14 DAY TRIAL // James Cameron’s “Avatar” not only managed to silence critics saying it would never turn a profit, but it also became in as little as a few months the biggest film ever to be made, both in terms of box office grossing and critical reception. As such, talk of a follow-up is more than understandable and it would seem the director himself sees the need for such a project – only that it will not be a sequel and, most importantly, it will not be a film, as MTV News has learned.
Jon Landau, who acted as producer on “Avatar,” says that James Cameron perfectly understands why the fans are asking for more on the blue, yellow-eyed and glowing aliens they saw in the blockbuster film. This way, when thinking about his next project, he came up with the idea of making an “Avatar” prequel – just not a film. Cutting to the chase, Cameron will soon be coming up with a novel that will precede the events in “Avatar,” while also explaining some of the things that were left in mid-air in the film, Landau says.
“Jim is going to write a novel himself. Not a novelization – and there is a distinction. A novelization basically retells the story of the movie. Jim wants to write a novel that is a big, epic story that fills in a lot of things. [We] won’t have time to do [these stories] in the movie, or maybe in sequels, [So the novel will] give a foundation for the world. It would be something that would lead up to telling the story of the movie, but it would go into much more depth about all the stories that we didn’t have time to deal with – like the schoolhouse and Sigourney [Weaver’s character] teaching at the schoolhouse; Jake on Earth and his backstory and how he came here; [the death of] Tommy, Jake’s brother; and Colonel Quaritch, how he ended up there and all that,” Landau states of Cameron’s next project.
“I don’t think Jim has ever written a novel before, but his first step of writing a script is often in a novella format. So this is just expanding that, and I think that he’ll be very adept at it,” Landau goes on to say. Moreover, if the novel proves to be a hit, Landau and Cameron plan on walking in George Lucas’ footsteps and opening the universe to other authors and interpretations as well, the producer also explains for MTV.
What’s even better is that fans will not have to wait 12+ years to see Cameron’s next project, albeit a novel will not be as spectacular an experience as seeing “Avatar” in 3D. As per Landau’s own words, hopes are high the book will be out by the end of the year – so make sure you keep an eye on this space if this has managed to whet your appetite.