James Cameron has revealed how he cut part of Avatar: The Way of Water because he didn't want to 'fetishize the gun'.
The filmmaker explained parts of the movie were 'too violent', adding that he didn't want to 'fetishize' gun violence in the 'current world'.
He told Esquire Middle East: “I had a bit of a crisis of faith as we were cutting the movie together. It was too violent. I wanted a balance between the beauty, the epiphany, the kind of spiritual aspect of the film, with the action, and I felt it had gotten a little too grim.
“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.
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“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-plus years ago, in our current world. What’s happening with guns in our society turns my stomach.
"I’m happy to be living in New Zealand where they just banned all assault rifles two weeks after that horrific mosque shooting a couple of years ago.”
The Avatar sequel has been a huge hit since it was released in mid-December.
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The film, set 14 years after the original, has been in the works since 2012 but only began shooting in 2017.
The official synopsis for the sequel reads: "Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) have formed a family and are doing everything to stay together.
"However, they must leave their home and explore the regions of Pandora. When an ancient threat resurfaces, Jake must fight a difficult war against the humans."
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Just this week, it was revealed that the movie has hit the $1 billion mark just days after it was released.
The film hit the milestone after its second box office weekend.
Deadline reports that its success at the box office means it's become the third highest grossing film of the year behind Top Gun: Maverick and Jurassic World Dominion in less than two weeks.
The outlet added that the Avatar sequel was expected to cross the $1 billion mark on Tuesday evening (27 December), and Fandango journalist Erik Davis later confirmed it had crossed the milestone.
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Could it surpass the first movie's total of $2.9 billion? We'll have to wait and see...
Topics: Film and TV
Lucy Devine