James Cameron called the cost of producing Avatar: The Way of Water “damn expensive.”
In a recent interview with GQ, the director said that the sequel to his 2009 blockbuster — the most successful film of all time — cost so much that he told the studio that it was “the worst business case in the history of cinema.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the budget of “The Way of Water” ranges from $ 350 million (292.4 million pounds) to $ 400 million (334 million pounds), which easily makes it one of the most expensive films of all time, along with “Avengers: Finale” and “Epoch”. Ultron.
Cameron said that in order for the sequel to simply pay off, it must become “the third or fourth highest-grossing film in history.”
“This is your threshold,— he said. “This is your break-even.”
Currently, the third and fourth highest—grossing films of all time are “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and “Avengers: Infinity War”, which collected $2.05 billion (1.72 billion pounds) and $2.04 billion (1.7 billion pounds), respectively.
The first Avatar movie is currently considered the highest-grossing movie of all time with a catch of $2.9 billion (£2.4 billion). “Avengers: Finale” is in second place with $2.79 billion (2.45 billion pounds), and “Titanic” (also filmed by Cameron) is in third place with $2.2 billion (2.19 billion pounds).
Cameron had previously suggested that he might end the Avatar franchise ahead of schedule if the upcoming sequel didn’t have good box office returns. Initially, the director planned to make five films.
“The market may be telling us that we will finish in three months, or we may be half-ready, meaning, ‘OK, let’s finish the story as part of the third film, and not continue indefinitely,’ if it’s just not profitable.” — told the director of Total Film.
“We’re in a different world now than we were even when I was writing this stuff,” he added. “It’s a one-two punch — a pandemic and streaming. Or, on the contrary, maybe we will remind people what going to the theater is.
“This movie definitely does that. The question is, how many people don’t give a shit right now?”
