James Cameron Wants To Direct Avatar 4 And 5 Himself

For a long time now, James Cameron has been clear on the scale of his ambitions for the Avatar sequels. He didn’t just imagine a singular follow-up to his 2009 sci-fi original, but envisioned a five-film overall saga, an all-new epic tale on the scale of The Lord Of The Rings, but without existing material to draw from. It is a huge undertaking. And while he’s spent the last 16 years planning the overarching narrative and bringing The Way Of Water and Fire And Ash to life, it has led to some speculation online that he might be ready to hand off the fourth and fifth films to another director.

But as he tells Empire in our world-exclusive Avatar: Fire And Ash issue, he very much plans to still direct Avatar 4 and 5 himself. “I mean, there’s no reason not to,” he says. “I’m healthy, I’m good to go.” Of course, there may be factors out of Cameron’s control that could force his hand, given the intensity of making an Avatar movie. “I’m not going to rule it out,” he caveats. “I mean, I’ve got to make it in a vigorous way, to handle the kind of volume and energy of the work for another six or seven years. You know what I mean? I might not be able to do that.”

If Cameron did assign the final two films elsewhere, it wouldn’t be the first time he bestowed a project to another filmmaker. “I had a great working relationship – and I’m using this as an example, not as an answer – with Robert Rodriguez on Alita,” he says. “He honoured what I had written. We worked very collaboratively.” But all being well, Cameron will be the one to bring the Avatar saga home. “If I can, I’ll just do it,” he states. In Eywa we trust.

Read Empire’s full Avatar: Fire And Ash story – going to Avatar HQ for two days with James Cameron as he works on the film, also featuring fresh cast interviews, never-before-seen images and more – in the September 2025 issue, on sale Thursday 31 July. Pre-order a copy online here. Avatar: Fire And Ash comes to UK cinemas from 19 December.