James Cameron Suggests ‘Avatar’ 4 and 5 Might Not Happen
James Cameron is starting to sound unsure about how far the Avatar series will go. During an appearance on The Town with Matthew Belloni podcast, he talked openly about his worries around the upcoming movie Avatar: Fire and Ash and how the film’s box office results may decide whether parts four and five ever happen.
Cameron said he feels the movie is launching during a tough time for theaters. He mentioned that audiences today are not going out to the movies as much as they used to, adding that attendance is only around three-quarters of what it was before the pandemic.
Streaming has also made things harder, and he believes those two issues together have changed how people watch films. He also joked about the idea of “sequel fatigue,” saying some viewers are quick to dismiss follow-up movies unless they are deeply connected to the characters. In his words, “People tend to dismiss sequels unless it’s the third Lord of the Rings film… but that may not be how the public sees it.”
Money is another major concern. When asked how expensive Fire and Ash was to make, Cameron refused to say the exact amount, but he hinted that the budget was massive. He said, “It is one metric f**** ton of money, which means we have to make two metric f**** tons of money to make a profit.” He added that he believes the movie will make money, but the real question is whether it will make enough to justify continuing the story with two more sequels.
Avatar: Fire and Ash is the third movie in the franchise and was filmed along with The Way of Water in New Zealand. The project took years to finish, partly because of the new underwater performance-capture technology that had to be developed for the series. The movie has been delayed several times and is now planned to premiere in December.
Parts four and five are still planned for release in 2029 and 2031, but Cameron’s recent comments make it clear their future depends heavily on how well the next film performs. The director has wanted to continue the series since the first Avatar came out in 2009, but he now admits that the financial risks are bigger than ever.
From Director James Cameron, watch the trailer for Avatar: Fire and Ash.
— Avatar (@officialavatar) July 28, 2025
Experience the film only in theaters December 19. pic.twitter.com/Y0D4EUGU7x
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