Draven

3D rightly died (again) as the fad that it always has been. No way it’s coming back.

OldBoy

yea, i'm one of 3D's biggest fans, but not even these movies will bring it back...

Michael Corvin

I'd imagine Cameron has something else up his sleeve which is why it's taken this long to make them.

bluetoast

Let’s be honest. You will be in the theater watching this in 2022.

Jay G.

Is it 2022 now? Can a movie franchise be vaporware?

bluetoast

Yeah, it's August 2022 now. Only 4 more months to go.

Draven

Is it okay if I would rather a great filmmaker like James Cameron make something other than multiple sequels to his most boring movie that the vast majority of the population doesn’t seem to care about anymore?

Josh-da-man

Quentin Tarantino, if an auteur filmmaker can be considered a franchise. The Vega Brothers. Kill Bill 3. Inglorious Basterds sequel, and a few more vague ones (I think he's mentioned things like a film noir gangster film in the past).

And Star Trek could fit the bill, too. It seems like there's always, at any given moment, a Star Trek movie that's in development that never happens. (Planet of the Titans, Starfleet Academy movie, Romulan War movie, Star Trek IV that brings back Kirk's dad, the Tarantino Star Trek movie, etc.)

d2cheer

This will be huge not matter what year it is released. The 8 people on this board do not make up the vast majority. Sorry to break it to you.

Draven

Can’t remember the last time I heard anyone outside of this thread talk about Avatar but I guess we’ll see.

GoldenJCJ

Honestly, even when it was still in theaters, on its way to being the highest grossing movie, I still barely remember many people talking about Avatar. There was obviously the talk about seeing it in 3D but that was about it. Contrast that with Titanic, where it felt like a cultural phenomenon, where people talked about it for months and went back to see it numerous times in the the theater.

It always felt like Avatar snuck in as the all time highest grossing film without anybody really noticing. I mean, someone, somewhere was seeing it multiple times but I don’t know any personally.

OldBoy

It’s weird. So much hatred, yet so much box office. Really is a marvel of a movie in good and bad ways. So divisive, but made bank. Kinda unexplainable phenomena...

Michael Corvin

Was anyone talking about Terminator seven years after it came out?

Koby

Some dvdtalkers seem hellbent on trying to push the narrative that no one remembers or likes Avatar, but that is entirely incorrect. Avatar 2 will make record books, I guarantee it.

OldBoy

I don’t think the 1st Terminator could even be equated to Avatar. T1 was a cult hit that grew after T2 was such a success. T2 was huge in bolstering 1 in this case. Might be only case where a sequel gave life to its predecessor, right or wrong?

Jay G.

Wrong.

I don't see why people have to keep trying to tear down The Terminator. Avatar 2 may be a compelling enough film that it draws in an audience and revitalizes the franchise in public conciousness, but that doesn't have anything to do with The Terminator.

There's also contrary arguments going on: 1) Avatar is still culturally relevant and thus the sequels will be popular, and 2) It doesn't matter that Avatar isn't culturally relevant anymore, because the sequel can revitalize it. It's not possible for both of these to be true, pick a lane.

And I don't really see anyone here "hating on" Avatar. The strongest negative response seems to be a "meh." There do seem to be some people who still really enjoy the film, I guess, and are passionately defending it any way they can. But it's not "pushing a narrative" to give an opinion that the first film wasn't any great shakes, seems largely forgotten, and question the likelihood for the success of the sequels.

Draven

I don’t know. Probably not since movies were a bit harder to rewatch and talk about compared to now.
But I’m talking about Avatar.

Look, I think it’s a boring movie that capitalized on a fad that has disappeared. Why Cameron thinks it’s worthy of multiple sequels in today’s landscape is beyond me.

Hope you enjoy it.

bluetoast

I was really hoping this was going to link to that moment in Commando.

Ash Ketchum

I remember people talking about TERMINATOR, pre-internet, for years after it came out. And the anticipation for T2 was very high. And people were enthusiastic and did talk about it.

I couldn't stomach TITANIC, but everyone else I know who saw it was enthusiastic about it and raved about it, so I understand its success.

I remember people making fun of AVATAR pre-release and I don't remember anyone talking about it positively after it came out except in internet forums like this one. Maybe only this one. I don't remember what the talk was like on Mobius, the only other forum I consistently followed back then. I'm betting it ran hot and cold there.

I have no interest in seeing anything more by Cameron. If there's any large groundswell of enthusiasm for AVATAR 2, outside of this board, I haven't noticed it. Maybe a few diehards on Home Theater Forum, but I haven't checked in with them in years. It's quite possible that there's something in it new and spectacular enough that will ignite Cameron's fanbase and attract other curiosity seekers and propel word-of-mouth activity. Cameron always has tricks up his sleeve. Will that be enough to make back the enormous costs of this thing? I'll be surprised if it did.

Josh-da-man

It seems like a strange comparison. Terminator and T2 both came out decades ago when the pop culture landscape was very different. There are lot of franchises out there competing for dollars and attention these days.

And Avatar, outside of that theme park, just doesn't seem like one of them. There are no toys, no novels, no comic books. It just doesn't come off like a franchise that fires the imagination like Star Wars, Marvel, or Harry Potter. Even a past-its-prime franchise like Alien still has toys being churned regularly.

Outside of that Saturday Night Live thing where made fun of it using the Papyrus font for its title, and this thread where we're debating whether or not anyone still cares about Avatar, I haven't heard anything about it in a decade.

I think the main draws for Avatar in 2009 were its pioneering use of 3D and its immersive special effects. I don't think many walked away from it thinking it was a particularly compelling story, which is what makes me think few are hungry for four sequels. The interest in 3D seems to have cooled down, and every tentpole summer sci-fi movie has Avatar-level special effects these days.

Avatar 2 might come out and be King Shit of Fuck Mountain, but I wouldn't put money on it. I also wouldn't bet against it, either. I don't think it will bomb, but I also don't think it will break any records, either. The word "modest" comes to mind.

Dr. Mantle

It certainly feels like it's too late for an Avatar sequel. Or four.

But Cameron's always been right about what audiences want to see next. Now that he's established the basics of the world, we can delves a little deeper with narrative and characters. And let's be honest, US audiences are becoming less relevant to box office success when it comes to massive budgeted action movies. How do you think the 7th movie in a car racing franchise made 1.5 billion?

Cinephiles and the larger (US) moving going public may not have much excitement for them, but the Avatar sequels are guaranteed to be sizable hits. Following the diminishing returns rule for sequels (2/3rd of the previous one), we can assume number 5 will still make half a billion.

E Unit

I guess sort of a first image? Taking to...Marianne Williamson about “the spirit of Avatar”. He looks to be in an editing room while talking to her about it. I haven’t seen the full YouTube video. And I probably won’t.

Dr. DVD

This is still a thing?

Jay G.

It was postponed to December 16, 2022 in July of last year.

This video I posted here over 3 years ago turned out to be be prescient. Avatar 2 is perpetually just 2-3 years away.

ddrknghtrtns

I don't even know if Avatar is still a thing with the fetish comunities.