James Cameron Says ‘Avatar’ is “Hideously Expensive,” Warns Future Films Can Only Be Made “in Half the Time for Two-Thirds of the Cost”

James Cameron may have just poured a little cold water on the idea that Avatar 4 and 5 are inevitable — or at the very least, imminent.

In a recent interview on the Empire podcast, Cameron is now saying that the next phase of the franchise is still very much in flux, even as he continues developing ideas for future instalments.

“Avatar 4 and 5 are still floating out there,” he said, explaining that he’s entering a new writing and development phase while also trying to solve the franchise’s biggest problem — the movies are simply too massive, too expensive, and too time-consuming to keep making the same way.

According to Cameron, the goal now is technological reinvention as much as storytelling. He said he wants to make future Avatar films “in half the time for two-thirds of the cost,” adding that it could take “a year or so” just to figure out how to achieve that.  

What’s interesting is how much Cameron’s language has shifted over the last few months. Earlier this year, he described Avatar 4 as “very likely” but stopped short of fully confirming it. 

Earlier reports suggested Disney and Cameron’s team were reassessing the economics of the franchise after “Avatar: Fire and Ash” earned around $1.49 billion worldwide — still enormous by normal standards, but slightly softer compared to the previous films. It doesn’t help that these films costs $400M+ to make.

Disney had initially committed to two more Avatar installments, slated for 2029 and 2031, but the studio doesn’t have any contractual obligation to proceed with them.

If ‘Avatar 4’ comes to pass in 2029, it would only be four years after ‘Fire and Ash,’ which may not allow enough time for the franchise to breathe and for audiences to rebuild excitement. It certainly doesn’t help that Cameron would turn 75 by then, and with the clock ticking, he might not get to pursue some of his other passion projects.