) but really, apart from the visuals, the story was a tired tale told better in other films. This movie was a masterpiece in hype alone. The marketing for Avatar deserves more awards than the film itself had won. But again, it was a terribly boring and sub-par acted film
- David
  
  it was a terribly boring
Jason

i think this is time for James cameron to leave money and avatarz and start to making "Alita: Battle angel" for his fans....please sir!
Bob

"Mr James cameron" died when made "Titanic" and buried in "pandora".god forgive him and rest in peace....may be an angel called "Alita" save his soul!...