james cameron – Snark Food

Avatar 2 and 3 both on the way

I guess it makes sense that the top-grossing movie of all time wouldn’t just disappear into history without a sequel or two – James Cameron has confirmed that he will indeed start work soon on the writing of Avatar 2 and Avatar 3, as he’s signed a contract with 20th Century Fox to direct both films.

Don’t start holding your breath just yet, though – Avatar 2 has a tentative release date of Christmas 2014, and Avatar 3 is scheduled to be released a year after that. Â Cameron says that all three films will have independent story lines and will not be a “set” per se, but that of course fans who see all three films will get a little bit more out of the viewing experience than those who only choose to see one.

Avatar DVD and Blu-Ray Crushes North American Sales Record

James Cameron‘s sci-fi epic Avatar has crushed the North American DVD sales record, selling 4 million DVDs and 2.7 Blu-rays in just four days. Sales of the Avatar DVD and Blu-ray have already brought in over $130 million.

The previous record holder for DVD sales in American and Canada was held by The Dark Knight in 2008. Avatar, which features heavy environmentalism themes, was released on DVD April 22nd to coincide with Earth Day.Â 20th Century Fox says Avatar is the fastest-selling Blu-ray ever.

Avatar (20th Century Fox)

Avatar, which reportedly cost over $300 million to make, is already the highest grossing movie of all time, although some argue the film’s earnings were not adjusted for inflation.

James Cameron says Avatar will be re-released this summer with an additional six minutes of footage. Plans for the Avatar sequel are already underway. Cameron says the film will focus on the ocean of the planet Pandora.

The 3D version of Avatar has not yet been released on DVD or Blu-ray, but Fox says it is on the way sometime in the near future.

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Avatar DVD and Blu-Ray Release Corrupts Earth Day

James Cameron and Twentieth Century Fox apparently couldn’t manage to make the release of Avatar on DVD and Blu-ray into a national holiday, so they decided to borrow one instead. Fox Home Entertainment announced Tuesday the 2-D version of the sci-fi epic film will hit shelves in the U.S. and Canada on April 22, otherwise known as Earth Day. A date for the 3-D version of the film to be released has not yet been announced.

'Avatar' (Twentieth Century Fox)

Since Avatar is all about the nasty commercially-driven Earthlings attacking the nature-loving residents of Pandora, we’re sure they thought it would be fabulously cheesy to release the film on a holiday dedicated to celebrating environmentalism. We just think it’s kind of lame.

Avatar has already earned over $2.6 billion in worldwide ticket sales and the studio will no doubt earn hundreds of millions more from DVD and Blu-ray sales. While we’re out planting trees and picking up trash, the folks behind Avatar will be locked in their corporate high-rises giggling greedily over the growing balance of their bank accounts.

We have a suggestion. How about for every DVD or Blu-ray they sell on Earth Day, they dedicate the profits to an environmental cause instead of using them to line their own overstuffed pockets? That at least might make their use of Earth Day as a corporate marketing tool a little easier to swallow.

>> Previously:Â 82nd Annual Academy Awards Most Watched Oscars in Five Years

82nd Annual Academy Awards Most Watched Oscars in Five Years

Kathyrn Bigelow‘s The Hurt Locker may have been the big winner at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, but the Oscars show itself also claimed a major victory for the night. Sunday night’s Oscars event was the most watched in five years according to Nielsen estimates, drawing in over 41 million viewers for the evening.

Jeff Bridges accepting Oscar for Best Actor (ABC)

ABC’s Red-Carpet Pre-Show also scored a win for the night, pulling in its largest audience since 2007 with over 25 million viewers. Some of the increase in ratings is attributed to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decision to nominate 10 films for Best Picture this year, instead of the usual five. The contentious battle between James Cameron‘s blockbuster film Avatar and Kathyrn Bigelow’s Iraq war drama The Hurt Locker for the top prize also proved a major audience draw.

