"It’s like when my parents died": James Cameron claims he nearly walked away from Avatar forever before late Jon Landau stepped in to motivate

James Cameron has spoken candidly about the personal and professional toll of losing longtime producing partner Jon Landau, revealing that the grief nearly pushed him away from filmmaking altogether.

In an in-depth interview with The Hollywood Reporter published on December 17, 2025, the Oscar-winning director reflected on Landau’s death last year and the void it left in both his daily work and creative confidence. Cameron and Landau collaborated closely for decades, most notably on Titanic and the Avatar franchise.

Revisiting that loss while promoting Avatar: Fire and Ash, Cameron described a moment of profound disorientation, saying it was comparable to losing his parents.

“It’s like when my parents died. It’s like I’ve got nobody left to be proud of me, or to judge me if I f**k up. There’s an absence there, and there’s no way to fill it"

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James Cameron reveals Jon Ladau kept him from walking away from filmmaking

In conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Cameron confessed that his faith in Avatar wasn't exactly rock-solid when it was first getting off the ground. Even though he's known for making movies that shatter box office records, he admitted he was genuinely worried the whole thing would implode, given the technical challenges and the substantial amount of money involved.

"He believed in Avatar more than I did. I thought, ‘We’re doomed. This is all a giant pile of s**t. I’m never going to work again."

Cameron credited Jon Landau as the steady counterweight to his own skepticism, describing their relationship as one built almost entirely around the work.

"We weren’t friends outside of work in the sense of always hanging out and going bowling together. He had his life, and I had mine, but we met in the work, and it was sublime"

According to Cameron, Landau believed in Avatar even when he did not, providing reassurance during moments when Cameron was convinced the films were headed for failure. The two communicated constantly, sometimes exchanging messages dozens of times a day as they navigated creative and logistical challenges together.

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James Cameron talks about the pressures of making Avatar

According to James Cameron, the Avatar movies were some of the most performance-focused projects he had ever worked on, necessitating protracted rehearsals and intense emotional work before scenes were ever visually rendered.

His doubts were also affected by the enormity of the movies. According to Cameron, early cuts of the upcoming film Fire and Ash ran nearly four hours, which came with its own set of worries.

The Walt Disney Company and James Cameron attend the European Premiere of 20th Century Studios' "Avatar: Fire and Ash" on December 05, 2025, in Boulogne-Billancourt, France. (Image via Getty)

The unfortunate loss of Jon Landau in 2024 significantly changed Cameron's connection to the franchise. The director shared that he added his late friend and collaborator to an email out of instinct soon after Landau's funeral, only to discover later that Landau had passed away.

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How Fire and Ash honors Jon Landau’s legacy

James Cameron has made his tribute to longtime collaborator Jon Landau a visible and intentional part of Avatar: Fire and Ash.

According to PEOPLE's report on December 18, 2025, the film concludes with an “in loving memory” credit dedicated to Landau, accompanied by a headshot, marking his final credited project in the Avatar franchise. Landau, who died of cancer on July 5, 2025, at age 63, was the producer on the series for nearly two decades and was described by James Cameron as the creative force who “held the center” of the Avatar universe.

Avatar: Fire and Ash had its world premiere at the Dolby Theatre, Hollywood, on December 1, 2025, and is showing in theatres across the US from December 19, 2025.

Edited by Devangee