Avatar to return to cinemas ahead of sequels, James Cameron suggests

Film was previously the most successful of all time, only to be beaten by Avengers: Endgame this year

Avatar will potentially be re-released ahead of its forthcoming sequels, James Cameron has suggested.

The 2009 film, which has largely fallen out of pop culture memory despite holding the title of the most successful film of all time for nearly a decade, will return to cinemas to remind audiences of its characters and plots.

Cameron told USA Today that a re-release is “under discussion”.

Avatar’s producer Jon Landau also denied speculation that a re-release has been planned so Avatar can once again become the most successful movie of all time, after its record was broken this summer by Avengers: Endgame.

“If [a re-release] can service the release of the sequels, then great. Our focus is on the sequels,” he said. “It’s not about looking back, not trying to overtake.”

Cameron, however, appeared to contradict Landau’s statement and described Avatar’s chances of taking back the box office record “a certainty”.

“But let’s give Endgame their moment and let’s celebrate that people are going to the movie theatre,” he added.

“I don’t want to sound snarky after I took the high road. But they beat us by one quarter of a percent. I did the math in my head while driving in this morning. I think accountants call that a rounding error.”

This week, Cameron revealed that Avatar star Sam Worthington got so into character while filming the first movie that he nearly shot a poodle with a bow-and-arrow on set.

Avatar 2 will be released on 17 December, 2021, followed by Avatar 3 on 22 December, 2023. Two more sequels, scheduled for 2025 and 2027, will begin filming once Avatar 2 and 3 finish post-production.