Luckily for the Academy’s ratings, more than 3 million customers of New York’s Cablevision were able to tune in to the awards show at the last minute. A fee dispute between Cablevision and ABC parent company Walt Disney kept many televisions in the New York area dark until just after the Academy Awards started.

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Academy Awards 2010 Winners List

In case you missed the action at the 82nd annual Academy Awards, we’ve got the complete list of winners from the evening for you. The Hurt Locker led the tally for the evening with six Oscars in total, including best picture and best director.

'The Hurt Locker' (Summit Entertainment)

Best Picture – The Hurt Locker

Best Actress – Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side

Best Actor – Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

Best Supporting Actor – Christopher Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress – Mo’Nique, Precious

Best Director: Kathyrn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

Best Animated Picture: Up

Best Foreign Film – El Secrecto de Sus Ojos (Argentina)

Best Original Screenplay – Geoffrey Fletcher, Precious

Best Adapted Screenplay – Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker

Art Direction – Avatar

Cinematography – Avatar

Sound Mixing – The Hurt Locker

Sound Editing – The Hurt Locker

Film Editing – The Hurt Locker

Visual Effects – Avatar

Costumes – The Young Victoria

Makeup – Star Trek

Best Original Score – Michael Giacchino, Up

Best Original Song” Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett for “The Weary Kind,” Crazy Heart

Documetary – The Cove

Documentary Short – Music by Prudence

Animated Short – Logorama

Live Action Short – The New Tenants

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Avatar Box Office Record Sweep for 7th Straight Week

James Cameron‘s Avatar has topped the weekend box office for the seventh week in a row. The sci-fi epic pulled in an esitamed $30 million for the weekend in the U.S., bringing Avatar within easy striking distance of breaking the domestic box office record currently held by Titanic.

Avatar (20th Century Fox)

Avatar has already broken nearly every other box office record out there, topping Titanic for highest grossing film of all time and taking the record for the highest grossing film world-wide. All that’s left is the U.S. domestic box office record and Avatar is expected to take that one as well within a few days.

Coming in second at the weekend box office was the Mel Gibson thriller Edge of Darkness, with $17.1 million. The romantic comedy When in Rome debuted in third with $12 million, followed by The Tooth Fairy, The Book of Eli and Legion rounding out the top five.

Avatar may seem like an astounding box office success, but adjust for inflation and the film might not even make the top ten. Films like Gone with the Wind, The Graduate and even 101 Dalmations would have topped it at the box office if you adjusted their earnings to today’s dollars, according to Box Office Mojo.

Chris Aronson of 20th Century Fox, however, says comparing box office sales in such a way doesn’t add up. “Back in 1939, the entertainment options were somewhat limited,” Aronson said. “That was a different world, when the only things competing with movies might be radio theater. It’s not a fair comparison.”

Whether or not Avatar can truly be called the biggest money-making film of all time, no one can argue the film’s success at the box office is spectacular. If someone had pitched us the plot for this movie and said it would make over a billion at the box office, we probably would have thought they were totally nuts.

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Avatar Box Office Swamps Titanic Worldwide Record

Avatar has finally overtaken James Cameron‘s previous epic blockbuster Titanic at the worldwide box office. With 1.844 billion in earnings, Avatar is now the highest grossing film of all time.

Avatar (20th Century Fox)

We’re thinking James Cameron is probably feeling pretty full of himself right about now. He shouldn’t feel too cocky though. As Kristina Dorsey of TheDay.com notes: If you were to adjust for inflation, 1939’s Gone with the Wind would still hold the world record. Way back then, the film only made $400 million, but that would translate into a spectacular 6 billion dollars in today’s market.

Avatar has already pushed aside Titanic overseas, becoming the highest earning film in history outside of the U.S. The only Titanic record left for Avatar to beat is conquering the U.S. domestic box office. Titanic still holds the record there with $600.8 million in ticket sales, but Avatar isn’t far behind with over $550 million so far.

Considering the film is only six weeks into release and will probably be lingering in theaters for a while yet, we’re thinking it’s only a matter of time before that record falls as well.

>> Previously:Â Â Avatar Box Office Creeps Up on World Record