We suppose this isn't a total surprise. It was only back in May when the usually chatty James Cameron made it clear that he was only focusing on "Avatar" movies going forward, teasing at the possibility of a fourth entry in his new money-making, technology-busting franchise. "I’m in the 'Avatar' business. Period. That’s it. I’m making 'Avatar 2,' 'Avatar 3,' maybe 'Avatar 4,' " he said. And if this latest report is to be believed, not only is a fourth movie coming, he's also just gonna make all three of the "Avatar" sequels at once.
Over at Showbiz 411, Roger Friedman caught up with Sigourney Weaver at the NYC premiere of the new USA Network show "Political Animals" and asked the actress what she was up to next. And apparently her calendar looks something like this: "she goes right into a new Christopher Durang play for a short run at Lincoln Center. Then she films 'Avatar' 2, 3, and 4 with James Cameron. That’s right: they’re making three sequels to the blue 3D phenom all at the same time." Of course, Weaver couldn't say anything more about her role or how extensive this three-movie shoot would be, only to say, "I just show up."
So, three back-to-back-to-back movies shot by James Cameron? Yeah, we suppose we could see that. These are going to be expensive productions to mount, and we'd wager Fox will want to save every penny they can, and shooting them concurrently makes a bit more sense than building up/breaking down each film as they come along. And given how heavy the CGI will likely be, Cameron can probably have his cast come in as he needs them — not unlike Robert Rodriguez and "Sin City" — to shoot against green screen, coordinating schedules as he needs to.
Of course, this could all be off base, and who knows how this will play out or even when the films will arrive — guess we'll see in the days/weeks/months/years to come. The tentative "Avatar 2" release date for 2014 is already looking unlikely. So while we wait for Cameron and co. to figure this all out, we'll be at the Avastar nightclub (via io9).