‘Avatar’ director James Cameron recalls cursing exec defending lengthy run-time of 2009 blockbuster

Director James Cameron is very protective of his Avatar franchise, as he reflects on defending the runtime of the record-breaking original 2009 blockbuster Avatar.

In an interview with GQ published Monday, November 21, 2022, Academy Award-winning filmmaker, James Cameron, shared he gave a Fox executive a shut up call amid a heated exchange over the controversial runtime of his movie, via People.

Cameron, 68, recalled that a Fox executive, “who will go unnamed, because this is a really negative review,” came up to him after an early screening of the original movie over its two-hour, 42-minute length.

“I said something I've never said to anybody else in the business," Cameron recounted. “‘I think this movie is going to make all the f-----g money. And when it does, it's going to be too late for you to love the film. The time for you to love the movie is today.’”

He continued, “‘So I’m not asking you to say something that you don't feel, but just know that I will always know that no matter how complimentary you are about the movie in the future when it makes all the money'—and that's exactly what I said, in caps, ALL THE MONEY, not some of the money, all the f-----g money. I said, 'You can't come back to me and compliment the film or chum along and say, ‘Look what we did together. You won't be able to do that.’”

“At that point, that particular studio executive flipped out and went bug s--- on me. And I told him to get the f— out of my office. And that's where it was left,” Cameron said.

The movie went on to break multiple records with its $77,025,481 domestic opening weekend, according to Box Office Mojo. The film has grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide, thanks to multiple theatrical runs since its original 2009 release.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, cinema-goers can expect a runtime of three hours and 10 minutes for Avatar: The Way of Water, which premieres December 16, 2022.