Kate Winslet to reunite with James Cameron in 'Avatar' sequels
By Dave McNary
Kate Winslet has come on board James Cameron’s Avatar sequels, reuniting with the director two decades after they collaborated on Titanic.
“Kate and I have been looking for something to do together for 20 years, since our collaboration on Titanic, which was one of the most rewarding of my career,” Cameron said. “I can’t wait to see her bring the character of Ronal to life.”
The four sequels will hit theaters starting on Dec. 18, 2020 for Avatar 2. Avatar 3 will open on Dec. 17, 2021, followed by a three-year break for Avatar 4, set for Dec. 20, 2024. Avatar 5 will then debut on Dec. 19, 2025.
Cameron began filming the first of the four Fox movies last week in California. The creator of the original Avatar — the 2009 fantasy epic that remains the all-time worldwide box office champion with $2.8 billion — first announced plans for four movies in 2016. He had first envisioned two sequels, but after meeting with the screenwriters, artists, and designers, he realized that he had too much material for just two films, initially decided on three sequels, then jumped to four.
Cameron and Jon Landau are producing through their Lightstorm Entertainment company. The returning stars include Zoe Saldana, Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, CCH Pounder, and Stephen Lang, with Game of Thrones star Oona Chaplin recently joining the cast in an unspecified role. The script was written by Cameron with Josh Friedman, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, and Shane Salerno.
Winslet stars with Idris Elba in Fox’s upcoming The Mountain Between Us, which opens Oct. 6, and in Woody Allen’s Wonder Wheel for Amazon, which opens Dec. 1. Recent credits include Collateral Beauty, The Dressmaker and Steve Jobs, for which she received her seventh Academy Award nomination.
Winslet won an Oscar for The Reader and received Oscar nominations for Titanic for her portrayal of Rose DeWitt Bukater, Sense and Sensibility, Iris, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Little Children. The news about Avatar was first reported by Deadline Hollywood.
