James Cameron reflects on his history with 'Avatar' and what's next for him

James Cameron recently turned 71 as he brought his third "Avatar" film, "Fire and Ash," to the finish line.

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Cameron first began developing "Avatar" more than 30 years ago. He started working on the first film in earnest 20 years ago. Production on "Fire and Ash," which ran concurrently with 2022's "The Way of Water," got underway eight years ago. By any measure, "Avatar" is one of the largest undertakings ever by a filmmaker. It's maybe the only project that could make "Titanic" look like a modest one-off. Cameron has dedicated a huge chunk of his life to it. Now, as he prepares to unveil the latest chapter of his Na'vi opus on Dec. 19, Cameron is approaching what he calls a crossroads.

"As you get older you start to think of time in a slightly different way," Cameron says from his 5,000-acre organic farm in New Zealand. "It's not an infinite resource." Two more "Avatar" films are already written and have release dates, in 2029 and 2031. Right now, though, Cameron is focused on completing "Fire and Ash," which is almost guaranteed to be the biggest movie of the fall. To get "Avatar" - a franchise already worth $5.2 billion in worldwide tickets sales - back in the minds of moviegoers, "The Way of Water" will also be rereleased on Oct. 3.