Disney Almost Made The First Avatar When Fox Was On The Fence
James Cameron is, after all this time, the unquestioned king of blockbuster cinema. Between "Aliens," "Terminator," and "Titanic," the man has kind of done it all. But his biggest achievement and right to wear the crown all stems from his 2009 sci-fi mega-hit "Avatar," which remains the highest-grossing movie of all time. Now, some 13 years later, we're about to see if he can do it again with the long-awaited sequel, "Avatar: The Way of Water." The big difference? It's Disney releasing the sequel this time around, whereas Fox released the original. But thanks to the Disney/Fox merger in 2019, that's all changed. Though, in another near-to-us universe, Disney made the first "Avatar" rather than Fox.
Cameron recently spoke with The Hollywood Reporter for an in-depth profile on "The Way of Water." In the piece, it's revealed Cameron and his longtime producing partner Jon Landau invited Disney CEO Bob Iger, studio chief Dick Cook, and CFO Alan Bergman to their soundstage to watch some "Avatar" test footage. Why, you may ask? Well, at the time, Fox was uncertain about giving the film the green light and Cameron, determined to make it a reality, was courting Disney to make it happen. Bergman, now the chairman of Disney Studios Content, had this to say:
"We walked out of that and we said, 'We have to have it.' Sitting there in that screening room, I'd never seen anything like it. The world, Jake's character. It was so unique."
Disney started negotiations. However, that ultimately sparked Fox to get it in gear and get the deal done. And, in the end, left them with a $2.92 billion hit.
James Cameron gets the last laugh
It would be hard to say that things didn't work out. Fox got itself the biggest hit of all time and a bunch of Oscar nominations to go with it. Cameron got to add yet another monstrous hit to his resume, and one that was building a franchise rather than playing within a pre-existing one. And Disney eventually got to benefit, creating a huge "Avatar" attraction in the form of "Pandora – The World of Avatar" at Disney World. Not to mention the privilege of releasing "The Way of Water" and the three additional sequels that are being planned.
Ultimately, Disney paid more than $71 billion to acquire most of Fox's media assets in one of the biggest media mergers ever. Disney nearly scored Cameron's golden goose and that's something the leadership never forgot. In March 2019, when the Disney/Fox deal closed, Bergman actually met with Cameron and Landau once again. At which point he said, "I said, 'See, Jim, we had to buy the company to get the next Avatar.'" Will that bet pay off? With a massive budget said to be between $350 and $400 million, there's a lot riding on it. That much is certain.
"Avatar: The Way of Water" hits theaters on December 16, 2022.