James Cameron Says Avatar Trolls “Shut the F*** Up” After Rewatching the Movie

Avatar: The Way of Water director James Cameron has no time for trolls still talking negatively about the original Avatar movie, which is the highest-grossing film of all time. Avatar opened in 2009, meaning there’s been a long wait for the sequel, which releases in December. And yet, some viewers remain skeptical about whether the film’s story needs to continue at all. Cameron is convinced that these critics are mostly those who barely remember the movie and that they’re typically silenced after revisiting it. That’s pretty convenient since the original Avatar is returning to theaters in September ahead of The Way of Water‘s theatrical debut. 

“The trolls will have it that nobody gives a shit and they can’t remember the characters’ names or one damn thing that happened in the movie,” Cameron tells Empire. “Then they see the movie again and go, ‘Oh, okay, excuse me, let me just shut the fuck up right now.’ So I’m not worried about that.”

Cameron also has no time for people complaining about the movie lengths, especially in the era of streaming television. “I don’t want anybody whining about length when they sit and binge-watch [television] for eight hours,” he says. “I can almost write this part of the review. ‘The agonisingly long three-hour movie…’ It’s like, give me a fucking break. I’ve watched my kids sit and do five one-hour episodes in a row. Here’s the big social paradigm shift that has to happen: it’s okay to get up and go pee.”

It’s understandable that Cameron is as protective of the Avatar films as he is, despite considering handing over the proposed fourth and fifth films to another director. He’s stated that the films are built on a lot of his personal beliefs.

“Everything I need to say about family, about sustainability, about climate, about the natural world, the themes that are important to me in real life and in my cinematic life, I can say on this canvas,” Cameron said. “I got more excited as I went along. Movie four is a corker. It’s a motherfucker. I actually hope I get to make it. But it depends on market forces. Three is in the can so it’s coming out regardless. I really hope that we get to make four and five because it’s one big story, ultimately.”

Avatar: The Way of Water opens in theaters on December 16th. The original Avatar returns to theaters on September 23rd.