Visionary director James Cameron has confirmed he is ready to conclude the Avatar franchise after the release of Avatar: Fire and Ash (the third film) if its box office performance doesn’t warrant continuing the series. Speaking on The Town podcast, Cameron acknowledged the immense pressure, stating that the film has to make “two metric f**k tons of money to make a profit” to justify the expenses of the planned fourth and fifth installments.
Cameron made it clear that while he is confident the film will make money, the question is if it will make enough money for Disney to greenlight the scheduled sequels (Avatar 4 and Avatar 5 are currently slated for 2029 and 2031).
The Post-Flop Plan: Writing a Book
Crucially, Cameron revealed he has a contingency plan in case the James Cameron Avatar 3 Flop scenario materializes. He confirmed that Fire and Ash is designed to serve as a satisfying conclusion to the story arc of the first three films. If the series ends there theatrically, he said he would “write a book” to resolve the one remaining open thread and give the franchise the final sendoff it deserves.
The director also definitively stated he would “Absolutely not” hand over the director’s chair for the main sequels to another filmmaker, though he may take a producer role if future films are made. Avatar: Fire and Ash is set to hit theaters on December 19, 2025, introducing the aggressive Na’vi tribe known as the Ash People.
