While the second official image of Avatar: Fire and Ash has just been unveiled, promising a film full of rage, James Cameron talks about this film project which will have nothing to do with the universe of Pandora. We tell you everything!
James Cameron's other big project
In just nine films, James Cameron has risen to the top of contemporary science fiction. From the first two Terminator films to the second installment of the Aliens saga, including Abyss and the Avatar saga, the Canadian filmmaker has continually redefining the rules of blockbuster cinema, making him one of the most important directors of his generation. Moreover, James Cameron is the only director who can boast three films in the top 5 of the most successful in the history of world cinema, one of which won 11 Oscars. With such a track record, the Titanic director is eagerly awaited for each of his projects. There is no doubt that Avatar: Fire and Ash, expected in theaters on December 17, 2025, should also rush to the box office like a bowling ball in a game of skittles.
While he is very committed to the Avatar license, which will end in 2031 with its fifth installment, James Cameron has no intention of remaining a prisoner on the moon of the gas planet Polyphemus and intends to visit other fictional universes. Thus, the filmmaker confirmed to Deadline his desire to direct The Last Train from Hiroshimaas soon as his schedule allows. The film will be an adaptation of the book Ghosts ofHiroshima by Charles Pellegrino, which tells the true story of Tsutomu Yamaguchi - known for being the only man to have survived the two atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. James Cameron, who bought the rights to the book, met Tsutomu Yamaguchi: "I met him in his hospital bed and he was sharing his personal story with us."
Obviously, this project seems particularly ambitious from a technical point of view - since it will require filming two atomic bombings and their aftermath. We remember the challenge that was Christopher Nolan's film Oppenheimer, which won seven Oscars. Moreover, The Last Train from Hiroshima could spark many debates both in the United States and in Japan, particularly on the fundamental question of the hibakusha - the survivors of the atomic bombings who, in addition to suffering the effects of nuclear bombing on their bodies, lived in humiliation and isolation. James Cameron's new project will thus address the main shortcoming of Christopher Nolan's latest film.
While the issue of hibakusha remains a very sensitive one in Japan - some victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki still testify to mistreatment at the hands of the Japanese far right - some works address the subject directly. These include the manga Hiroshima Gen by Keiji Nakazawa - whose importance is often compared to Maus by Art Spiegelman - or the film Black Rain by Shōhei Imamura. More recently, Takashi Yamazaki's Godzilla: Minus One, which reconnected with the anti-nuclear discourse of the first film in the franchise, gave a very strong nod to the hibakusha with a black rain that falls on the inhabitants. In any case, we are very impatient to discover this new project from James Cameron, which could well earn him other awards. What do you think? If you are interested in the subject of the hibakusha, we highly recommend this article published by our colleagues at Cheminez.
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