The mythical world of Pandora is gaining some mega star power.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Kate Winslet has joined the cast of Avatar 2, which is set for a 2020 release. The film will reunite her with her Titanic director, James Cameron.
The original Avatar, starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, and Sigourney Weaver, came out in 2009 and went on to become the highest-grossing film of all time, taking in nearly $2.8 billion. The movie it dethroned? Titanic.
Not much is known about the plot of Avatar 2, but Winslet will be playing a character named Ronal. Weaver told Variety earlier this year that Cameron has been stepping up his game with the sequels (four are planned!): “In my opinion, the three scripts I’ve read so far are many times more amazing than the first one in terms of their scope. He did a lot of the heavy lifting in the first movie, establishing the family and the relationships and the world, and now he really gets to play.”
Kate Winslet & James Cameron: Smooth Sailing to Avatar 2
Though this casting is exciting news for Kate Winslet and Titanic fans, many will likely recall Winslet’s comments about working with James Cameron on the 1997 blockbuster film. Right after the movie’s release, she reportedly told the Los Angeles Times she “would only work for Jim Cameron again for a lot of money.” (She later said her remarks were “misinterpreted.”) Cameron had also reportedly given Winslet a negative nickname on set relating to her weight.
Over the years, though, Winslet framed her experience working on Titanic more positively, as she said in 2012: “Yes, it was hard, but no one ever said it was going to be easy. When all the stories started emerging about how tough it had been and Jim Cameron being mean to everybody and costs over-running, I went, wait a minute, what makes these people think they can speculate about all of this? They weren’t there.”
With Kate Winslet now heading to Pandora and reteaming with James Cameron on another epic tale, it appears both are ready to get to work and make movie magic. As Cameron said about the Oscar-winning actress joining his new film: “Kate and I have been looking for something to do together for twenty years…I can’t wait to see her bring the character of Ronal to life.”