New Delhi
James Cameron's 'Avatar: The Way of Water' is currently running in theatres and has crossed $500 million in less than a week. The film, which is a sequel to 2009's science fiction epic 'Avatar' will follow at least three more sequels. And interestingly, the third film is already filmed and Cameron has shot the first act of even the fourth film. Movies being shot simultaneously are not new. But Cameron had a very specific reason for his choice. 'The Way of Water' introduced many younger characters in the form of children of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana).
Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Sigourney Weaver, Jack Champion, James Flatters, and Britain Dalton play the roles of Sully's true-born or adopted children. Apart from Weaver, who is 73, Cameron was apprehensive that the kids would grow up too fast, and would eventually outgrow the story if the production took too long.
Calling it the 'Stranger Things' effect, Cameron told Entertainment Weekly, "I love Stranger Things, but you get the Stranger Things effect where they're supposed to still be in high school, and they look like they're 27. Jack Champion shot up like a weed when we were with him. We shot with Jack when he was 14 and 15, almost up to 16. So we were shooting him over an 18-month period."
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He added, "I was imagining scenarios where we don't go back to work for a year and a half, and we're completely screwed because he's aged out, and then we have to go back and reshoot with another guy. It was like, 'Just hand me the shotgun.' But fortunately, it didn't work out that way. We were able to appeal to the New Zealand government to let in a small group of our key actors so that we could bring the production back."
Meanwhile, 'The Way of Water' has received mostly positive reviews. Wion's review of the film read, "Basically, I have the same complaints with âThe Way of Waterâ that I had with the original âAvatarâ. No one in their right mind would take exception to his vision, but beneath all that eye-candy, the film has a painfully conventional story involving conventional characters told in a traditional Cameron way. The director has never been an impressive deviser of complex, gripping plots and characters beyond surface level. He does have the uncanny ability to build exciting narratives around action set pieces, and 'The Way of Water' is no exception. 'The Way of Water' is, in effect, a typical Cameron movie with all its glories and downfalls."
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