Avatar 4 & 5 may be canceled if Way of Water flops, James Cameron warns

Avatar 4 and 5 could be canceled if Avatar: The Way of Water is a flop at the box office, according to James Cameron.

We’re just under a month away from Avatar 2, the long-awaited sequel to Cameron’s 2009 blockbuster king of the world. Even today, the original Avatar is the highest-grossing movie of all time by some distance.

Hype for The Way of Water is in the air, especially after the IMAX re-release of the first movie outgrossed Don’t Worry Darling in its first weekend, and the new trailer was a proper jaw-dropper.

We’ve learned to never bet against James Cameron – but what if the gamble doesn’t pay off? What if it isn’t a hit? Well, we might never see the fourth and fifth movies, he’s warned.

Avatar 4 & 5 may never be released if Way of Water flops, James Cameron says

Avatar: The Way of Water is the first of four planned sequels in the franchise. The third, fourth, and fifth films are believed to be titled Avatar: The Seed Bearer, Avatar: The Tulkun Rider, and Avatar: The Quest for Eywa, as per BBC News.

While the first movie was an unprecedented hit, Cameron is prepared to close the book on Avatar with the third installment if The Way of Water doesn’t connect with audiences.

20th Century Studios

“The market could be telling us we’re done in three months, or we might be semi-done, meaning: ‘Okay, let’s complete the story within movie three, and not go on endlessly,’ if it’s just not profitable,” he told Total Film.

“We’re in a different world now than we were when I wrote this stuff, even. It’s the one-two punch – the pandemic and streaming.

“Or, conversely, maybe we’ll remind people what going to the theater is all about. This film definitely does that. The question is: how many people give a sh*t now?”

Cameron has been candid about Avatar 2’s box office prospects before. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, he said: “The big issue is: Are we going to make any damn money?

“Big, expensive films have got to make a lot of money. We’re in a new world post-COVID, post-streaming. Maybe those numbers will never be seen again. Who knows? It’s all a big roll of the dice.”

To find out more about Avatar 2, click here.