Jon Landau said Thursday that James Cameron's anticipated follow-up to Avatar is going to be delayed until at least 2015. Landau further revealed that the first of two proposed sequels won't be ready within the next two years.
According to Hollywood Reporter, Landau and Cameron may have outlined the release schedule for the two films, but they neither committed to specify the exact release dates. Despite the fact that Cameron plans to shoot Avatar 2 and 3 back to back, Landau also insisted that each of the film will stand alone. "The next one will kick off where the last one ended,'' Landau said. "But just like Avatar resolved itself and doesn't feel like a setup to another movie, you don't want Avatar 2 to feel like a setup for 3," he explained.
Meanwhile, the Manhattan Beach studio of Cameron is up and running, and Landau stated that the filmmaker has already started coordinating with the New Zealand effects company Weta Digital, which is developing an "underwater motion capture system'' that will allow them to bring to life the oceans of Pandora. Landau, however, insisted that not all of the film will be taking place underwater. Landau said that, "It's going to be like the Floating Mountains in the first movie." He also added, "It's not going to be all underwater; it's going to be a place we go to, leave and come back to."
DNA India reported that the producer of Avatar 2, Jon Landau, has unveiled a drawing of one of the film's characters. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Landau tweeted the early artwork of a rough drawing of the face of a female Avatar character with the caption Avatar 2. Filmmaker James Cameron had said in the past that Avatar 2 will be the first of three sequels, with Zoe Saldana and Sigourney Weaver reprising their roles.
The highest-grossing film of all time, Avatar explored the fictional universe of Pandora. The next film is seen to be released in 2017.