James Cameron confirms two Avatar sequels

James Cameron has confirmed his plans to create two sequels to his record-grossing 3D sci-fi behemoth Avatar. "It is a rare and remarkable opportunity when a film-maker gets to build a fantasy world, and watch it grow, with the resources and partnership of a global media company," he said.

Cameron was referring to 20th Century Fox who announced that the two films would be shot simultaneously in 2011, with tentative release dates in 2014 and 2015.

Avatar has taken nearly $2.8 billion worldwide and been responsible for a new wave of 3D film-making. Cameron said he would be writing the new films as self-contained stories and that he and his team would "not back off the throttle of Avatar's visual and emotional horsepower".

The award-winning director had previously said he was reluctant to make a sequel before first developing the sophisticated technology he feels is needed to improve upon the original. ·