Kate Winslet agrees to Avatar sequels, which aren’t coming for years anyway

I never saw Avatar, does that make me a bad person? What if I said I never saw it because I never wanted to? So, it remains to be seen if I will catch any of the four Avatar sequels planned, but I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were you. Especially because the first sequel doesn’t arrive until 2020. One person that will catch the sequel is Kate Winslet who it was just announced will be playing the role of Ronal, whoever that is. Of course, outlets are all a-titter because this pairs Kate with her Titanic director James Cameron and that went over so well the first time, surely lightening will strike twice, right? Never mind that there isn’t anything remotely similar about the two movies – it’s Winslet and Cameron together again! And according to Cameron, they are super stoked to work together again! Mm’kay.

Kate Winslet and James Cameron have a little history. Two decades ago she starred in his global juggernaut Titanic, which was the top-grossing film of all time until Cameron’s Avatar came along in 2009. Now the two are reuniting for the first time since the Big Boat sailed — Winslet has signed on for a starring role in the ongoing Avatar adventure at Fox.

“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.”

Production for all four planned Avatar sequels officially began on September 25 in Manhattan Beach, CA. The first film will be released on December 18, 2020. The second sequel will open on December 17, 2021, followed by Avatar 4 in December 20, 2024 and Avatar 5 on December 19, 2025.

[From Deadline]

“Kate and I have been looking for something to do together for 20 years,” is that so? Because 20 years ago, Kate told the LA Times, “I would only work for Jim Cameron again for a lot of money,” in large part because Cameron was such a colossal horse’s @ss on the set of Titanic. He reportedly liked to practically drown his cast and when they they’d get their heads back above water, he’d scream at them. He also assigned cute nicknames for some. As for Kate, who was bullied her whole life for her weight, self-proclaimed women’s champion Cameron called her Kate Weighs-A-Lot. Cameron’s response to Kate’s comments? She was, “just letting off a little steam,” because her career was riding on carrying Titanic. Hmm, that might be part of it but let’s not discount the “Cameron’s a horse’s @ss” part. Later, when Kate commented on how the movie’s signatures (the song, the bow of the boat pose, the sinking) followed her everywhere, Cameron suggested, “it’s been 16 years, like, come on, Kate. Get over it.” She wasn’t even criticizing the movie, she just doesn’t want people singing My Heart Will Go On every time she walks in a room.

However, just five years ago, Kate did change her tune. When the 3D version of Titanic was released in 2012, Kate was asked about Cameron’s behavior and she softened her answer to include the caveat, “Yes, he lost his temper, but he only ever lost his temper for really, really good reasons.” I think it’s all true. I think Titanic was stressful because of its size and the conditions, I think Cameron was wretched on set and thought everyone should just thank him for being a part of his movie and I think he offered Kate a ton of money to work on the Avatar sequel. I know Avatar was popular and I’m sure it was a good film. But honestly, the only way I am going to get excited about its sequel is if they hire Leonardo DiCaprio to play a character named Papyrus.

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