James Cameron revealed one of the ways he’s evolved as a director (Picture: by ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images)
James Cameron has spoken candidly about gun violence in his movies and confessed that his previous flicks may have ‘fetishised’ the weapons.
Revealing that he cut ‘10 minutes of gunplay action’ from Avatar: The Way Of Water, the Oscar-winning director explained that his decision was in part down to lessons he’d learned from his previous films, like The Terminator.
Cameron, 68, also shared his thoughts on the current political climate, adding: ‘What’s happening with guns in our society turns my stomach.’
Speaking to Esquire Middle East, Cameron said: ‘I actually cut about 10 minutes of the movie targeting gunplay action. I wanted to get rid of some of the ugliness, to find a balance between light and dark.
‘You have to have conflict, of course. Violence and action are the same thing, depending on how you look at it. This is the dilemma of every action filmmaker, and I’m known as an action filmmaker.’
He also noted: ‘I look back on some films that I’ve made, and I don’t know if I would want to make that film now. I don’t know if I would want to fetishize the gun, like I did on a couple of Terminator movies 30+ years ago, in our current world.’
Cameron cut ‘10 minutes of gunplay action’ from The Way Of Water (Picture: 20th Century Studios)
The Way of Water features plenty of intense action scenes (Picture: 20th Century Studios)
Released on December 17, it took Way of Water just over a week to make cinema history by smashing past the $1billion mark at the global box office.
Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana and Kate Winslet, Avatar’s sequel was released 13 years after the original film hit the big screen.
It has become the fastest movie to hit the coveted milestone in 2022 – Top Gun: Maverick and Jurassic World Dominion also hit the mark.
Variety reports that the flick has earned more than $317million in the US, and a whopping $712m overseas.
Cameron confessed he may have ‘fetishised’ guns in The Terminator (Picutre: Getty Images)
Only a handful of films have taken in $1b within two weeks of release – with 2019’s Spider-Man: No Way Home among them.
Transporting fans back to Pandora, The Way of Water reunites movie-goers with Jake Sully (Worthington) and his family, whose lives are turned upside down when an old enemy threatens their home with war.
More: Trending
Cameron himself will no doubt be pleased that his much-anticipated sequel did so well at the box office, having previously told Metro that he ‘wasn’t sure’ if the film would be profitable.
Cameron said: ‘I believe in the film. We’re getting a lot of good feedback; it’s working emotionally, it’s working visually, all those things. But is it possible to be profitable? I don’t know. We’re gonna find out.’
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
MORE : Avatar: The Way of Water star Edie Falco thought the film already came out years ago and was a flop
Cameron touched upon his past filmmaking mistakes
